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A Delaware animal shelter is trying to care for and rehome thousands of chicks that survived being left in a postal service truck for three days. Trapped in a warm enclosure, without food

and water, thousands died before they were discovered. The involved parties are still awaiting answers as to how 12,000 chicks were abandoned within the truck at a Delaware mail distribution

center. The United States Postal Service said in an email that it was aware of a process breakdown and was actively investigating what occurred. Pennsylvania-based Freedom Ranger Hatchery

raised the chicks for their weekly distribution to clients across the country, said a spokesperson for the company. Due to biosecurity concerns, the hatchery cannot take the chicks back.

EXPLORE MORE The spokesperson said it would have been best if USPS, after discovering the chicks, had completed delivery, as the recipients would have been adequately equipped to handle the

birds, even malnourished ones. For more than two weeks, the surviving chicks have been nursed and cared for at First State Animal Center and SPCA, said John Parana, executive director. Last

Tuesday, the shelter began offering the birds for adoption, but only a few hundred out of thousands have been picked up. There is no complete count of the chicks, as the shelter has no

feasible way to do so, but Parana estimates there to be more than two thousand available. Some have inquired about buying the birds for meat, but, as a no-kill shelter and SPCA, those were

refused. START AND END YOUR DAY INFORMED WITH OUR NEWSLETTERS Morning Report and Evening Update: Your source for today's top stories THANKS FOR SIGNING UP! The strain has turned the

animal care center into a 24/7 operation and necessitated a staffing increase, Parana said. Money remains the biggest concern for the donation-reliant nonprofit. Some employees have begun

spending their money to support the operations, he added. Among the birds were young turkeys, geese, and quail, but the vast majority were Freedom Ranger chicks. One concern for the shelter,

Parana explained, was the increasing demand for space and feed over time, as Freedom Rangers take about ten weeks to reach maturity. The Delaware Department of Agriculture, after a call

from USPS, directed the animals to the shelter, which shares a memorandum of understanding with the animal center as a state vendor. The department said it is responsible for assisting the

shelter with funds for chickens, the rate was $5 each per day. The department’s chief of planning, Jimmy Kroon, said negotiations were ongoing, but Parana claims that the department

communicated that they had no funds to allocate for the chicks. Both acknowledged the original rate would be unreasonable in the current circumstances. “They said that they’re gonna try to

go after the post office to get recoupment,” Parana said. “That doesn’t help us in the meantime.”