Chick tales

The chicken adventure continues and I have to say that I am surprised at how little work they really are.  The biggest thing has been getting the coop ready, and most recently, their outdoor run.

They are growing like crazy and have provided hours of entertainment for all!  Out of the 16, there is one I call "pitchfork" because when I am cleaning the coop she runs after the pitchfork like it is her job.  And then there is Diva, who digs herself a hole in the dirt and gives herself a dust bath, over and over and over.

When Diva finishes her dust bath, she stretches out and lounges in the sun!

While the other chickens are rushing about doing serious chicken business, such as pecking at the ground furiously, Diva does this.  With no apologies.  A chicken after my own heart!

I actually have no problem with being referred to as the crazy chicken lady!  Birds of a feather flock together and all!  And I am especially glad that the kids are enjoying them as well.  Maddie kept insisting that they freaked her out, but she enjoys hanging with them.

 

Charlie and the chick ... in their new outdoor run Peter and I constructed out of an old dog pen.  We also dug in fence two feet into the ground to deter predators.

And Lucy isn't sure what to do with them.  She tries to play and they run away, but I am working on their socialization!  This morning I went down to the coop to check on food and water and they had been up to all sorts of mischief.  The big piece of cardboard I keep to put over the screen door on cold nights had been knocked down and pooped on to the point I may have to throw it away, and a roll of paper towels that I had stored in the top nesting box had been knocked down, I guess, and it was unrolled and strewn all about.  Such fun they had!  It is raining today and the tarp over their outdoor run (we will build a permanent cover but ran out of time this past weekend) had filled with water and collapsed in, and so until I fix that, I don't want to put them out.  They are clearly miffed that they are not getting out, and several of them were sitting by the door expectantly!  And who says chickens are dumb!

A buff orpington tells Diva to get up and get to work!

I would love to name more of them, but quite frankly, I can't tell them apart unless they are chasing a pitchfork or lounging in the dirt.  They are pretty much all the same size, with the exception of one who we are almost wondering if she is a rooster -- she looks so different from the others.  She/He is pictured on the left, and has a redder comb and is a different color (though in this picture it doesn't really show up.)    They are six weeks now, and only four months or so until we get eggs!