More than 12,000 chicks at a Delaware distribution center were abandoned in a USPS truck for more than three days. Trapped in a warm enclosure, without food and water, thousands died before they were discovered and delivered to a shelter equipped to care for livestock. 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. The strain has turned the animal care center into a 24/7 operation and necessitated a staffing increase, said Parana. Money remains the biggest concern for the donation-reliant nonprofit. Some employees have begun spending their money to support the operations. The Delaware Department of Agriculture directed the animals to the shelter, which shares a memorandum of understanding with the animal center as a state vendor. According to the memorandum, the DDA is responsible for providing funds to assist the shelter — for chickens, the rate was $5 each per day. DDA chief of planning Jimmy Kroon said negotiations were ongoing, but Parana claims that the department had no funds to allocate to the chicks. Both parties acknowledged that the original rate, originally negotiated without considering a sudden truckload of livestock, would be unreasonable. “They said that they’re gonna try to go after the post office to get recoupment,” said Parana. “That doesn’t help us in the meantime.” Last Tuesday, the shelter began offering the chickens 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. 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 can not take the chicks back. The spokesperson said it would have been best if USPS had finished the delivery upon discovery as the recipients would have been adequately equipped to handle the chicks — even malnourished ones. In an email, USPS said they were aware of a process breakdown and were actively investigating the cause.