Chick Shipping Day Planner
Pick the right day to mail day-old chicks: ship date, expected delivery window, and flags for Sundays, federal holidays, and the 72-hour limit, for this hatch and the next 8 weeks.
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Best for breeders and small hatcheries mailing day-old chicks, ducklings, and other poultry. Updated .
Your hatch and route
USPS Publication 52 (526.32): poultry must be no more than 24 hours old when mailed.
Publication 52 says to avoid a delivery date on a Sunday, a national holiday, or the afternoon before either. Turn Saturday on only if the receiving post office confirms morning pickup.
This hatch
Weekly hatch schedule
| Hatch | Delivery window | Hours | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon, October 19, 2026 | Mon | Wed, October 21, 2026 to Thu, October 22, 2026 | 48 to 72 | Good |
| Mon, October 26, 2026 | Mon | Wed, October 28, 2026 to Thu, October 29, 2026 | 48 to 72 | Good |
| Mon, November 2, 2026 | Mon | Wed, November 4, 2026 to Thu, November 5, 2026 | 48 to 72 | Good |
| Mon, November 9, 2026 | Mon | Thu, November 12, 2026 to Fri, November 13, 2026 | 72 to 96 | Caution Veterans Day falls in transit. A one-day delay would put delivery at 96 hours. |
| Mon, November 16, 2026 | Mon | Wed, November 18, 2026 to Thu, November 19, 2026 | 48 to 72 | Good |
| Mon, November 23, 2026 | Mon | Wed, November 25, 2026 to Fri, November 27, 2026 | 48 to 96 | Caution Delivery lands the day before Thanksgiving Day (Pub 52 says to avoid the afternoon before a holiday). A one-day delay would put delivery at 96 hours. |
| Mon, November 30, 2026 | Mon | Wed, December 2, 2026 to Thu, December 3, 2026 | 48 to 72 | Good |
| Mon, December 7, 2026 | Mon | Wed, December 9, 2026 to Thu, December 10, 2026 | 48 to 72 | Good |
Which hatch day works best this week
Delivery = mailing day + transit days, skipping Sundays, federal holidays, and (unless allowed) Saturdays; the window adds one day of slip. Hours count whole days from hatch, so a Monday hatch delivered Wednesday is 48 hours. Rules from USPS Publication 52 section 526 and the federal holiday schedule as the Postal Service observes it (a Saturday holiday closes on the Saturday, a Sunday holiday on Monday); confirm current service standards and any state import permits with your post office and state veterinarian.
About the chick shipping day planner
The Postal Service will carry day-old chicks, but only inside a tight window: mailed at no more than 24 hours old, delivered within 72 hours of hatch, and never timed to land on a Sunday, a national holiday, or the afternoon before one. This planner takes a hatch date, whether you mail on hatch day or the next morning, the transit days for the destination, and whether Saturday delivery is acceptable, then returns the mailing date, the expected delivery window, the hours from hatch at each end of it, and clear flags where a Sunday, a federal holiday, or the 72-hour limit gets in the way.
Because most hatcheries hatch on the same weekday every week, it also runs the same check on the next 8 weekly hatches and on every weekday of the current week, so you can see at a glance which hatch day and which weeks are safe.
The USPS rules the planner applies
USPS Publication 52, section 526.32, sets the conditions for mailing day-old poultry: the birds must be no more than 24 hours old when mailed, in the original unopened hatchery box marked with the hatching date and hour, and they may be delivered to the addressee within 72 hours of the time of hatching. It also requires that day-old poultry be mailed early enough in the week to avoid a delivery date that falls on a Sunday, a national holiday, or the afternoon before a Sunday or national holiday. Federal holidays follow the U.S. Office of Personnel Management schedule; when a holiday falls on a Saturday the Postal Service stays open the Friday before and closes on the Saturday, so the planner uses the Saturday. A Sunday holiday is observed on Monday.
How the dates are worked out
Mailing date is the hatch date, or the day after it if you mail the next morning. Earliest delivery = mailing date + transit days, moved forward past any Sunday, federal holiday, or Saturday when Saturday delivery is off. The latest delivery adds one more day of slip the same way. Hours from hatch are counted in whole days, so a Monday hatch delivered Wednesday is 48 hours and Thursday is 72. A result is marked avoid when the post office is closed on the mailing day or the earliest delivery is already past 72 hours, caution when a Sunday or holiday sits in transit, delivery lands the day before one, or a one-day slip would pass 72 hours, and good otherwise.
