Week Two Con'td

Here are the baby chicks at the beginning of week two. The are already beginning to scratch when they eat and roost both on the perch and on top of the little box we put in the hutch. The most adventurous are Thelma and Louise, they love to jump on top of things and check out what is on the other side.

Week Two

Glen and I are working on getting the area for the coop ready. Of course we are obliged to stop and play with some of our other animals as we go along. Our barn cat, Harla is always ready for a belly rub. We have agreed on building the coop onto the back of the barn, facing southwest so it should be dry and sunny. I would like the run area to be big enough to so we can go out in it with them and play with them. Several of the chicks loved to be picked up and the others tolerate it politely. I haven't had them out to see if they will follow me yet, maybe this weekend. I have added a couple of links to websites that I have found helpful in this new adventure. Anyone reading this who is thinking about raising chickens should take a look at them for some good ideas.

What a weekend

We made it through the weekend with no more escapes. The little chicks get fresh food 2 or 3 times a day. They were really making a mess of the water until Glen got wise and put the water up on a piece of wood. Now we have clean fresh water all of the time. Just have to get a chick feeder to see if that helps keep them out of the food dish. The are adorable fuzz balls, and starting to get little wing feathers already. The two breeds we have are Barred Rock and Black Australorps. Some of the chicks just want to take a nap when you hold them, others want to look around and see what's going on. I guess we need to get busy on the hutch, we've decided where it will be and basically what it will look like, now just need to get to work. Our grandson was over this weekend and helped transfer them into the more secure box, he was very careful with each chick he handled and got them all into their new home.

The chicks are here!

The chicks arrived yesterday, we bought them at a local feed store. The six we got are all happy and active. Our kids/grandson have named them: Thelma & Louise, Zena(Warrior Princess), Minnie and Daisy. Chick #6 is going to be named by us for our new grand baby who should arrive sometime end of Nov, early Dec. Last night was eventful, Thelma and Louise escaped confinement, jumped over the side of the bin and squeezed through the bars of the crate. They spent the rest of the night doing whatever baby chicks do when they are on their own. We found them huddled together outside of the crate this morning. I guess today we get a taller bin. More pics to come.

The Chicks

I've found a local feed store who will have chicks in this Thursday. I expect we will be very busy the next couple of days getting ready for their arrival. I plan on keeping them in a large crate in the house until they are older and can be moved outside, it also makes it easier to play with them. I guess we should start on the coop and run area this weekend, what a nice Easter project.

First Entry

I've decided to add chickens to our animal collection. The excuse is to provide eggs for the family but really, they are an easy animal to slip in without my husband getting too upset Since we've never had chickens I suppose this will be an interesting learn as we go experience. The placement for the coop has been selected, now we just need to build. Then there is also the predator protection in the form of secured cage area. This will prevent raccoons, foxes and our own serial killer cat from having a chicken dinner. More to come . . .