We've had the chicks almost a week now, so I decided to take a few pictures to see how they have grown. Over the weekend I noticed that they are stretching their wings and trying to fly. I added a wire top to the brooder so that they don't accidently jump or 'fly' out of the brooder.
It took a few days to get them to trust me, but now they eat plain yogurt off my finger and boy do they love it. They circle around and all take turns getting a taste of the yogurt. My youngest son got the courage to try and he thought it was the best thing in the world. He also got up the courage to touch a dried mealworm. My girls haven't taken to the mealworms yet, but given time I think they will. I've got to crunch them up into smaller bits for them. A few brave souls are curious and one pecked at it, but didn't eat it.
Here are the updated pictures:
I've got one baby chick that I'm worried about. She had a crop issue that I was able to resolve. Her neck is crooked and it appears that the wing on her right side is lower than the wind on her left side. I think she may have been injured at the feed store or during shipping or she may have developed wry neck - I'm not sure. I've been monitoring her. She likes to lean up against the side of the brooder. She sleeps more than the other chicks, but is eating, drinking, and pooping normally. Her eyes are clear and there is no sneezing or discharge from her nose... so I don't think that there is any infection. She's been this way for at least 6 days now. When I hold her, she prefers to 'roost' on my finger or sit on my hand. The other chicks mother her - they keep her company and curl up next to her to sleep. When a few of the girls are getting roudy, jumping, flying, etc... a few of the other chicks will go over and hover/protect this chick from getting stepped on. Not one chick is picking on her. Here she is...
03/19/2011
I moved my chicks to a larger brooder (my old dog crate). It seems that they grew really fast and when I came home from work last week they didn't have much room left. Now they have space to run, spread their wings, and practice their flying. Yesterday, I added 2 White Pekin ducks to the family. They seem to be getting along well. Now all to do is to watch them grow, wait for the chicken coop (next weekend, I hope), and for warmer weather. Hard to believe but in a few weeks they'll be outside in their new coop and run instead of the basement.
It took a few days to get them to trust me, but now they eat plain yogurt off my finger and boy do they love it. They circle around and all take turns getting a taste of the yogurt. My youngest son got the courage to try and he thought it was the best thing in the world. He also got up the courage to touch a dried mealworm. My girls haven't taken to the mealworms yet, but given time I think they will. I've got to crunch them up into smaller bits for them. A few brave souls are curious and one pecked at it, but didn't eat it.
Here are the updated pictures:
I've got one baby chick that I'm worried about. She had a crop issue that I was able to resolve. Her neck is crooked and it appears that the wing on her right side is lower than the wind on her left side. I think she may have been injured at the feed store or during shipping or she may have developed wry neck - I'm not sure. I've been monitoring her. She likes to lean up against the side of the brooder. She sleeps more than the other chicks, but is eating, drinking, and pooping normally. Her eyes are clear and there is no sneezing or discharge from her nose... so I don't think that there is any infection. She's been this way for at least 6 days now. When I hold her, she prefers to 'roost' on my finger or sit on my hand. The other chicks mother her - they keep her company and curl up next to her to sleep. When a few of the girls are getting roudy, jumping, flying, etc... a few of the other chicks will go over and hover/protect this chick from getting stepped on. Not one chick is picking on her. Here she is...
03/19/2011
I moved my chicks to a larger brooder (my old dog crate). It seems that they grew really fast and when I came home from work last week they didn't have much room left. Now they have space to run, spread their wings, and practice their flying. Yesterday, I added 2 White Pekin ducks to the family. They seem to be getting along well. Now all to do is to watch them grow, wait for the chicken coop (next weekend, I hope), and for warmer weather. Hard to believe but in a few weeks they'll be outside in their new coop and run instead of the basement.
