I am so sorry for your losses. It breaks my heart to lose them. I learned they can go from healthy to gone in a hurry. I am glad you were able to nurse one back. I saw poops like that as well. I will pray for healthy chicks for you!!
! Anyone else got a fun story to share about bonding with their chicks?Nothing that adorable, but I have one poult who is getting used to pets. She (he?) has started squatting in front of me, back facing me when I’m in the enclosure so I can pet her. If I move, she’ll sometimes follow me and squat back down again. I love it!So I have been spending time with my chicks and we have all but one who when we open the pen (take the cover off) who will fly to the ledge. But we have one whom we have named Red (no reason other than she has a red band on her leg lol) who will fly to me and then cuddle down into my arms and go to sleep. She does this every time. I think it is the cutest thing. She has recently started asking for neck scratches by extending her neck under my thumb and rubbing. I think she is going to be our lap chicken (not what I was expecting
This weekend we are back again. It’s been high of 80 I would say it’s 75 or so and sunny when we go out at like 10am. They stay until after lunch but then it’s 80 and even in the shaded areas sometimes they are panting, so we go inside before it’s too hot. Then they go out again when my side yard is shaded from about 4 until 7:30.
We have one that liked to be pet from head to tail down her back, but less now that we just got back from FL. I have one buff that always jumps on my lap if I squat down, then she hops on my shoulder, she still tends to peck my ear every other time. I have a black Easter egger that often jumps on my shoulder too. I moved them to a bigger enclosure because we have no progress on the coop.So I have been spending time with my chicks and we have all but one who when we open the pen (take the cover off) who will fly to the ledge. But we have one whom we have named Red (no reason other than she has a red band on her leg lol) who will fly to me and then cuddle down into my arms and go to sleep. She does this every time. I think it is the cutest thing. She has recently started asking for neck scratches by extending her neck under my thumb and rubbing. I think she is going to be our lap chicken (not what I was expecting
) all seem healthy. The brooder was ready yesterday, so the electrolyte solution was warm and clearly inviting, as the first few in the brooder were drinking before I even got them all out of the shipping box.
But after I looked closer, I realized it was probably just marking the boy, since he is clearly different color from the other 3 BRs. So, whew!How are your babies?My chicks are here!
The hatched Mon, and then I signed up for shipping notifications. Which I obsessed over. They gave me false hope Mon night by saying they would arrive by 9pm last night. I kept my boots on till 11pm, for goodness sake, when they finally told me the chicks had only made it to 2 distribution centers away.
So I "slept" on the couch (afraid I would sleep thru the phone if the call came in the middle of the night). Every time I got an update, I was wide awake, worrying because our temps were below freezing, and fretting over the poor lil bebes bouncing around in a cold truck.
Ugh. I'm so tired now.
But my local PO called at 7:06am (I was dressed and ready for the call at 5am ) Heated the seat and had a fluffy towel to keep out wind for the 10min drive home. Haha.
But (so far
We ordered 3 pullets each of RIR, Austrolorps, SLW, BR, and New Hampshires, plus one BR roo. Cackle sent us 3 extra chicks too. Since I am still uber new at IDing chick breeds, I am not 100% on the darker ones, but I know there is an extra Hampshire, and I think an extra BR and SLW.
One of the BRs has a red smudge on his noggin, and at first I thought he was wounded.
We plan to be helicopter parents for a few days, but honestly, I am truly impressed at how healthy the chicks are right now. Maybe I read too many horror stories, but I was braced to find dead chicks. There are only a few tiny smudges on their fluffy butts, but nothing more than that so far. And they all dipped into the nectar immediately, then went for the crumble right after.
So far, so good.. I will keep you updated if anything changes, but I wanted to add a positive voice for Cackle Hatchery. They sent lovely, healthy, & active little chicks.
