Washingtonians Come Together! Washington Peeps

[FirewifeJess]

So the "new" Blackie (an OE, DH's shoulder buddy) scared the living daylights out of me today. I went into the greenhouse to sit and watch them in the tractor and saw this black bird with a huge face muff. What!??? I was horrified to think I may have brought the wrong chicken to auction. Only the boys had face muffs yesterday! DH looked at her with me, held her - she went up on his arm. We *think* the little with the face muff is his shoulder buddy! We're not absolutely sure though. I guess she could be Snow.

But the one I thought was Snow went up to my shoulder like she usually does. I studied pictures that I took yesterday, and she's gotta be one of the "she's" because her comb is not like the combs on the 2 OE boys we took to auction.

How do they change so stinkin' fast? And how do you keep track of "who's who" when they look so much alike?

I only have 2 SS chicks and can't tell them apart at all. They're identical in every way. I have a feeling we won't be able to name them and differentiate for a long time!

 

[itsren]

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Yes I was certain you'd laugh at that! I know how overwhelmed you've been with so many! Can't wait to hear what you get for those boys later on this week though. I really, really hope Lucy takes the chicks in the morning though, otherwise we'll be brooding them inside for a couple weeks and then growing them out from about 3-4 week in the chicken run. I'll have to rid up some chicken wire to make a separate area for them but it'll work if I make it work. I can use the rabbit hutch for their warm area and they can play in the run when they want to. In that case, I'll take the chicks from SFS too...might as well at that point!

I know I would. That way if more than half of them turn out to be cockerels you have a back-up plan.

 

[FirewifeJess]

I know I would. That way if more than half of them turn out to be cockerels you have a back-up plan.

hah! Well these are sexed pullets. I know there's a chance...but likely only a chance that ONE of the 8 might be a cockeral, vs. more than half!

 

[FirewifeJess]

Thinking of naming my new girls Jane, Bella, Alice, and Renesme (or Rosalie)

 

[itsren]

Thinking of naming my new girls Jane, Bella, Alice, and Renesme (or Rosalie)

I like those names.

Snow was named because she was the cutest chick with bright white eyeliner above her eyes. I called her the fairest of them all. Blackie (DH's shoulder buddy) was named because this whole second attempt was to get a black chick for youngest DS - who is still adamant that he will have a "Blackie". Not a very feminine name, but it is what it is. Penny was named by DH - because she's a BCM and her neck is turning copper. He said she's going to look like a penny. Hopefully she won't cost us a pretty penny!

 

[FirewifeJess]

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I'm so glad you get to have dark eggs too! I got a cuckoo marans today just so I'd get some more dark eggs. I love those chocolate eggs!

 

[Chicken Rustler]

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I honestly think it to be very much like when we were raising goats. There were years you could not get doe kids for anything. Then some years were nearly all doe kids and some years were a near even split. IMHO it is things far beyond our knowledge or comprehension. I think IF there were a known way to control the m/f ratio nobody would end up with excess males.

OK. That's good to know. I did drop the temp in the one bator that I can control to the lowest factory recommended setting of 99.3 (instead of 99.5). The other bator was kept at it's factory setting since it is an Eco model and you can't really control the temp easily.

So... according to the Chinese calendar, what year is it? The year of the rooster?

 

[FirewifeJess]

My chicks are sleeping a TON. That's normal right? I mean...they're only 3 days old. They have all eaten and drank on their own, so they know where that stuff is. ACV in their water and they're eating Purina Start & Grow Medicated, and nobody's pasty. Just a rough day changing homes I'm guessing?

 

[RainMom]

If you can get a wire cage and put it on blocks so air flows under it, put her in with no nesting materials, just food and water. Leave her in there for 3 days. Let her out and see if she is still broody, if she is repeat another 3 days.

My DH and I were just talking to a chicken pro- reccommended by this group- Erhard @ Kummer Farms. Terrific guy- not far from us. THANK YOU (whoever that was?) that reccommended him!

Erhard showed us his solution for a broody hen- he put her in with 2 young/juvenile roosters, and each time she tried to lay down, one of the roosters got on top of her.

She didn't try being broody for more than a couple days! I thought that was very clever !

 

[FirewifeJess]

Don't worry, they're not dead. Aren't they hilarious?!