I thought I was immune to chicken math. I was naive.
I've wanted chickens for years but haven't been in a place where I could until now. The plan was originally to buy three chicks: A Barnevelder, a Brabanter, and a Belgian d'Anvers. In the end when we got to the farm none of the Brabs left were crested, and I really wanted that mohawk. At first I figured since we weren't getting a Brab I would get two d'Anvers, but then there would just be one left and I couldn't just leave her. So there we were, packed into a little Pontiac G6 with an eight week old Barnevelder and all three d'Anvers nestled together in a little berry box (which was housed inside the Barnevelder's orange box for warmth) for the stressful four hour drive home. I justified it by telling myself two bantams basically equal one standard, so technically I have exactly as many as I planned lol. I am absolutely smitten with these guys. The d'Anvers are adorable. I've been having fun guessing their genders and watching them begin to develop their own personalities.
The Barnevelder and I have really hit it off. She's so sweet. She loves to perch on my arm and be held close (she pitched a fit and refused to fall asleep the first night until she had had a cuddle!), and if I give her a light hug she'll trill/purr. I hadn't realized chickens could be this affectionate. The photo I took does her absolutely no justice. I doubt her lacing will be as clean as a show line, but it's definitely nothing to sniff at and her head feathers have a nice sheen to them. I love her big stompy adolescent feet. For names I'm torn between Vos (fox) and Valk (falcon).
My initial guess for this chick was cockerel. I'm still referring to them all as female though so I don't jinx things and end up with three boys lol. She's the lighter of the two blues, the smallest chick, generally the bossiest, the first one to start scratching the ground around the feeder, and the biggest complainer. During the drive home the other two chicks mostly just slept, but this one did not want to settle down.
I'm fairly confident in my guess of pullet for this one. She's the darkest of the blues, usually the calmest/most hesitant to check out new things, but the first one to start trying to fly.
I'm torn on my guess for gender with this this one. Initially my gut thought was pullet, but she's becoming very bossy and even shoved the lighter blue aside at the feeder. She's the happiest about being petted, and when hand fed will climb right into my hand and start scratching around. She looks solid in the photos, but she does have the same marking pattern as the other two. Same with her legs, in the photos they look pink but they're blue like the other two chicks'.
I'm pretty sure she still has her umbilical cord attached. At first I thought it might be dried poop, but it's too far down and she's going to the bathroom so it's not pasty butt. Should I be concerned?
I'm waiting to name the d'Anvers until I have a better idea of their genders and personalities.
And so she doesn't feel left out, my best friend Suki. She's a Schipperke, the national dog of Belgium and the world's smallest shepherd. Thankfully she does not have chicken dinner on the brain and is pretty content to just ignore the newbies.
I've wanted chickens for years but haven't been in a place where I could until now. The plan was originally to buy three chicks: A Barnevelder, a Brabanter, and a Belgian d'Anvers. In the end when we got to the farm none of the Brabs left were crested, and I really wanted that mohawk. At first I figured since we weren't getting a Brab I would get two d'Anvers, but then there would just be one left and I couldn't just leave her. So there we were, packed into a little Pontiac G6 with an eight week old Barnevelder and all three d'Anvers nestled together in a little berry box (which was housed inside the Barnevelder's orange box for warmth) for the stressful four hour drive home. I justified it by telling myself two bantams basically equal one standard, so technically I have exactly as many as I planned lol. I am absolutely smitten with these guys. The d'Anvers are adorable. I've been having fun guessing their genders and watching them begin to develop their own personalities.
The Barnevelder and I have really hit it off. She's so sweet. She loves to perch on my arm and be held close (she pitched a fit and refused to fall asleep the first night until she had had a cuddle!), and if I give her a light hug she'll trill/purr. I hadn't realized chickens could be this affectionate. The photo I took does her absolutely no justice. I doubt her lacing will be as clean as a show line, but it's definitely nothing to sniff at and her head feathers have a nice sheen to them. I love her big stompy adolescent feet. For names I'm torn between Vos (fox) and Valk (falcon).
My initial guess for this chick was cockerel. I'm still referring to them all as female though so I don't jinx things and end up with three boys lol. She's the lighter of the two blues, the smallest chick, generally the bossiest, the first one to start scratching the ground around the feeder, and the biggest complainer. During the drive home the other two chicks mostly just slept, but this one did not want to settle down.
I'm fairly confident in my guess of pullet for this one. She's the darkest of the blues, usually the calmest/most hesitant to check out new things, but the first one to start trying to fly.
I'm torn on my guess for gender with this this one. Initially my gut thought was pullet, but she's becoming very bossy and even shoved the lighter blue aside at the feeder. She's the happiest about being petted, and when hand fed will climb right into my hand and start scratching around. She looks solid in the photos, but she does have the same marking pattern as the other two. Same with her legs, in the photos they look pink but they're blue like the other two chicks'.
I'm pretty sure she still has her umbilical cord attached. At first I thought it might be dried poop, but it's too far down and she's going to the bathroom so it's not pasty butt. Should I be concerned?
I'm waiting to name the d'Anvers until I have a better idea of their genders and personalities.
And so she doesn't feel left out, my best friend Suki. She's a Schipperke, the national dog of Belgium and the world's smallest shepherd. Thankfully she does not have chicken dinner on the brain and is pretty content to just ignore the newbies.
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and Welcome To BYC! What adorable chicks!
