It has been one month since those little balls of fluff came into our world. Yesterday, they all moved up in the world - out of their brooder and into the chicken coop. They are almost fully feathered out and that brooder had gotten a bit cramped so this is definitely a step up for them.
They have lots more space, a little yard that has been sectioned off from the larger chicken enclosure, and they seem quite enthusiastic about their new digs. We're still waiting to see what breeds they turn out to be but are able to make some good guesses at some of them.
This one is most likely a Buff Orpington - the only one in the flock which is interesting as it is a very popular egg layer.
This is the bird we nicknamed Blondie, but I think we are going to have to rethink that as she is going to be a pure white.
Tiny, the smallest and slowest of the flock, is still hanging in there. I'm still not sure she is going to make it but so far, so good.
There are lots of reds. We're still waiting to see whether we might have some Rhode Island or New Hampshire Reds in the mix.
Hoot, the owl like chicken, seems that it will be the largest. We think this may be the rare that was included so we're still uncertain of gender though things are looking pretty good for it to be a female.
Feeding time is pretty rowdy as these little ones are consuming huge quantities of food. The adult birds looking on are Buff Orpingtons. One of them is a Momma bird who very well may want to get in with the chicks in order to mother them.
The chicken coop was built by Paul and is perfectly set up for the expanding flock. The front section houses the adult birds (there are a few teenagers in that group - chicks that were born a few weeks before ours arrived) and the rear is sectioned off with chicken wire so that the flock can get used to each other without any unpleasant encounters.
It has been fascinating to watch these babies transform from little fluff balls into miniature birds. They are thrilled with all the space that they now have and will no doubt continue to grow rapidly.
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Comments: 58
(Clears throat)
None of these photos would have been possible if Deb had not stood guard and protected me from the fierce, Tonia eating rooster named Stewart.
Is that good?
Dare I ask if all of them will be kept as egg-providers?
I imagine chickens destined for the dinner table are rarely so well loved, or else they tend not to fulfill their destiny.
My former boss used to bring in dozens of eggs from the chickens at her farm.
:)
I suppose the good news is that I'm not here much.
The bad news is that, when I am here, I'm on your posts, so you have to endure, eh?
You sure do have a variety there. It'll be interesting to see what Hoot turns out to be!
You could have a Buff Orpington or you could have a Buff PR. I never could tell them apart as chicks.
Looks like you might have a couple partridge rocks or dark cornish in the mix as well.
I miss having chickens. I hereby internet adopt one of your chickens :0) They look happy and healthy!
I'm just trying to figure out how you weren't sure what flavors you were getting.
Thanks so much for sharing with my group.
Oh, these chicken coops brings back some old memories of visits to my husbands eccentric grandfather William who raised fighting cocks (they were of course illegal here in Illinois, and it did not matter to the old coot). He lived in the outskirts of town and had some fierce game cocks that lived in coops just like these... and they were trained and pampered like nothing I've seen before! Everybody knew what he was up to. :-)
The cops knew it, too... they should have known better than to turn a blind eye... Go figure!
I agree with you... I always thought it was a barbaric sport. In my country, it was considered a cultural part of our heritage--- something the Spaniards taught us. It is now banned in most parts of the country except for some outlying areas where cockfights are still held illegally and in secret locations. It won't completely disappear until the elite gamblers stop funding these illicit affairs with enormous amounts of cash that tempt the poor people into staging more fights with the poor, trained birds. :-(
I'm sending your article to a friend who raises chickens on her suburban property.
I'll be interested to know if your friend has any comments about this.
And I can say from personal experience that Madame D is not evil, just fixated on her world of food. As a fellow carnivore, I do understand, as the best chicken I've ever eaten has been free range, like these. Deb and I have talked about whether either of us could harvest a chicken if it was necessary. I'm not sure but wouldn't say absolutely not.
I think that the feed these chicks are eating contain vitamins, and they get tons of organic produce from the garden so really it's a matter of seeing whether she starts to take off.
I know this will sound strange, but how do they know they are all female when they send them to you? (or do they?)
I've had to come to terms with a lot of harsher realities living here in Arkansas, a place where a portion of the food that lands on our tables is produced. The cattle all around us will eventually become someone's dinner as these are beef not dairy herds. I see them living naturally though and am glad that for at least part of their lives they have the freedom to just be a cow.
Nice to see. Thanks you two.
my flock is a mere 3, pets to help eat bugs and fertilize my organic gardening aproach..well that is what I am saying to keep any "no chickens allowed" idiots out of my corner of the woods...but they are pets only...we will harvest any eggs but that is it...
we have been hand raising our three so that they stay close to us when outside...you know the buddyplan for the garden...and so that we might take them to our pioneer gatherings with us...
Our chicks are now 2 months and few days old....