doubling the flock

Luna ended up hatching 7 of the 8 eggs that had been under her since the beginning, or almost beginning! Which means that, since we lost Speck a couple of weeks ago while in New Jersey, we have just as many chicks as we do chickens. Still with us are Peepers, Rosie, Bandit, Tinkerbelle, Izzy, Luna and Clover. We can't wait to see how many of these are hens vs roo, but they're all so sweet it just kills me. We know that the first one out was from Tinkerbelle's egg, so a Ameracauna/Blue laced red wyandotte mix. The rest seem to be all wyandottes, with at least 2 and maybe 3 actual Blue Laced red wyandotte babies. Those are the lighter grey chicks in the picture.

Once I noticed her sitting constantly, I went out after dark, picked her up and marked all 6 eggs that were underneath her. The next time I checked, possibly the next day or the day after that, I discovered 2 more eggs in the nest and was motivated by this to block the other hens' access. So there was a gap of at least 1 day if not more between the eggs. But the two unmarked eggs that hatched did so BEFORE some of the marked eggs. The two last eggs to hatch all had marks on them, as did the one that didn't hatch. And that one, when we opened it, seemed not to be fertilized -- it looked the same as any egg you crack for your omelet in the morning. Tho, as Dante noted vociferously, it did have an unpleasant smell. We're incubating the 3 that the girls snuck in a week or so before the rest hatched, but as we're not doing well maintaining the humidity required, I'm not to hopeful. I will get batteries for one of our flashlights and try to candle them.

Ok, onto the pictures of Luna & crew enjoying an afternoon on the lawn on Saturday. Since we were out earlier today (Sunday) and thunderstorms heralded our arrival home, Luna and her brood spent the day in the tub. I did notice though that her comb has already started pinking up now that she's eating. And one more interesting, though less savory, observation I can report concerns elimination. Or as we call it around here, chicken poo. So skip the next paragraph or two if you're not interested.

While she was sitting, I blocked her coop-mates out of that particular (and popular) nest box because the girls were squeezing in (to a hardly spacious 12 inch cubical) and complicating the incubation/hatching schedules by laying eggs after the first batch had been started. Having boxed her in to box them out, I have a pretty good idea that she rarely, if ever, er, added to the aroma in the run during that time. On two occasions I came home to find that she had busted out and couldn't get back in, (evidently the summer heat kept the eggs warm enough during her absence) and as she had access from her box to both food and water, I assume she came out to void something stinky. Even so. Chickens drop blobs constantly. Many times in a day, not twice in three weeks. Ask any kid who has played outside at our house. It's very... present.

She'd soiled the nest after the first batch of 4 chicks was out, and moved off it. Luke, first up, discovered this, took out the nest, cleaned the four marked and/or peeping eggs and put them back under her. So, again, the tub remained clean after this incident and the moment her feet hit the ground outside, she wandered away from the chicks and let out a very stinky, green poo like nothing I've smelled or seen before. Though I suspect, from some residue left on the peeping eggs we put back under her the second day of hatching, that her first movement was similar. And having been in the tub all day today, she doesn't seem to have soiled it at all. I suppose it's because she all but stopped eating or drinking, but she's been eating heartily for two days now and seems to be keeping things in. Perhaps if she'd been able to get outdoors today... anyway.

Speaking of outdoors, without further ado, here's the crew's first day out of doors.




I lured the rest of the hens and Peepers to the front yard to check out the new additions. Most seemed wary, some didn't seem to care one way or the other, but Bandit came back again and again, and walked slowly around the perimeter of the entire pen several times, watching the chicks or looking at the ground to see if she could get in. Above was the first round, and then about an hour or so later, visit 2 below.


Enjoying some corn and watermelon. Mostly the corn. Luna would tear off small bits and put it on the ground in front of them at first, but there seems to be a small faction of dominant chicks -- Prima and two darker wyandotte chicks are the most consistent members of this gang. Those chicks had no problems swarming the cob and attacking it. You can see the blanket and pillows we camped on to read books and watch the chicks.

Dante helps break the corn up and feed it to the chicks.

One the chicks I suspect might be a darker BLRW like Izzy snuggles up with Dante.

Back in the brooder after a busy day on the front lawn.