Quote:
Cari, April 23 sounds great for a meet-up. I hope to have a few silkie pairs and maybe some Polish teenagers to offer.
I have to tell you all - my husband is the most patient man in the world...at the last meet-up (and subsequent Chicken Days at Hawthornes) I took home 8 silkies and 6 polish chicks. They are now getting pretty big and were out growing my brooders. In the last two weekends he has expanded my layers' run to include the entire area under my shed (for protection in rain and coolness in the summer) a total of 12 x 18 ft sq - and a tunnel from the existing big coop/run. Today he finished a room addition on my little coop. It is SO cool. I am in the 4th week of 6 straight weeks of business travel. I think he got tired of servicing 2 coops and 2 brooders....
After moving the silkies to the newly expanded (it literally looks like a room addition) baby coop, I decided to go ahead and throw the Polish in too, as everyone was a bit confused by all the expanded space anyway. There was absolutely no adjustment, no hen pecking, nothing.....Last time I checked, they were all piled together in a multicultural mass....only one chick has figured out how to go up the ramp into the actual closed coop portion.
The only reason I was able to move the "designer chicks" into the little coop was because earlier in the week my 4 barred rock and black sex link teenagers started laying. Once 'mature' I was able to integrate them into my older flock. It's been a rough week for the teenagers, but tonight I noticed they were interspersed between 'the big girls' on the coveted top perch. I have never seen this before, but last night I actually watched hens tunnel under the legs of other hens, already on perches, to get the best perch spots. Hysterical. I swear this chicken thing never gets old. I also got 10 eggs from 12 hens yesterday....that was pretty exciting. I love the tiny first eggs a pullet lays. So perfectly formed and beautiful.
Anyway, by April 23 I will be ready for a meetup. I can help set up and am also willing to help clean up, but can't do much of the planning as I will just be home from a two week trip.
Also could use 2 50# bags of layer pellets if you place an order. Do they sell the wheat for sprouting and is anyone willing to split a bag with me if so?