DragonBearMomma
Songster
First outing, Day 2.
Emma (broody) taught them how to use the waterer & feeder in their kennel first, then did some serious scratching in the dirt floor of the coop (I'm assuming for beginner-sized grit?), and finally led them into the safety pen. I took a video of her finding bigger chunks of feed or scratch and breaking it up for them. It was the coolest thing.
While she was teaching the kids, the parents came by to investigate from the outside. I'm still learning chicken behavior, even after a year, but while the dad seemed inquisitive, the moms were either watching from a distance, or outright ignoring them.
The dark one, a Delaware(f) x White-Crested Polish(m), which my husband has already named 'Pumpkin', managed to squeeze itself through a misshaped chicken wire hole, but Emma stayed right there until I tucked it back into the pen.
The pale one with the black spot on its back is the only one of my 2 Amberlink eggs to hatch. The pale one with the black eyeliner was also a Delaware egg.
I may be seeing things, but I think the Delawares will have strong Polish features, if head shape can be trusted.
I do have one question: The "broody kennel" is in the coop (it's an open-air prefab conversion setup). For the last 2 days, I've closed & locked the kennel door to keep my Delaware from trying to steal the babies. Now that Emma has them up and out, the rest of the flock is blocked from the coop/pen for the day, but will be allowed back in for bed, obviously. Can I keep Emma's kennel open now? Or should I wait until the babies are a few days older?
Emma (broody) taught them how to use the waterer & feeder in their kennel first, then did some serious scratching in the dirt floor of the coop (I'm assuming for beginner-sized grit?), and finally led them into the safety pen. I took a video of her finding bigger chunks of feed or scratch and breaking it up for them. It was the coolest thing.
While she was teaching the kids, the parents came by to investigate from the outside. I'm still learning chicken behavior, even after a year, but while the dad seemed inquisitive, the moms were either watching from a distance, or outright ignoring them.
The dark one, a Delaware(f) x White-Crested Polish(m), which my husband has already named 'Pumpkin', managed to squeeze itself through a misshaped chicken wire hole, but Emma stayed right there until I tucked it back into the pen.
The pale one with the black spot on its back is the only one of my 2 Amberlink eggs to hatch. The pale one with the black eyeliner was also a Delaware egg.
I may be seeing things, but I think the Delawares will have strong Polish features, if head shape can be trusted.
I do have one question: The "broody kennel" is in the coop (it's an open-air prefab conversion setup). For the last 2 days, I've closed & locked the kennel door to keep my Delaware from trying to steal the babies. Now that Emma has them up and out, the rest of the flock is blocked from the coop/pen for the day, but will be allowed back in for bed, obviously. Can I keep Emma's kennel open now? Or should I wait until the babies are a few days older?
