I think I did chicken math wrong? I mean, I still meant to have just a few but ended up with more...
See, I've experienced a lot of early loss with chicks due to poor breeding of local "chicken swap" folks and a lesser known hatchery (5 of 6 barred rock chicks lost; one DOA and the others gone within 24 hours despite Sav-a-Chik and best efforts). Definitely learned a lesson. Not every chick is gonna make it. That's why they lay so many eggs, right?
When I moved in with my beau and decided to start my own flock, I decided I wanted four EE hens to go with my current EE rooster and EE hen (seen in my avatar). So I ordered 16 EE bitties. Sexed female and vax'd for cocci. Based on my existing not-so-great experiences with not-so-great chick quality, I used the following reasoning behind ordering 16 bitties...
--- I figured I'd lose one or two in shipping, leaving me with 14. Nope. They were all bright eyed and fluffy butts when I opened the box, readily ate and drank and told everyone within earshot just exactly what they thought about their adventures with the postal service.
--- I figured I'd lose roughly half within the first week or so to whatever random misfortune --- sickness, poor breeding, choking on bedding material, etc --- leaving me with seven....Nope. They're pretty smart and have been very hardy. So lively, inquisitive, but cautious and careful. I'm impressed by the difference in quality from a professional hatchery versus "local breeder so-and-so."
--- I figured of the remaining seven, I'd end up with at least three incorrectly sexed chicks, which would leave me with a grand total of four hens. Nope. There is one suspect hidden cockerel based on behavior and a slightly more prominent comb than the other 15 (plus some reddish splashes on the shoulders), but it's still pretty early to tell for sure since they still have plenty of feathering in to do.
All I really wanted was 4 hens that I could raise from bitties so they'd know me and be feathered family... Guess I can pick my favorites to keep and give away or sell the rest, but either way, it looks like I'll be building a bigger coop soon!