The First Chickens

It has been a few months since the chickens arrived. Well, first I bought 3 Silkies, why I don't know. But they are supposed to make good brooder hens. Of course when I got them I was hoping that they would all be pullets (hens) but we really didn't know. We do now. I have a rooster that when he crows, sounds like a cat with a very bad cold! He is getting better at it though. I didn't want a rooster at all but he isn't too loud so I guess he can stay.

Silkies with Peepers!

Shortly after the Silkies, I went and bought 5 Rhode Island Reds. With no cage ready, I put them in a dog crate for the ride home and then transferred them to the movable coop that Russ had just finished building. No place for them to roost but they were safe.

RIR - not happy about things!

The next Sunday I again found an ad on Craig's List for Americauna layers. So the Silkies were put in a tiny little cage that we had sitting around. Then we headed up to Lake Lure at 9 pm to get 22 birds with the fancy (not!) cage that Russ slid in the back of the truck. The couple that sold us the birds were very nice, and it turned out that the young fellow had apprenticed at Polyface! Holy Cow!

We now have a nice number of layers. We have sold many dozens of eggs and I have even stopped buying cold cereal to have for breakfast as we have so many eggs. We even feel better!

Now for the meat birds. They are 8 weeks old today. Russell would be ready to process them but SOMEONE (me) bought Cornish and not Cornish Crosses so they are taking another couple of weeks. He moved them to Sandy Plains Farm a month ago and it is crazy to see how far the coops have been moved! We ordered 120 birds, so far we have lost 10 I think. Russ called them "little murderers" when they were in the brooder as they would smother and squish each other. The brooder is big enough and Russ put 2 lights in it, but they are pretty delicate when small. Now that they are out on pasture, they still run over one another but they can handle it now.

I will explain Peepers (picture above) sometime. Right now she thinks she is a Silkie and I don't want to burst her bubble!