“I ordered a box of live canaries. I received a box of dead birds. There were bits coming out.”

So spoke Rhonda King, a bird lover from Alabama, who ordered herself a shipment of canaries as a 60th birthday gift, only to be left more than disappointed.

The hairdresser from the town of Grant, near Huntsville, told The Independent she ordered six of the birds in early December, from a bird specialist in Texas.

The USPS has offered to replace the birds (AP)

She said the seller had dispatched them using boxes approved by United States Postal Service (USPS), and using overnight delivery. But nothing arrived.

Three days later, Ms King was at her salon, Above A Cut At Rhonda’s, when a postman arrived with a package for her.

“He came in carrying a box of dead birds,” she said. “I ordered six canaries, and I ended up with carnage.”

Ms King said she had always loved birds, and had raised ducks and geese. Once, she kept a pet parrot, but had to find an alternative home for it, when it became too aggressive. Canaries, she said, were gentler in nature and sang beautifully.

A spokeswoman for the USPS told Al.com that the agency would reimburse Ms King and issue an apology. As it was, Ms King instead opted for an offer from the USPS to replace the birds.