Smith Homestead Chickens

[drumstick diva]

Good I am a mother hen that worries about everyone

 

[Wolfson16]

That is a very handsome roo! I bet he takes good care of his girls.

 

[mandi427]

That is a very handsome roo! I bet he takes good care of his girls.

He really does. He's a good boy. Much quieter than I'm used to, but I've read that cochins don't crow as much as other birds.

 

[mandi427]

One of our 4 week old chicks. I'm guessing Ameraucana? Such a pretty bird with greenish legs and feet and black and white feathers. She was very calm when we took her out for a picture. Husband is working to finish the chicken tractor so we can move the babies out of the brooder and onto grass.

 

[mandi427]

One of our two newly hatched chicks! They are blue cochin and (I think) slw. We're doing something new and set up their brooder in the house instead of the garage, since there's only two of them. This was our first time hatching our own backyard mix chicks and we had a 50% hatch rate.

 

[mandi427]

We built a tractor as a grow-out pen for the not-so-little chicks in the brooder. They're 6.5 weeks old and stinking up my garage, so it's time to move them on to grass! Three spent the two days in the sleeping area and three more were moved onto the grass before we opened the ramp. Five of them ended up back in the sleeping area, so we shooed them out of the box and pulled up the ramp this afternoon. Now they're happily eating bugs and scratching at the grass.

 

[mandi427]

The two chicks we hatched are 2 weeks old today and getting so pretty! I can't wait to see what they'll look like when they're grown. I'm hoping for a hen and a roo. The darker colored one keeps jumping on top of their waterer and the other one jumps up to peck at him as if saying, "get down!"

 

[mandi427]

We built a chicken tractor for my Faverolles. They're 11 weeks old.

My mystery chick from McMurray's isn't such a mystery this time - it's a Polish!

This pretty girl jumped out of the grow-out pen this morning when we put in the feed, then ran around it trying to get back in. Silly chicken! Ameracuana pullet, 11 weeks old.

 

[mandi427]

Built another tractor to get the Freedom Rangers on grass. They panicked a little when it rained yesterday, but figured out it would be dry under the tarped end. We'll eventually have to split them between 2 tractors, but right now they're fine in 1. Even as little chicks they've perfected eating the grass while laying down.

 

[mandi427]

My favorite lady! We call her Speckle Suspect because when we first got her my littlest couldn't say "Sussex" and it came out as "suspect". She's sweet tempered and curious, always one of the first to greet us when we come into the chicken yard.