Chicks for the first Time

[Jeanna Marie]

True!

 

[duckhunternate]

Another first timer here. Can't hardly wait. I'm getting my 10 Buckeye chicks tomorrow afternoon. I've got my brooder box setup and am just waiting for those little buggers. I'm excited about the possibilities, looking forward to having eggs and a little meat, and can't wait to see my kids working with them (2 girls and a boy from 5yo down to 6mos). It's a new adventure and I'm beside myself with anticipation.

Thanks for all the advice on this thread everyone; I've picked up a lot of good information here that I will be using in the coming weeks and months.

Have a great day!
Nate

 

[one old chick]

hey all, my girls and little roo are now 5 weeks old. i moved them into the barn last weekend. they love it. i am still leaving the heat lamp on bacause we haven't gotten above 40 at night yet. ;( but i expanded the area they have access to so they can move away from the light during the day. my little rooster is starting to assert himself as the leader of the flock. he's so funny, if the hens challenge his authority he pecks them once on the head. funniest thing i've ever seen. i haven't seen a hen yet that had to be pecked more than once. LOL we are erecting our real coop this week coming. we originally got the chicks for future natural bug and tick control. we wanted one rooster to watch over the hens. i have already warned the neighbors of the rooster. we are zoned agricultural and roosters are allowed but we wanted to be curtious and one is certainly enough LOL. hopefully our guy won't be to noisy. i cannot believe how fast they grow. i have my name on a list at the local feed store for 6 guinea fowl due in june can't wait!

 

[kynewbchickie]

hey all, my girls and little roo are now 5 weeks old. i moved them into the barn last weekend. they love it. i am still leaving the heat lamp on bacause we haven't gotten above 40 at night yet. ;( but i expanded the area they have access to so they can move away from the light during the day. my little rooster is starting to assert himself as the leader of the flock. he's so funny, if the hens challenge his authority he pecks them once on the head. funniest thing i've ever seen. i haven't seen a hen yet that had to be pecked more than once. LOL we are erecting our real coop this week coming. we originally got the chicks for future natural bug and tick control. we wanted one rooster to watch over the hens. i have already warned the neighbors of the rooster. we are zoned agricultural and roosters are allowed but we wanted to be curtious and one is certainly enough LOL. hopefully our guy won't be to noisy. i cannot believe how fast they grow. i have my name on a list at the local feed store for 6 guinea fowl due in june can't wait!

If you haven't checked it out yet, look up the "Guinea Fowl 101" thread on here. Incredibly knowledgeable and friendly folks there. We've got 5 keets in the brooder downstairs now - pearls - that are 3.5 weeks old. They're finally feathering in nicely and putting on some size. They don't "tame" like chickens do at all - you MIGHT be able to get them to eat treats out of your hand - but they're pretty wild in general, which is good. The neighbors won't mind a roo - but make sure you warn them about the guinea. They're LOUD birds - but awesome at warnings!

 

[duckhunternate]

Got my chicks today!! Holy crap they're cute! My buddy's hatch didn't turn out quite as well as he had hoped; I got only 5 buckeyes but he threw in 4 Salmon Favarolles as well. They're pretty cute as well; a bit puffier plus they've got the cute feathered feet. So far so good. They're taking to feed and water well and my daughters love them. I was so excited to get them home that I forgot to take pictures. I'll try to post some tomorrow.

 

[Jeanna Marie]

Got my chicks today!!  Holy crap they're cute!  My buddy's hatch didn't turn out quite as well as he had hoped; I got only 5 buckeyes but he threw in 4 Salmon Favarolles as well.  They're pretty cute as well; a bit puffier plus they've got the cute feathered feet.  So far so good.  They're taking to feed and water well and my daughters love them.  I was so excited to get them home that I forgot to take pictures.  I'll try to post some tomorrow. 

Congrats! Can't wait to see pictures!

 

[duckhunternate]

My girls think the chicks are a hit!


One of my little Buckeyes


One of the Favarolles.


Yesterday we let them have a little quieter night in their brooder after their stressful day of being brought home. I made my daughters a deal that I'd let them hold the chicks tonight if they were good about letting them rest yesterday. They got to hold them for a bit and even got them to eat some food out of their hands. They thought it was pretty magical. The chicks looked a lot less tired today and appear to be eating and drinking well. Overall this process has been very interesting thus far and my family is enjoying it immensely.

 

[Jeanna Marie]

Beautiful! I bet your girls are really loving the baby chicks. Thisshould be a great learning experience for them. Have the given them names yet?

 

[duckhunternate]

Thanks! No names just yet but I don't think that'll take very long. My five year old wanted to name one of the Favarolles "Fuzzy" but I don't know if she can tell which one that was. The Buckeyes are really distinct; they range from dark to light brown and are all a little different. The Favarolles are all pretty similar in appearance, and vary only a little in size. We'll get there as the birds grow and differentiate a little bit.

 

[Jeanna Marie]

Thanks!  No names just yet but I don't think that'll take very long.  My five year old wanted to name one of the Favarolles "Fuzzy" but I don't know if she can tell which one that was.  The Buckeyes are really distinct; they range from dark to light brown and are all a little different.  The Favarolles are all pretty similar in appearance, and vary only a little in size.  We'll get there as the birds grow and differentiate a little bit. 

 

My daughter picked out names for ours on the first day and we can only tell two of the six apart so we just call the other four names at random...lol