Long overdue update on the girls...

On November 10th we lost Lilly our light brahma and head honcho. she had a heart infection and succumb to heart failure. It was a tragic day for the household because she was such a special girl. She was our growling chicken. We miss her terribly.

Then on the 25th we lost Fancy, one of our little Salmon Faverolles. She was attacked by the other girls and lost all of her tail feathers. Then 2 days later when she back into the coop, they attacked her again a day later. This time she was hurt badly and an air sac was ruptured so she passed during the night.

Meanwhile, everyone is doing well. We will see how the winter goes and keeping it warm enough inside for them with only 2 heat lamps.

They are in the Keep of Eggtopia!

The girls are all in the Keep...all 32 of them. That was no easy task. I will get pictures of them in it tomorrow but here is the update.

The red paint was applied, the hardwire cloth was added to the outside of the two windows, chicken wire was put around the outside bottom of the coop itself, a small temporary separation wall with chicken wire was made to house the babies separately from the big girls and the move was begun. The big girls and little girls spent their first night in the coop last night and all three groups are inside tonight.

The medium girls when put in with the big girls had a couple of hours of uncertainty. The big girls immediately began to express their displeasure and display their dominance, especially Maggie and Holly. They went right after them. Speckles bothered no one unless they got to close and then she sent them packing. Sandy was very pouty and threatening in her posture and Lilly just plain ignored them as did Molly for the most part. We spent a lot of time inside with them and scolding the older girls about their behavior and by bedtime, everyone had settled nicely for the most part. The two bigger groups are still sticking to their groups but there was no tustling going on between them and that was a good sign. The laying did not cease either...we got 5 eggs today from the 7 that are laying so I was pleased about that. We will see what happens tomorrow now that the new girls were added.

Here are some updated pics.

The first coat of red paint on:

The Flooring before the wall and shavings was added:

So, the next step is to build them nest boxes and finish the run. there are some minor things needing to be done like added the lined curtains, an extra heat lamp, a new weatherstrip at the bottom of the exterior door and finish the sign and interior Pop door. The exterior door is in place with double interior latches so they are secure.

More pics tomorrow...

Long overdue update...life keeps getting in the way...

The little girls are gorwing up a storm and are now 9 weeks old:



Our big girls are well...big! They are laying and being very spoiled of course. This is them attacking leftover grits:



And coop construction has begun and is nearly complete. They have a 12' x 12' fortress that has been named "Eggtopia".



Hopefully, they will be in the coop with a completed run for them by next Thursday, Friday at the latest. They will be happy to get out the hot tub and the garage where they currently are. They come out everyday in their tractors but they will enjoy having their own place to come and go from during the day.

The paint inside is a beautiful pastel blue with a darker brighter blue trim...



The outside will most likely be barn red with white trim or grey with white trim. I think the barn red has won but we will see. A couple cute pics:

Luna following me around:



Ginny fascinated by the camera:



More later....

We have suffered our first loss...

The new little girls came home and all seemed good but late that night one of the Salmon Faverolles began showing signs of not thriving. So, the special care began. Hand feeding her every hour or so, then ordering infant vitamins and we struggled for 3 days but she passed away. We had named her "Miracle" because we were really praying for one.

We took her over to our new house (we are moving this Friday) and buried her under a beautiful shade tree.

New Fuzzy Butts are here!

Well now our chicken total is up for sure. We have our 6 spoiled girls, 5 black australorps that are about 6 weeks old and now 22 day olds. They hatched yesterday in Ohio and arrived here in Oregon this afternoon. What a crew. All doing well and eating, drinking, sleeping and being cute.

The girls are growing...

Our 6 girls have been joined by 5 unexpected newcomers. 5 little australorps. they are about 6 weeks old now and still not liked by our girls. So, everyone is separated right now. I can only imagine how they will handle the 21 new girls coming later this month. It is going to be interesting.