Choosing a hatch day
For two-day destinations, Monday and Tuesday hatches deliver midweek and leave a day of slack; Wednesday hatches deliver Friday with no room for delay; Thursday hatches run into the weekend. Holiday weeks are the ones that catch experienced shippers, which is why the eight-week table exists. Check the receiving post office's hours, use the fastest service available for the route, and remember that many states require a permit or NPIP paperwork for poultry crossing their line. The planner does not check state import rules or carrier service changes.
Worked example
Chicks hatch Monday, October 19, 2026, are mailed on hatch day to a 2-day destination, and Saturday delivery is off. They go out Monday, October 19 and should arrive Wednesday, October 21 to Thursday, October 22, 2026, which is 48 to 72 hours after hatch: good. Across the next 8 Monday hatches, 6 of 8 are good. The November 9 hatch is flagged because Veterans Day (Wednesday, November 11) falls in transit, pushing delivery to Thursday, November 12 to Friday, November 13, 72 to 96 hours. The November 23 hatch lands Wednesday, November 25, the day before Thanksgiving, and a one-day slip would put delivery at 96 hours on Friday, November 27. In the week of October 19, Monday and Tuesday hatches are good; a Wednesday hatch is caution because a slip would reach 120 hours; Thursday is avoid at 96 hours with a Saturday skipped and a Sunday in transit; Friday and Saturday are caution with a Sunday in transit; Sunday is avoid because the post office is closed on the mailing day.
Sources
- United States Postal Service, Publication 52, Hazardous, Restricted, and Perishable Mail, section 526.3 Live, Day-Old Poultry. Poultry must be no more than 24 hours old; may be delivered within 72 hours of hatching; must be mailed early enough to avoid delivery on a Sunday, a national holiday, or the afternoon before either; mailable species include chickens, ducks, emus, geese, guinea birds, partridges, pheasants (April to August), quail, and turkeys. Accessed Sep 4, 2026.
- United States Postal Service, Postal holidays (about.usps.com newsroom events). Lists the eleven 2026 postal holidays with Independence Day on Saturday, July 4, and states that Post Offices will be open on Friday, July 3 with deliveries as normal; the OPM federal holidays page (opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/federal-holidays) supplies the holiday rules and Monday observance of Sunday holidays. Accessed Sep 4, 2026.
This calculator gives planning estimates from the numbers you enter. It is not accounting, tax, veterinary, or legal advice. Replace the defaults with your own farm records whenever you have them.
Frequently asked questions
What day of the week should I ship chicks?
Early in the week. For a two-day destination, a Monday or Tuesday hatch mailed the same day arrives Wednesday or Thursday with a day of slack before the 72-hour limit. Wednesday works only if nothing slips, and Thursday or Friday hatches run into Saturday and Sunday.
How long can day-old chicks be in the mail?
USPS Publication 52 says day-old poultry may be delivered within 72 hours of the time of hatching and must be mailed when no more than 24 hours old. Chicks live on yolk reserves for those first days, which is why the window is 72 hours and not longer.
Does USPS deliver chicks on Saturday?
Saturday is a normal delivery day for many post offices, but Publication 52 tells mailers to avoid a delivery date on the afternoon before a Sunday or holiday. The planner treats Saturday as a non-delivery day unless you turn it on after confirming morning pickup with the receiving post office.
Which holidays stop chick delivery?
Federal holidays, when post offices are closed: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Washington's Birthday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Federal holidays follow the U.S. Office of Personnel Management schedule; when a holiday falls on a Saturday the Postal Service stays open the Friday before and closes on the Saturday, so the planner uses the Saturday, and a Sunday holiday is observed on Monday.
Can I mail ducklings, turkey poults, or quail chicks the same way?
Yes. Publication 52 lists chickens, ducks, emus, geese, guinea birds, partridges, pheasants (April through August only), quail, and turkeys as mailable day-old poultry under the same 24-hour and 72-hour conditions. Poultry vaccinated with live Newcastle virus is not mailable.
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