Our 4 week old chicks playing in the yard! : -)

[heybarb]

Our chicks playing in the yard...they do this really funny chest bumping thing and one little cochin does her little scooting thing...too funny! Enjoy!!!

 

[teach1rusl]

Very cute! I can't believe how feathered those cochin feet are at so young an age!! What are the age ranges, because I saw some really small chicks in that mix? And what are the large white ones?

 

[heybarb]

Thanks!! The white ones are white leghorn or tetra tints, not really sure but they were in the mixed pullet tub at TSC. The cochins are the same age as the white ones. We got the 4 white ones and 2 cochins at TSC on March 4th, so they are about 4 1/2 or 5 weeks old now. The two little ones are about 10 days younger, so 2 1/2 - 3 weeks old. We got them from a friend who had a hen surprise her with about 10 babies just a few days after we got ours at TSC. Their mama was a Silkie/Old English mix and we're pretty sure the daddy was an Old English. So it will be fun to see how they turn out!!

The cochins make me laugh every time I see them walk around or scoot and I'm sure it's because of their leg feathers!

 

[MendonMan]

OK, dumb questions.

I think if I took the brooder box outside and took the chicks out, they would run away. Why is it they are staying right near the box and how exactly do you get them back in?

Charles

 

[heybarb]

They stay really close to the box every time I take them outside. We started by taking the whole box outside, but only letting one or two out at a time. The ones that were out of the box never went far, so we started letting them all out. They really do stay close!! One might stray a little farther than the others but then they quickly all flock together again. The only problem we had was when one of them made a mad dash to a "bushy" area and 3 others followed. The rest quickly joined them. They were a lot more difficult to catch that time, so now my daughter and I have gotten pretty good about standing between them and the "places" we don't want them to go - at least not yet!

As for getting them back in, we just pick them up one or two at a time. You can tell when they start getting tired and they are really easy to catch. One of the little tiny ones - Gypsy - is super fast BUT she doesn't want to be out all alone, so if we catch the others and put them in the box, she'll run to the box trying to get in all by herself. My son who is 5 years old has become a real pro at catching chicks - they really like him and will generally let him pick them up almost any time. So his new nickname is "chick magnet."

 

[CherryChick]

I always have mine in a small wired area so they can't run off and get lost. It makes it easier to get a hold of them too.

 

[bwalden]

Too cute. My Welsummer chicks will be 6 weeks old on Wednesday. I've had them in my coop and been letting them out for a few hours at a time while I work on my run area. I have to make my run neighbor dog proof. Funny thing. I keep my dogs put up, but all my neighbor's dogs seem to have the run of the neighborhood. Guess if I have issues after I let the chicks out full time, I'll have to be making a visit with the neighbors.

 

[teach1rusl]

So even though they're 10 days younger, they will stay really small compared to your others. That will be a cute mix when they're mature.

 

[heybarb]

Yeah!! We are pretty excited about our 4 little bantams with our 4 regular size chicks. The bigger white ones were really sweet with the two new chicks when we added them. They cuddled up tight under the big white wings. Now the tiny ones hang out more with the two cochins, which is fine too. One of the tiny ones acts like she's the same size as the bigger ones, bumping chests and doing her little head bob thing. Of course, she might be a HE and I guess we'd still be pretty happy!