Thursday, April 7, 2011

My Starter Chickens.....

I promise to come up with some better photos, but for now, these will have to do. They are always moving about, and I try not to pick them up too much, since I just want them to acclimate and feel safe.

The two-week old chicks I brought home yesterday are referred to as 'black and red sex-linked'. This means they are hybrids. A black chicken, such as a Plymouth Barred is crossed with a red chicken like a Rhode Island Red. Such hybrids are usually quite hardy. Because they are quite young, they will not go directly into the coop, but be kept in 'brooder' or 'warmer' boxes until they are several weeks old. The back room of my house serves as a holding place. I use a large box, with straw bedding, food and water. The box sits on a heating pad (lowest temp) to keep them comfortably warm.



At two weeks of age, these chicks are almost 'teen-agers'. Last night was their first in the make-shift nursery in the back room of the house. Right as the sun was going down, they got 'boisterous'. (Loud peeping, and moving around a lot.) Then, quite suddenly, they got very quiet and nestled down in the straw. I didn't hear another peep out of them until early this morning.




This morning I brought five one-week old chicks home to the 'nursery'. Three are Rhode Island Reds, and two are White Leghorns. They are all pullets (girls). Both breeds are productive egg-layers, and both are known to be 'winter hardy'. By next week they will be the size of the juveniles shown above.



This Rhode Island Red has pretty wing feathers coming in.



Baby chicks must be kept warm...very warm. About 90 degrees, F. So, a heat lamp is put in place overhead. A thermometer set down into the box allows monitoring the temperature.





It is hard to see in the poor photo below, but this is one of the white leghorn chicks that I am holding. I noticed a dark area under her tail. This problem is referred to as 'pasting up'. Sometimes, with young chicks, their feces dries and hardens, thus blocking the vent through which they eliminate. Chicks can die if this problem is left unattended. Solution: Wash the baby's bottom. I used a warm wet cloth to soften the dried material, and remove it. The baby chick was not too happy with me, but it had to be done. She appears to be fine now.

15 comments:

  1. Are you going to name one of them Lady CluckCluck? Pleeeeeaaaasssseeeee ?!?

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  2. Haha...I'll see what I can do, Carol...names are going fast. I am putting off naming them for a week or two in case one happens to die. Right now, they all seem quite healthy.

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  3. OMG, OMG, OMG, please can you post one on to me???

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  4. Just one? Haven't you heard that song, "One is the loneliest chicken in the whole wide world?" It would have to be at least two, Shrinky.

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  6. deleted the above comment because I forgot the link I wanted to give you....


    You washed the baby's bottom! Yeah, and saved her.

    Aren't they each a thing of beauty? My favorite place at the Oregon State Fair is the Fowl Building. My husband and I always spend the most time in there.

    I subscribe to The Sun magazine and the April issue has an essay about a rooster that you might enjoy. Go here and click on the link that reads "Two Wrongs." {Although one can read much of The Sun online I believe in being a paid subscriber, since this is one of the only ad-free mags out there, with intelligent writing from cover-to-cover. It is not easy for them these days.}

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  7. Hi Lydia, and thanks for that link. An amusing article about Henry...a Barred Rock rooster. I have a Plymouth Barred chick/hen on hold for 4/20. They're quite popular...very pretty.

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  8. oh my how sweet and lovely they are... and again, this makes me think of childhood, since my grandmother used to make the eggs brood (how do you say this in english? using a special machine for the eggs, to keep them warm) and then raise the chickens... and it was such a marvel, each time...

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  9. Hi Roxanna. I can imagine your memories, since I remember this of my grandparents, too. 'Incubate' was probably the word you were searching for. If a hen isn't 'broody' about her eggs, ( doesn't want to sit on them to hatch them), one can artificially keep these eggs warm in an incubator.


    So far, I am loving to watch these birds, and seeing their uniqueness. It seems I can see different personalities already.

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  10. Looks like you all made it through your first night and those babes are in good hands. It's a good thing you know what you're doing! I'm so impressed. And they are so so cute. Have you gotten around to names yet?

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  11. Oh my goodness they are sooooo cute! Looks like fun anddd hard work. Love it!!!

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  12. Stickup, it was funny last night how I went to sleep listening carefully for any sound...but they slept all through the night (unlike my sons and daughters when their age!) I think I will wait to name them until they 'graduate' from the nursery to the coop. : )

    Tiggy, yes...fun and work, too. I feel homebound since they are just babies, but they are fascinating to study!

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  13. They look adorable! What a fun adventure! Can't wait to hear more. Names please!!

    :)

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  14. oh they are cute!
    I still dream having chickens and lambs one day...hm...it's good to have dreams :)

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  15. Ah what the hell, sign me up for a bakers dozen!

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