Last August my sister bought me four silkie chicks from Paula Sheppard of Windchyme Silkie Breeder. Within a few weeks three of the chicks became very ill and, despite my best efforts to save them (ie vet care at UC Davis Avian Hospital, hand feeding, etc) two of them died. A necropsy at UC Davis Avian Infectious Disease Center determined Mericks disease to be the cause of death. As such my entire flock has been exposed.
Fortunately, the little buff chick responded well to antibiodics and eye treatment and he has made a full recovery. However, I spent over $600 to save him $500 trying to save the other two. It was heartbreaking to nurse them along and still loose them.
Paula told my sister that if we got any roosters, she would take them back. I got two roos. Given my experience, I would never return an animal to her. As it turns out, I LOVE my boys!!! OMG, they are such a hoot. Yes they crow. Yes the scream. But they add a unique dimension to my small flock that is really quite a joy. This has quelled my initial anger a bit.
Paula knew the birds she sold me were sick because a vet from UC Davis contacted her. At present, her website states that she still does not vaccinate. It costs 50 cents to vaccinate against Mericks.
My sister also bought 6 eggs. Since I did not have a broody hen to sit on them, I do not do the incubator route, we returned them. Paula stated that she felt badly about what had happened and that we have a credit, which of course, is laughable and worthless to me. This was a terrible experience that I don't wish to repeat. A 75% sickness rate and 50% mortality rate can't just be bad luck. It's irresponsibility.
A few weeks ago my neighbor decides she wants a snowy call duck. She came across Windchymes web site advertising the duck. I told her not to buy from Paula. Apparently they are difficult to find and she wanted to forge ahead despite my warnings. My sister emailed Paula inquiring about the ducks. Paula responded promptly that yes, she has some and they are $20. My sister emailed back reminding her of the fiasco last year and her credit, which she wanted to use to get the ducks. No response. Several subsequent emails yielded the same non-response.
It would appear that Paula was quite happy to sell the ducks if she would receive cash but lost motivation at the mention of the credit. It's my opinion that a truly caring breeder would be more than happy to do whatever she could in an attempt to "make things right" after what happend.
I don't care about a credit or a refund, which is why my sister never pushed the issue. I do care very much about poor little sick chickens and their plight. Puppy mill v Chicken mill. Both are deplorable.
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