While thousands of innocent baby chicks were left to die in a USPS truck for THREE DAYS, not a single federal worker has been held accountable for this mass killing that overwhelmed a Delaware animal shelter.
At a Glance
- Approximately 4,000 chicks died and 10,000 survived after being abandoned in a USPS truck for three days without food, water, or temperature control
- The Postal Service callously referred to the massive shipment as “an undeliverable box of baby birds” while offering no immediate accountability
- First State Animal Center and SPCA in Delaware is now burdened with caring for the survivors, with the government failing to provide adequate financial support
- The Department of Agriculture is “attempting” to seek recoupment from USPS, but shelter workers are forced to use personal funds to care for the birds
- The shipping catastrophe has hurt small family farms across America that were counting on these birds for their summer schedules
Another Government Service Failure Leads to Mass Death
Remember when the government told us they needed to be in charge of more aspects of our lives because they’re so competent and caring? Well, add “delivering baby chicks” to the long list of basic tasks our bloated bureaucracy has catastrophically bungled. On May 2, thousands of day-old chicks were discovered abandoned in a United States Postal Service truck in Delaware after being left there for THREE DAYS. The birds were part of a routine shipment from Pennsylvania’s Freedom Ranger Hatchery that was sent on April 29 but never made it to their destination because the ever-efficient postal service just… forgot about them.
The Delaware Department of Agriculture was informed by the Postal Service about what they nonchalantly described as an “undeliverable box of baby birds.” Box? SINGULAR? There were THOUSANDS of birds left to suffer and die! The department and staff from the First State Animal Center and SPCA arrived to find a scene of horror – approximately 4,000 chicks already dead and 10,000 barely hanging on. The survivors, mostly Freedom Ranger chicks along with some turkeys, geese, and quail, had been abandoned “without water, food or temperature control” according to the shelter.
Shelter Left Holding the Bag (of Chicks)
In classic government fashion, the Delaware Department of Agriculture directed the animals to the already resource-strapped shelter without providing immediate financial aid. John Parana from the shelter didn’t mince words about the gruesome scene they encountered: “After three and a half days in the heat, these crates were wet with dead fowl. It was a mess.” Now the shelter, which normally handles dogs and cats, has been transformed into a 24/7 chicken nursery. Staff are working around the clock, with some even dipping into their own pockets to keep these innocent creatures alive.
While bureaucrats shuffle papers and “negotiate” over who should pay, the shelter put the birds up for adoption on May 13, but most remain unclaimed. Adding insult to injury, the hatchery can’t take the birds back due to biosecurity concerns, leaving the shelter in an impossible position.
The “We’ll Get Back to You” Response
The USPS – you know, the organization our government thinks should handle even more of our mail-in ballots – has acknowledged a “process breakdown” and is “investigating.” Translation: Nobody will be fired, no meaningful changes will occur, and taxpayers will foot the bill for this disaster. Meanwhile, the Department of Agriculture initially had the audacity to set a rate of $5 per chicken per day for the shelter, as if they’re running some kind of chicken hotel instead of cleaning up the government’s mess.
“They said that they’re gonna try to go after the post office to get recoupment. That doesn’t help us in the meantime,” explained Parana about the bureaucratic runaround they’re getting. This is the perfect metaphor for how our government operates – create a problem, promise to fix it someday, and leave the little guy holding the bag while they “investigate” forever.
Small Farms Pay the Price
While the media focuses on the shelter’s plight, what about the farmers who ordered these birds? Freedom Ranger Hatchery didn’t mince words about the impact: “This shipment was part of a routine shipment that never reached its intended destination due to USPS error. This loss has compounding effects with the many small family farms across America that were counting on these birds for their summer grow out schedules. We have not gotten any clear answers from the post office about this situation. We are unsure if we will receive any compensation for the loss.”
So there you have it, folks – the same postal service that delivers your mail three days late and loses your packages is responsible for the deaths of 4,000 innocent animals. The same government that claims it can efficiently manage healthcare, education, and the environment can’t even deliver chickens without a mass casualty event. And while private shipping companies like UPS and FedEx have strict accountability measures, when the USPS fails catastrophically, they just shrug and set up a committee to “investigate.” This is your tax dollars at work – killing chicks and leaving the mess for someone else to clean up.
