Well, I finally cut "the cord" and let my roosters go to a new home last weekend. It was though to see them go but it wouldn't have been very considerate of me to keep them with neighbors so near by.
BUT we have a fairly large coop and 2 chickens weren't going to keep it warm all on their own so...
Introducing our 5 new baby chicks!
The two bigger ones are Easter Eggers and the three little ones are White Leghorns.
The little gals are about 1 week old. White Leghorns are know to mature faster than most other chickens so I am thinking they might even produce faster than our 3 week old Easter Eggers.
The Leghorns see no reason why they can't do EVERYTHING the Easter Eggers do!
When we picked out the Leghorns they were with a broody hen. I could not believe how many tiny chicks fit under her wings! I was hoping, though not really expecting, that one of our two older gals would take them in the same way. They didn't care to have anything to do with them! So, I gave them a try in the box with the EEs (Easter Eggers) and they took to each other at once! The EEs gently pecked each of them on the beak like they were giving them a kiss and every once in a while I'll find one or two Leghorns under their wings. It's precious!
They certainly eat like they have something to make up for! They act big and tough too, running around pecking on each other or trying to fly away. Sometimes they remind me of the penguins from the movie Madagascar.
At the same time they are just so tiny and fluffy it's crazy!
The Easter Eggers are the more tame of the two breeds. They love to perch on your shoulder and just ride around while they snuggle into your hair. I am hoping that they will stay that way.
Somethings we did different this time around:
1. We know what breed they are!!!
We searched Craigslist and Googled all the different breeds they were selling and the pros and cons of each to find out what we wanted in a chicken. The EEs we wanted for the multicolored eggs and the Leghorns are supposed to lay large eggs on almost a daily basis!
2. We "know" what sex they are!
Again, we searched Craigslist for chicks that had been sexed at a hatchery. Many people here have to order more than they'd like and so they sell off the extras. So all 5 of these gals SHOULD be female!
3. Spending time outside.
We live on a nice sunny hill that's a little warmer than the surrounding area so it's been in the high 70s-80s all week. We have a set up for them in the garage (where these pictures were taken) but they like the small run in the yard to. Most websites recommend not putting your chicks outside until about 5 weeks old but we introduced them earlier this week and they LOVE it!!! They hop and play all over. Of course if it gets cool during the day and at night we bring them in.
So that's our new chicks! And because nothing is sweeter than seeing tiny little animals sleep...
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