Terms & Conditions

​Thanks for choosing Spring Creek Heritage Farms. Our goal is to give your order care and attention and to answer your questions in an honest and timely fashion as well as providing you with the best in rare and lost heritage genetics. Our birds will not only be rare, we will do our best to provide stock that will thrive and be an asset to your farm and pocketbook, not just a quick fad or the latest color.

Please keep in mind that we are busy tending to animals and crops so some years it’s more challenging than others.  We limit the sales of chicks each year to allow for our large breeding programs.  Our breeders are raised on pasture in a myriad of conditions found in the Pacific Northwest.  Each year we select a small fraction of birds to be in subsequent breeding programs.

Our great great grandparent breeders are housed under cover to provide a bio secure setting to ensure the health and genetics are not lost.

From time to time, we will raise juvenile birds for backyard chicken hobbyists to raise awareness within the community about what exactly we do.

Our birds should be quarantined a minimum of 30 days after they have been shipped through the US mail.  Our birds are tested in their country of origin before being evaluated upon importation by a USDA accredited veterinarian and then tested again by the State in order to accommodate interstate commerce.

We test bi-yearly with the National Poultry Improvement Program. If you would like a USDA NPIP 9-3 form with your order please let us know.

Visits to the farm: Day at the farm is not allowed. Shoes and vehicle tires are a pathway for contamination. We have worked extremely hard and value our flocks as part of our extended family.  Our housed breeders even have the luxury of central cooling system, we do not!

Ordering:  Typically 3-8 week lead time is needed to fill orders once the season officially starts. 50% deposit is required so we can process your order.  Since we are a small chicken preservation family farm, not a big hatchery, we cannot fill all the orders all at once; it will be first come, first served and it will be based on all the customers in the queue. You have to order within season as we cannot guarantee specific hatch dates since we cannot guarantee the hatch rate or laying rate of each of our hens. We will get to everyone who sent in their order in the succession that we received deposits. We ask for your patience in order to provide you with the best possible dual-purpose poultry available.

We ship chicks and limited-time-offer hatching eggs all across the Continental USA.

Shipping via USPS.  Pricing for smaller orders of under 25 chicks is an estimated non-refundable rate of $50.00.  In some instances, like in rural areas, additional fees may apply.  Due to new USPS guidelines, Express shipping is now required for all live bird shipments which may mean an additional charge for some zip codes. Shipping pullets will be higher in cost than shipping chicks since we will be using a bigger box, specially designed for older birds. We will notify you prior to shipping if there are price changes or additional fees for your review and approval.

​For international shipping (Mexico, Canada, Philippines) or larger orders, please inquire for pricing.

Chicks are shipped weekly as weather allows.

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Chicks: Minimum order is for 3 chicks in the summer months. Spring and fall minimum is 6 chicks. Chicks are sold straight run unless otherwise stated. 

Shipping Chicks and/or Juvenile Birds: Because we are a small family farm focusing on chicken preservation, not a hatchery, it takes us countless hours to ship you one small box of chicks. If you decide to ship those chicks, that is your choice, and we will do everything within our power to assure they make it safe. You must use sound judgment when ordering. We have an arrive-alive policy and also, our farm manager Matt takes good care in making sure the chicks get the best chance for safe travels.  He makes sure the weather is warm enough before he starts shipping.  He usually checks the weather night before shipping and adjusts the box venting according to the temperature of the birds' destination. He will only ship if the weather will be safe for the birds.  And he packs them with feed and Hydrogel; sometimes he will also add apple or orange slices for the trip. We guarantee the birds to arrive alive.  In the unlikely event of a catastrophe, please don't forget to take down the name of the USPS personnel that saw the contents in question. Pictures must also be provided, and we will issue a credit to be used with us for future purchases based on your evidentiary claim less the shipping costs.  Shipping is nonrefundable. Failure to provide the name of the USPS personnel and the proper photo documentation may result in the forfeiture of the arrive-alive guarantee.

Vaccination: Chicks will be vaccinated against Marek's unless otherwise requested by the customer. If you prefer unvaccinated chicks, please indicate it in the comments section of your order form. We choose not to vaccinate our breeders. 

Hatching Eggs: Not available, we specialize in day old chicks and backyard chickens. Exceptions: there are a few instances when we ship hatching eggs. Instance #1 try it before you buy it auctions available for January winter shipping only. Instance #2 remote areas that are unable to receive shipments via USPS.  Instance #3 are our additional eggs produced during off seasons where chick housing is limited.
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If we do sell and/or ship eggs to you, we will do our best to properly care for the embryos through every step from collection through shipping, or in the case of local orders, through pick-up time. However, once shipped or picked up, we offer no guarantees or replacements on any egg whether it's broken, shaken, stirred or any other circumstances. While we do our best to care for and/or ship the eggs, we cannot guarantee your hatch rates.  Once package is in the care of the United States Postal Service or the courier service company chosen like UPS or FedEx or in the case of local orders, once in your care, it is your responsibility.

Rainbow Egg Layer Pack.  The Rainbow Egg Layer Pack birds will be vaccinated against Marek's.  Rarely do roosters accidentally get mixed in this offer.  We will do our best to provide you with female chicks or with juvenile feathered pullets.  In the rare event that you get a male chick or a cockerel, we will have a female chick or a started juvenile pullet ready for you during our next availability date.  If there is no replacement available at the time that you discover that you have a rooster, you can wait for the next availability date, or we can reimburse you the original cost of the chick or the started juvenile pullet that you purchased. A photo of the accidental rooster must be provided to avail of the guarantee.

​For more information such as our Rainbow Pack out-of-state order guidelines and other details, please go to our Available Now page or our Rainbow Egg Layer Pack and Backyard Hens page. 

Cancellations:  We do not issue refunds, but we do offer credits for future purchases if you should change your mind once you’ve confirmed your order.  Your order is considered confirmed once you've sent in your order form and 50% deposit. In the event that we cannot fill your order within the entire duration of the season, a full refund will be issued.  We reserve the right to cancel at any time.  Refunds can take up to 4 weeks to process and we usually send it via check in the mail.

If you decide to cancel your order, your credit can also be used to purchase other products that we offer aside from live birds. We have table eggs, seasonal fruits and veggies, Bellingham Sweet Corn in the summer; from time to time, we also have custom mix non-GMO feeds (starter, grower, layer mash), USDA pastured artisan chicken for the table, no-corn/no-soy non-GMO USDA processed pastured Kunekune pork etc.. You can view our meat shop/produce web pages for all our other products aside from live birds.

Pictures:  The birds pictured on our website and on our listings in various auction sites are our original photos unless otherwise specified.  They are from our breeding programs and meant only as a visual guide.  They may vary by year and breed.  The pictures are our property and cannot be reproduced without express written consent.

Once you are ready to order, please email us and we will send you a link to our online order form page. You can also access it directly by visiting our online form web page.