Lilly has gone through her leg healing and is doing well, but I do not think the girls will ever let her have feathers on her legs. :(

More pics of the girls soon. Still no losses and all are healthy and spoiled rotten!

Wow the girls are big now...10 weeks old

The girls 6 wks - 10 wks old


We have been very fortunate with our first 6 girls. There have been no serious illnesses, no injuries (aside from a couple scraps on Lilly's leg) and no losses. The girls are thriving and getting really big.

Sandy aka Diva Chicken has become the total Diva. She simply loves and adores Cheyenne. We so love her that we ordered 3 more Ameraucana's for our July order.

Speckles is just spoiled rotten. She rides with me in the van to go get my favorite mocha latte in town, goes to school with Cheyenne and swings on the swing set at school.

Lilly is still head honcho in the brooder. She took over top spot from maggie at about 4 weeks old and they still scuffle for that top spot every now and again. Lilly has had a couple scrapes on her leg from tussling with Maggie.

Molly and Holly are adorable. They look like vultures some days.

Maggie is still aloof and trying to take the head honcho job. She is great when you pick her up she just does not make that easy. LOL

They are still living in the spare bedroom in the hot tub frame and have their tractor for outdoor playtime but we are not building their coop until we get into our new house the end of July. They will also be joined by 21 new babies coming from Meyer Hatchery around the 23rd of July.

Today they were joined by 5 more Black Australorps that are a week old. I will be raising these and taking care of them for Sir William O'Farrell. He is building my coop and will supply their feed and eat their eggs. I am a sucker for fuzzy butts so I agreed to this plan.

The Girls were none to pleased to see the new babies and I am sure they are plotting their demise. The sent glares and nasty looks at the little ones. Spoiled brats they are.

More updates later and pics of the new girlies.

The girls are getting Huge!

Holly & Cheyenne

Speckles & Cheyenne

The girls are almost 6 weeks old now and getting huge. Maggie is the largest, followed closely by the two Australorps, then Lilly, Then Sandy and finally Speckles coming in as the smallest. But what she lacks in size, she makes up for in personality. She is a hand full. She flies out of the brooder and onto my shoulder. If I leave the room for too long, she flies out and comes looking for me. She is going to be a problem when it comes to taking them outside...I do not think she is going to want any part of that.

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They are finally roosting on the limb, they still nap and such on the floor of the brooder. I think once they have a flat roost, they will spend more time on it. They are just spoiled and like stretching out on the floor.

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I bought them some earthworms from a local lady who raises them. I took them to the girls and put a few on a disposable plate and waited. Lilly was the first one to see one move and grab it...it was on then. Oh my at the yelling, running, chasing and frenzy over the ones on the plate. I think you could safely say that they liked them. LOL

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More chicken news and updated pics later.

New digs for the girls...

This morning the girls ran to the side of the brooder, bumping into each other and chirping like criminals in solitary confinement. They got to me.
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I took the frame for my portable hot tub ( 6' in diameter ) and moved it into the living room and set it up for the girls. They were running, jumping and play fighting as soon as I released them in it. Naturally, Speckles flew up onto the side. She is the alarm bird. So we repeated the fly up and perch, me pick her up and say no and put her back, her fly up, me pick her up and say no and put her back...finally she gave up and stayed inside.
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I took the saw outside and went up the ridge behind the house and found a dead fall to cut the perch for the girls. I cut it off and brought it inside and they were not too sure about that. Finally they pecked at it and jumped on it so they are now sitting and roosting on it for short periods of time. I noticed when it was time to sleep, they were sitting on the shavings snoozing. So, in a few days they should be doing okay.
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More chicken news later ....

Three weeks old and getting rowdy

They are growing, becoming very independent and demanding. They want attention, treats and freedom from the brooder. They sing and chirp to get your attention and when that fails to get the response they want, they begin pecking the side of the brooder. Maggie continues to be the fastest maturing and Lilly the slowest...which is right in line with their breeds. It is nice still having Lilly so fluffy and fuzzy.

