I am not sure what to do now...

[Amethyste]

/sigh

I lost another of my old lady hens the other day...seems heart failure according to the books and to the vet.

This leaves me with 2 EE hens, both about 4 years old now. We started out with 8 back in the day lol

My question is this...we live in the Pacific NW, (not far from Puget Sound in Snohomish County) and it is almost fall. Should I go ahead and get the babies I was planning to get next spring now? Or should I let those two be and keep my plans as they are.

Originally, we were planning to get new chicks, new henhouse, new run for everyone in the spring so the babies would have a better chance at being outside and so on. But now, with the rains we tend to get and the weather...I don't know if it is a good idea to get baby chicks now. I am just worried that Mercedes and Esther will be lonely and a bit chilly with the weather.

The hen house is as protected as possible and there haven't been any problems with them staying warm and dry....but then again they had more friends too.

What should I do?

 

[Chicabee19]

I always vote for getting more ... (even tho' mine have not arrived yet!)

You can care for them s they grow over the winter. If they need warmth get a heat lamp, and so on....

Let us know what you decide.

p.s. I love your username - if I could have another daughter I'd name her that.

 

[The Chicken Lady]

I think more would be okay. They'd be pretty much grown by the time any heavy snow fell (you get snow up there, right?). I agree with the heat lamp helping them stay warm until they can do it on their own.