5-year Old Hand-rearing an Orphaned Chick and Learning from It

[centrarchid]

Following pictures represent the the last week where both my kids left to stay with family in Indiana. It was the first time either kid spent more that 18 hours away from both parents. Chick then became solely my responsibility. Photographs were taken about shortly after dawn.

Over a stretch of four days the chick and I spent 4 to 6 hours each day in the GroExhibit of the St. Louis Science Center. I volunteered time helping with their chicken chat.

Dust bathing in rather wet garden soil with very high organic matter content.

Outside their chicken pen which is where we operated the most.

Their fancy coop designed to look like a spacecraft designed to land in low gravity body lacking atmosphere.

We getting close ground strikes here. Dogs just came in.

 

[centrarchid]

Now we are getting hammered by a storm with hail. Hopefully no tornado this time

 

[drumstick diva]

hope you will be safe

 

[centrarchid]

We are setting up so we effectively have four poultry yards at same time. Two closest to house will support flocks used for educational purposes and a little experimentation. For latter purpose I need birds on mowed grass so I can see what goes on.
Ty will be kept in the orchard area with four other chicks and a stag that will be held for potential long-term use by science center. He, daughter and dogs settling into new arrangement.
English Shepherd is becoming daughters best friend.

German Pointer is clearly my best friend.

This site has been used for quarantine in past as a good 75 yards from closest location with chickens. With a little messing around we should be able to get so flocks have home ranges that do not overlap.

 

[Mimi13]

a good 75 yards from closest location with chickens.

so flocks have home ranges that do not overlap.

Does this distance usually keep flocks separate? I have only one flock with several sub flocks (due to age differences). All of my older birds will range over 5 acres every day. They usually break off into 4-5 in a group. My 12 little 9 weekers usually stay within 50 or so yards of the coop/run. I guess I would have thought that chickens within that range would find each other. That is interesting.

 

[centrarchid]

It works when insect forages are very abundant. If conditions were drier or later in season, more distance needed. We also have natural boundaries they birds adopt.

 

[Mimi13]

It works when insect forages are very abundant. If conditions were drier or later in season, more distance needed. We also have natural boundaries they birds adopt.

Cool. Thanks.

 

[centrarchid]

Kids had to bring Ty in early today because of storm front coming in.

We have an established pattern now. Ty sleeps in a 5-gallon bucket overnight. About dawn I take him out to stay in pen under grape vines until we get home from work. During day his food intake is restricted to a mix of chick starter and parakeet feed. Upon release he gets into eating insects and greens. Ty promptly walks to house where concentrates foraging activity within a 10-foot band around house for the next 3 hours or so. It takes very little time to fill his crop. Until it gets dark he is on his own. Then he comes to either me or one of the kids and flies up on to hour shoulders and does the little twitter peck bit as he tries to get under our hair. Then he is placed back into bucket for night. He is now rock solid in terms of muscle development.

 

[centrarchid]

Off topic but kids and I just chased a swarm of honey bees almost 3/4 in direction kids are looking in below. We had to dodge a pond, cross two roads, and skirt a fence. Swarm flew at speed of a good jog. We lost them when they flew over a 80 plus acre woods. Then we had to discuss how bees reproduce. Dogs also came along. Neighbors now know we are nuts.

Daughter found the chick is eating a lot of toadlets and froglets. To point of crop fill.

 

[centrarchid]

Bird now a juvenile. Still behind on size. Kids will be home shortly after being gone for nearly 3 weeks. Daughter, now 6, wants to know how much he ways. Bird developed a strong relationship with young dog behind him. They slowly walk yard together where bird catches grasshoppers. Bird has a lot of miles on it and has been petted by literally thousands of kids.