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The love baked yams, steamed broccoli, yogurt and plain pancakes. This morning they had some baked yams with flax seeds which they seemed to enjoy immensely. I put a dish of calcium grit in the brooder last night and that was a huge hit. They spent time eating it, playing in it, guarding it from each other and sleeping in it.

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More chick news later...

20 days old and new location

The girls are 20 days old and growing fast. I moved them into the living room today next to the front window. They loved the sunshine coming through the window. I also got them a perch and put it in the brooder and took the top off...Lilly loved it! Speckles did her normal of flying up to the side and hopping onto me. I guess to her I am a more comfortable perch.
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They also got their first taste of baked yams. I baked them plain, peeled them and gave them the firm center cut into small pieces. it was a frency in the brooder. The would chase the one who had a piece and then realized there was more on the plate and they went after it.
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Later this week I will start getting the wood and such for their coop to start building it. They are all doing great, getting feathers and getting big. Maggie is the biggest one and the most matured. She is almost fulled feathered at 20 days.
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Much more chicken news and fun to come.

Girls get new feeder...

I wanted to try to keep them from scratching shavings into their water so much, so I bought them a long feeder and moved their water to the corner. It is working so much better. They have plenty of room to lie down, more food available to them and cleaner water....mission accomplished!
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Cheyenne is making sure that Lilly gets one on one attention as well as Sandy...the other girls get attention from me also. Here is Cheyenne and Lilly today:
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Sandy getting loving from me:
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So the girls are all happy, healthy, and loved. What more could a chicken ask for?

A few minutes outside

It was nice, warm and sunny out today so I took three of the girls outside for about 10 minutes. I took the three flyers at 16 days old. Maggie, Molly and Speckles fly up to the top of the brooder whenever I open it so, I took them out first. They had a blast once they got up the courage to start looking around. They enjoyed the hummingbird buzzing around, playing with the grass and the rocks. Maggie and Molly were the most curious, Speckles ran to perch on Cheyenne's hand to see if it was safe. After the girls started looking around, it was a fiht to get them to come back inside. However, once I got about 5 feet away from them, they came running. So back inside they went. Tomorrow if it is nice out again, I will take the other three girls out for a few minutes.

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They are growing so fast. They are looking a big ragged right now as they loose their fluff and get feathers. They are really a joy to have around, although messy! I have to clean their waterer out about every 2 hours because they kick it full of shavings. LOL

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More chicken news as they grow!

11 days old and growing!

They are trying to fly and are soooo cute. I caught a couple of them sneezing and so I put them on antibiotics and will keep them on it for 7 days. The girls are growing like mad and are absolutely adorable.

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Each of them has their own personality and they are showing their differences daily. Maggie is still Mizz Bossy. More chicken news later.

One week old and growing!

The girls are one week old and a trip. Speckles likes perching on my shoulder and now runs at my hand and tries to hop up on me. when I do not pick her up, she tries to fly up to me.

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Here are the girlies...Speckles is trying to fly up to me and she likes perching on my shoulder... their slideshow :

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http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v219/CetaWin/Chickens/?action=view&current=33898a6e.pbw

The Girls

<---Sandy, the Ameraucana.
The girls are a trip. I put a small piece of lettuce in their brooder and they scattered. They were not sure what that thing was. Well, the two curious critters, the Australorps, went to check it out...then the game was on. One grabbed it and ran, all the other girls were chasing her. Then another one got it from her and ran...the pursuit continued until they decided they could all put it down and attack it LOL
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Lilly still has a bit of a pasty butt so I am checking her every couple of hours. She is doing great aside from that. She eats, drinks, sleeps and plays as well as the next. So, I clean her up when and if she needs it. I already have plans in my mind for a larger brooder for the girls. They will outgrow their tote befor they can go outside. If I make it right, I could use it for a rabbit or for Cheyenne to get another rat for her room. We will see.
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Today will be "clean the brooder" day so the girls will all get to come out of the brooder and play on the floor with Cheyenne while I clean the brooder and replace the bedding. We will see how that goes. hahahahaha There will be new pics of the girls.
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More chicken news to come...

