Two Weeks Ago...

These little ones were born two weeks ago today:

And this one is older than 2 weeks, but we got her 2 weeks ago today:

They are growing so fast!

Empty Nesting

Me peeking inside the coop. It is further along than this picture now.

We moved all our little girls outside into the nearly finished coop today. It is exceptionally quiet in the house without their faint little chirping in the background. Don't get me wrong - they were never overly noisy. But you could usually hear some chirps or shuffling around. I miss that noise. Also, now to go visit them, I no longer can just peek in the box. I have to put on layers and shoes to go visit my friends. But they do seem to be enjoying their new home, and have MUCH more room than their cardboard box!

We unfortunately lost another chick. Goldie Locks, our Gold Laced Wynandotte, did not make it. Although it was sad, it was less traumatic than Queen Elizabeth's passing, as Goldie Locks died of natural causes. We're not sure exactly what happened, but she was looking weak one morning, and when we came home from work she had died. We buried her next to Queen Elizabeth in the field next door.

We went to the feed store today and they gave us another one for free. They mentioned that they think her batch might have been weaker because of their shipping. Baby chicks are generally shipped from large hatcheries. Egg yolks contain enough sustenance to last a chick for the first 24 hours after hatching, without any additional food or water. Because of this, they are able to be shipped fairly easily when they are first born. Their temperature is moderated because the boxes are shipped with the chicks squished tightly together. (Some people regard this as cruel, but when you think about it, in the wild the chicks would be squished together underneath their mother. Even in our own box, they squish themselves together as tight as possible in the corner.) Usually, this process works well, but in some cases, if the shipment is delayed, the chicks suffer. The shipment that Goldie was in came later than it was supposed to, and as a result, that batch of chicks has been weaker, and has had more losses than usual.

I have been very nervous about this new little one, checking on her often during the day. Worried if she is warm enough, worried about whether the others will attack her (chickens aren't known for their hospitality to new comers). But so far so good. A moment ago I checked on her and she was nestled in with the rest of them. You can see how much the three older ones have grown!

In other news the coop is in process, and will hopefully be finished by tomorrow. Pictures to come soon. We will put the three bigger ones out right away, and when the younger ones are old enough, they will join them. Meanwhile, they'll stay inside in their box a little longer.

The Newest Additions

This is our new Speckled Sussex. We don't have a name for her yet. She has pretty markings around her eyes, almost as if she is wearing makeup. She is the same breed as Queen Elizabeth was.

This is Goldie Locks, our Gold-laced Wynandotte.

Although their faces are different, both of them have chipmunk looking stripings down their backs. You can also tell them apart because the Speckled Sussex's striping is more red, while Goldie Locks' striping is golden. This picture is of Goldie Locks.


Both of these little ones were born on Wednesday, so they are only 3 days old! This is Goldie Locks next to an egg; you can see she is not much bigger!

And here is a picture of me holding all three of the little chicks we got this week. They all fit snugly into one palm, and were sleeping contentedly when this picture was taken :)

And Then There Were Six

Yes, that's right, we now have six chickens. We are officially maxed out according to our City ordinance regarding chickens. Thank-you, City of Everett, for imposing a limit of six, otherwise we might end up with 80! This morning we awoke to our newest little addition huddling under the heat lamp by herself while the other three were nestled together in the corner. It was such a sad sight to see, and when they all got up, the three big ones started pecking at her. We decided that it would not work to have one little one in with all the big ones. Additionally, we were bummed about not having a Speckled Sussex anymore, because they are just an all-around great breed. So, we decided to go to the feed store one last time and pick up a Speckled Sussex. Somehow we also left with a Gold-laced Wynandotte. I know, I know, it is getting a little bit ridiculous. But oh my goodness, they are cute! The kicker is that we came home to find yesterday's little one all snuggled in with the three big ones - she finally found her place, making our purchase of the new ones unjustifiable for our previous reasons. So we had to come up with new reasons, which are: they are cute, we're stuck with them now, and we will now have up to 3 dozen eggs a week once they mature! I already have interested buyers. :) I will post pictures tomorrow as our camera battery died.

Well it was a rough day without Queen Elizabeth. Last night I kept having dreams of rescuing baby chicks in peril. Needless to say it was not a very restful night. My husband wanted to try to get a new chicken today. I was not so sure... for one, it seemed too soon after losing Queen Elizabeth. Also, the chicks in stock were freshly hatched and I was concerned about the safety of a little one with our much larger flock. But, alas, we went to the feed store, and left with another little chick. She hatched on Monday - 4 days old today. She is a Sicilian Buttercup and is amazingly tiny! I am not sure, however, if we will keep her. The girl at the feed store convinced us that they were good egg layers, but upon doing more research at home, I found out she is an ornamental breed, with pretty minimal egg laying potential. So far the others are not too fond of her. I think they miss their Queen! I, however, think she is adorable.

We did find out today that chickens should always be in pairs, as it keeps them from fighting. This makes sense given their behavior last night and this morning without Queen Elizabeth. This new chick has helped to bring unity, but it's more like the three of them band together now and ignore this one :( We'll see how it all plays out.

Tragedy Strikes

Today we had a tragedy with the chickens. Queen Elizabeth, who was the oldest of the chickens, managed to fly out of her home today while we were at work. She unfortunately did not survive her escapade outside of her box. It was a horrific discovery, and was met with much sadness. Queen Elizabeth was the friendliest chicken and a favorite for both us, and the other chicks. They are not quite the same without her there to mother them. They seem to be fighting a lot this evening. Queen Elizabeth always kept the peace. I never realized I could be so upset over a chicken... I mean, I ate chicken for lunch. But I am extremely sad about losing Queen Elizabeth. Of all the chicks, she seemed the most like a member of our family. I will miss her very much. This is my favorite picture of her.

R.I.P. Queen Elizabeth.

Meet the Ladies

This is Buffy. She is a Buff Orpington breed. She will be golden colored and lay brown eggs. Her breed is known for being especially mild mannered and friendly.

This is Queen Elizabeth. She is a Speckled Sussex. She is 2 weeks older than the rest of the chicks. She has been like a mother hen to them, snuggling them under her feathers. I have been told she looks like a hawk - she does - but she is most definitely a chicken!

We haven't really named this one yet. She sometimes goes by "Red", sometimes by "Bucky". She is a Buckeye and is a Rhode Island Red mix. She is the runt of the litter but makes up for it with her feist.

This is Fluffy. She gets her name because, well, she is so fluffy! I don't have a good front angle picture, but she has cheeks that poof out right around her ears. She is an Aracauna and will lay blue or green eggs!