Our family has embarked on a new adventure this past week!!
We have been discussing the concept of raising some chickens around here for a number of months now. .
But. .with the events occuring over the last month. .it was dropped.
UNTIL. .
Jeremy took his two best girls on a little shopping trip to replace some dead trees last Friday. .
And THEN we did it. .flashed him our puppy dogs eyes and begged. .
Please, please, please, PLEASE!!
And you have never seen a happier crew!! Cami could hardly STAND the ride home with two little "take out boxes" of chickens nestled next to her on the pickup seat.
And then she and I sat next to their cardboard box in the bathroom (the warmest place in the house, since we found out after we got home that the heat lamp was missing) and she chose each chick, one by meticulous one. .and held her close. .giving snuggles and kisses. Say hello to Chicken Little. .the only one that has a name.
Are they not ADORABLE?!? As soon as Tristan was free, he was also into the chicken box picking them out and up. .
And playing the role of "chicken whisperer." We frequently tell him what a dork he is ;-)
Many times I found myself checking in on the little creatures. .as I prepared for bed Saturday night. .I saw the chicks all snuggle down for a nap of their own. .except for the little chick in the middle. .She, truly, has a personality disorder. She was convinced that SOMEONE should be up keeping her company. .and she would peck each of them on the head until they wiggled enough to open their eyes and look at her.
Finally, and grudgingly. .she settled in too. .not finding anyone to hang out with. But they were awake off and on all night long. .just like having babies!! Hmmm!
We brought home 7 hens and one rooster. Like the 3 roosters I have personally borne. .the testosterone effect comes into play VERY early in life. This little guy spends a LOT of time on top of the waterer overlooking his girls!! I got tickled to see how the girls just sit there, obediently watching. .as if they are taking it all in!!
Easter Sunday was SOOO beautiful, that the kids just couldn't resist taking the babies outside to see what they would do.
They scratched and pecked around in the grass, occasionally finding a small bug to snatch up.
Devin enjoyed helping them out. .and he was digging up worms from my compost pile as fast as he could. I was amazed and amused to watch the small chicks gobble those up!!
Tristan and his friend Braden went on a parts run Saturday and brought home a few more chicks. .so now our flock numbers 12.
They are currently residing in a big cardboard box in my kitchen with a borrowed lamp. Jeremy plans to borrow a small chicken pen for baby chicks from our friend this week. .so we can turn them into that with a heat lamp. Day by day they seem to have less fuzz and more feathers. .and I do believe that they will be pretty little girls really soon!!
I will certainly be keeping you all updated with how our new project progresses. .
Bring on the grasshoppers!!!
We're ready!!
Yard updates will be coming soon!!
Happy Tuesday, ya'll!!
So awesome and so cute. What breed(s) are they? Chickens have funny personalities. They are very entertaining. I love how chicks just sort of collapse, close their eyes and go to sleep. They'll grow fast with all those worms! I am surprised but it makes sense. You have the space and the kids who will eat all those eggs.
ReplyDeleteI have no idea why, but I am absolutely thrilled you have chickens! ;) Just wait until they grow up! I loved going and collecting eggs. They also look like dinosaurs when they are full grown and run. Funny funny creatures!
ReplyDeleteNext..you need a rabbit!! =D Speaking off, do you want some manure? I'm thinking of bagging some up!
Sorry. .I totally forgot to mention that they are a mixture of Bantams and "heavies." The heavies are a bigger bird as I understood from the lady that boxed 'em up! Becky. .I think you are right about the other rooster. .in fact, I'm not so sure we didn't end up with 2 roosters. .but then I'm not really a chicken expert. .so time will tell ;-) And yes, I am ALWAYS game for fresh rabbit dung!!
ReplyDeleteMy kids would LOVE that! Preston is on a big rabbit kick right now and it is just killing him that we don't have a place to house a bunny. We do know the perfect person to hook us up though ;).
ReplyDeleteWe had chickens many years ago and really enjoyed it, especially when we were able to let them free-range. (The dogs did put a stop to that, unfortunately.) The eggs were wonderful.
ReplyDeleteWe've thought about getting back into them, but haven't bestirred ourselves enough to do so!
Have fun!
Please tell me that these cute little creatures are for eggs and lovin' on and NOT for Sunday dinner! They are so cute.. have you named them??
ReplyDeleteOooo, so cute! I am jealous...always have wanted to raise chickens! I'm looking forward to watching them grow. Cami looks so incredibly happy. You will be too, when those chicks eat up all the ticks in your yard. :)
ReplyDeleteChicken whisperer. ha ha