To all fellow poultry enthusiasts:
I have just been on the phone with people at Murray McMurray Hatchery and McFarland Pheasant Farm regarding the decision of Northwest Airlines to quit carrying live poultry. This is a problem that has been developing for some time, and has hit other hatcheries over the past couple of years. Only Continental, Delta, and US Air still are willing to carry poultry, and the fear is that they will soon join the other airlines who are choosing to quit carrying poultry. If this happens, hatcheries which cater to small-time poultry people like us will have to fold. For over 80 years the hatchery industry had depended on the US Mail to deliver chicks to its customers. We are close to seeing this tradition come to an end for all but nearby customers.
The hatcheries want us, their customers, to participate in helping to pressure the powers that be to require the airlines to carry poultry as part of carrying the mail. On the Murray McMurray website <mcmurrayhatchery.com>, select the red alert line at the top of the webpage and add your voice to the many others expressing our concern. By participating at the McMurray website, your message and comments (be sure to add your own comments!!!!) will automatically be multiplied times three and sent to your member of congress and your two US senators. An additional call to the offices of your US representative and senators will dramatically increase the number of contacts they receive, and magnify the voices they hear. Most phone directories have government listings. Look under United States Government, and look for "congressman," "US congressman," "US Senator," etc. Most post offices have these names posted on their bulletin boards, too.

I have arranged for Bill McFarland of McFarland Pheasant Farms <pheasant.com> to speak as a guest on a regional talk show for sportsmen Saturday morning. Call in to shows in your area to help get the word out.

As Murray McMurray himself told me, the small-scale poultry enthusiast is the backbone of their business. They must be able to ship relatively small orders to distant areas to be able to stay in business. They depend on us, and we, of course, depend on them. I urge all of you to participate at the McMurray website and to call your elected representatives to make your voices heard. If the airlines are going to get paid for carrying the mail, they have to carry our mail, too!!! Let them hear it!

One additional note. I misspelled Bill MacFarlane's name in the above post. The web address is correct: <pheasant.com>. Sorry for the mistake.