Day 2 for the Girls

The girls are now 2 days old. They are a joy to have around for sure. they are comfy and quiet...most of the time. Everyone is doing great. Lilly has a pasty butt so she is getting her backside cleaned with warm water a couple of times per day but she is doing great too.
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All the girls are eating, drinking, sleeping and experiencing life around them very normally. The brooder is set up in our bathroom where it is draft free and comfy all day. Their heat lamp is above them, plenty of food, water and attention...so happy chicks.
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They are very particular though. Everyone says the brooder should be about 95 degrees for their first week. Not these girls...at 95 degrees inside the brooder, they move as far away from the heat lamp as possible. So, I raised the heat lamp and watched the thermometer...with it raised, the temp is holding at 90 degrees...the girls are very happy with that temperature so I am leaving it there. I figure they know what temperature they like best.
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They each have their very own personality and it is starting to show. Lilly is getting so much better about her little butt baths...I think she understands that I am helping her. Speckles is just a snuggler...every time my hand goes into the brooder she hops on it...she comes to the side of the tote to look at me when I come into the room. This morning, all 6 of them were at the side of the tote watching husband shave very intently. They seemed fascinated with what he was doing. All of them are good girls.
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More chicken news later...

For my nephew....Here is Lilly

Lilly

The Girls are Home!

The Girls Riding Home

The girls handled the car ride really well. They were in their box and chirping up a storm. I put the box in the floor in front of me and the heater was on so the box got real warm and toasty...the girls settled down right away and slept for the rest of the trip home. I was very surprised at how fast they can fall asleep...I guess I had forgotten after so many years of not having chickens around. Poor little Maggie was eating and fell asleep with her head in the feeder!

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More chicken news later...

Almost BABY time!

Almost time to pick up the babies. About 11 am tomorrow I should pick them up and by 1 pm, I should have the girls here, tucked inside their nice warm little home for the next 4 or 5 weeks. They are going to be spoiled, I can tell already. Much going on...pics of them tomorrow!

Have a great night!

I should have known better....

<---New Hampshire Red

I stopped by the co-op today to make sure the chicks would be here Wednesday and also to find out what time would be good to pick them up. Well, I was considering adding a Buff Orpington to the group of girls and found out that all the chicks that were coming in on Wednesday were already reserved. Chickens, Guineas, Ducks and Turkeys...all reserved. The gentleman checked to make sure that each of the breeds were in fact completely reserved and he then told me there was 1 lone New Hampshire Red that was not claimed. Soooooo, I reserved her. I mean all the babies going home but 1...I could not let that happen. The reds are supposed to be good large brown egg layers, docile and good in confinement. That was important to me for the winters when they will have to be n the coop so much of their time. So, on Wednesday I will bring home Molly, Holly, Lilly, Sandy, Speckles and now Maggie.

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Just a few more days and I will have pics of the new babies here...home, safe & warm in their new little brooder. I have their brooder ready with pine shavings, a feeder, a waterer and a nice heat lamp with a infrared bulb just waiting for them to come home. Oh I foresee spoiled chickens. hahahahahaha

More news and pics of the babies later...

An so it begins...

The chicken ownership has begun. The plans for the coop purchased, the food, waterer, feeder, container and chicks ordered. On March 19, 2008, we become a family with chickens!

I am going to modify the coop plan in the picture to remove some of the nest boxes. I only am getting five hens and do not need 8 nest boxes. I am also making one side open completely with two hinged doors, putting a solid floor in and making a separate portable run. With our winters here, I am going to add a light fixture and hinged panels on the front so it can be open as pictured in the warm winter but closed in the cold.

This should be an adventure but progress pics of chicks and coop will be forthcoming as time goes on. Meanwhile, I am getting everything ready to pick the girls up on 3/19...I will post a pic of the fuzzy cuties when they come home. :)