Chicks.

Well we've been busy around here again. Some of you have noticed and asked for updates. Sorry it is spring and farm life is taking over!! I have had a bit of time to write so here you go.

Exciting days are here again. OK. Well. Most days are exciting around here all year round. But spring time is REALLY exciting. The snows pretty much all melted. As amazing as it sounds the green grass grew up around the snow this year!! We barely had a 'brown season' at all. The grass is not long enough to put anything on it yet but it's coming fast and today's rain will sure help. We ordered 200 Cornish meat birds, cocks only as it actually cheaper that way!, and we've spent a couple days getting ready for them. The brooder, we are using the chicken barn this spring as our plans for a straw bale brooder got pushed back another year in the spring rush. I tacked up chicken wire to separate the barn in half, stapled a clear bag over the only window, piled shavings, and generally sealed the barn with paper feed bags. Then I got two garbage cans full and waiting (one of water and one of feed) and placed them in the other half of the barn for easy access. Papa took some left over tin and rounded out the corners so the chicks won't pile up. If you don't do this they will pile up in the corners and the ones on the bottom with die, a night of piling and you can loose a LOT of birds. I saved eggs for several weeks and hard boiled them. We always feed our new chicks hard boiled eggs mashed with cream for the 1st several days after hatching. We find this gives them a considerable head start and we have very few deaths. The cream is where the nutrients are in cows milk and so we mix that in to get those great nutrients into the chicks quickly. They love the mix and go crazy for it. I'm glad they like it. To me the smell of cooked eggs gets in to my nose and refuses to leave. YUCK. This time the pot of 'mush' is staying OUTSIDE. I searched the place over and finally found the chick waterer's and feeders and got them in and ready. Papa took the Travelall to town and picked up a mini bag of feed from a local farmer. We'll likely go through a few mini bags of feed and Papa makes sure the protein level is right for the age of the birds. Papa made us some lights to hang low to keep them the right temperature at all times. And then we were ready for chicks. Just in time too..

Papa had to work so the kids and I headed to town to pick up chicks in the Travelall. We got to the feed store and after waiting in line for 20 minutes FINALLY got our chicks. Good thing I grabbed a cart as they didn't even offer to help me get them out to the truck. So with R in the front of the cart, and J, L and E walking behind, I balanced the two boxes of chicks on the top of the cart and we slowly made our way outside and to the Travelall. The chicks got the front seat and poor R got a shock when she stuck her finger in one of the air holes. A chick pecked her!! She didn't cry but she jerked her hand back and stared!! The box was ALIVE!! LOL. The other 3 children were SUPER excited!! We drove home with our ears echoing with 'peep, peep, peep, PEEEP' and got those babies in the brooder and under the lights where they belong. Here they are home at last. The egg cartons on the floor are full of the egg mixture. We ordered 200 meat birds and received 208, and 10 layers (sex links) and got 10. Tomorrow they will be a week old and we have lost 2 meat birds and 1 layer. Not so shabby!! Here they are in the brooder that 1st day. It looks a lot fuller now. Boy do they ever grow fast.

R, after the first shock, really liked the chicks. She was very gentle without being told which amazes me. She is a little mother-er already!! E, below, was SO PROUD of these 'peepers' as you can see. You would have thought she'd hatched them herself!!L wasn't too sure about the whole 'big deal' which doesn't really surprise me. He'd much rather see a backhoe or some kind of equipment. But he did want to hold one and did enjoy it. So maybe it'll grow on him. J, below, loves the 'peepers' and could hardly wait to hold one. When anyone comes over he's right there asking if they want to see our chicks. Several of them have and he takes great pride in them.