Baby Chicks Have Arrived - A Bit Earlier Than Expected

The call came yesterday morning, thought I'd have until afternoon which was why I was a couple of hours away from my local post office at the time. I wasn't ready to panic, but the poor lady from the post office was quite concerned and feeling a bit helpless.

When I got there I heard them chirping away and saw the relief in her face. She had never heard about the fact that they live off the yolk at first and was relieved to learn it. I'm sure she was more than happy to get her day back to normal when I left.

They are just doing great! I ordered 10, and the hatchery sent 17! They're Old English, Wheaton and Jungle Fowl. This is the first time I've experienced the hatchery having included a heating pad in the box, I'm sure it helped a lot. Once home, I brought them out of the box one at a time, dipped their little beaks in warm water with a little corn syrup right away, so they're busily eating, drinking, and, of course, poop'n like normal.

I have two waterers in the brooder, the one with corn syrup added, and the other with an electrolyte and vitamin mixture added. Right away, I mixed a cup of water with Gro-Gel and put it on top of the egg carton feeders with chick starter in them. Of course I had the brooder pre-heated to 95 degrees F. They seem to be loving their new home . . . good old mother hen brooder. They need to grow big and strong, becoming beautiful will happen naturally. Some of them will be my show birds later this summer.

This is the time for great self discipline, tearing myself away from just watching the little guys. Nope, not progressing too well on that front right now. I don't pick them up and pet them for a few days so they'll have a chance to get settled, but sure am looking forward to that, too.

Hey, if you're one of those people still just thinking about getting chickens- seriously, you have to take the plunge . . . you'll love it, too! Want to learn more?  One source of information (all free) is http://www.fortheloveofchickens.com . Immerse yourself in all the information online about raising chickens, and you'll have plenty of confidence.

Chickens and Grandma

This last week my Grandmother passed away - a strong, kind, hardworking woman from the 'olden days' when she and most everyone she knew raised chickens, had a garden, and basically practiced sustainable living just as a matter of course, not to mention, necessity. The word "sustainable" may not have been used, but the action was practiced through frugality and what we now call "recycling". Grandma didn't think of her chickens as pets, but nonetheless, always had a favorite hen or two that followed her around.

Back then, chickens were mailed from Sears or Montgomery Ward and most people kept a few for fresh eggs and butchered the rest so they could have meat to eat. A lot of change has taken place in the past 90 years or so. People lived "off the Grid" without benefit of solar panels and an army of batteries to power their heating, light, and other energy needs. Obviously, they didn't realize they were missing out on much, because many of the conveniences we have now simply hadn't been invented yet.

This post is a tribute to my Grandma, who I loved dearly, and had the opportunity to spend a good deal of time with after I grew up, not nearly as much when I was young - due to living too far away. My younger memories of the times we did visit overnight center on her early morning ritual around the corner from the fold-out couch where we slept . . . in her living room where she tried hard not to wake my brother and I  as she started a fire in the old wood "heater".  She crumpled old newspaper, covered it with cedar kindling, then lit it and let it get a good start before she laid several logs on it.

She may have never learned that we woke up every time and watched her morning ritual (I can visualize it easily to this day) -- we just didn't want to get up because her house was sooo cold. We sure got up when we smelled breakfast cooking, though! She had a "cookstove" in the kitchen, and had to keep a steady fire going in it in order to evenly heat the top burners and the oven. Watching her cook or bake was like watching a magician -- everything she did appeared to be so easy and quick . . . and it all tasted delicious beyond words!

Grandma was always gentle and kind, but she quietly set a limit on our rambunctiousness -- one stern look told us to shape up. Once when we were chasing each other through her garden, and not heeding her quiet admonitions, she actually asked Grandpa to cut a couple of switches. I'm certain that she would have used them if we hadn't taken that strong hint!

After I grew up I never tired of hearing her stories from the past -- I'd run errands for her, then come back to her apartment where she'd have the most delicious meal ready for me, often boiled potatoes, fried bacon and gravy -- then we'd talk until time for me to go home and get set for work. She fed me like I was a farm hand, while all I'd done was drive down the street to the store.

I'll never forget Grandma (or Grandpa, who passed away more than 20 years ago) and will always cherish the time I was privileged to spend at their farm; and later with Grandma nearby in our neighboring town. God Bless them both, they're finally together again. No more pain, hard physical work, worry, or anxiety.

Grandma's service was a fitting memorial for the beautiful person she was, but only time will heal the pain of her passing.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Well, Valentines Day was yesterday, so this is a bit belated. Even so, hope it was special for all. Like most everyone, it was a work day for me.

Here we are in mid-February already with Spring quickly approaching. More and more people are becoming enthusiastic about keeping chickens as pets, showing them and making them the center of their family life. What an exciting cultural trend to witness! Love it!

I think every kid should have the privilege and educational opportunity to hatch some eggs, at least once when they're young. I guess they do it in classrooms sometimes and that's great, too. Caring for a brooder full of baby chicks is a really close second choice, of course. Seems we, as a society, kind of lost that exposure to rural living over the years. Just my opinion, of course. Don't mean to ramble on.

A couple of new books have arrived: Rare Poultry Breeds by David Scrivener. I'll be adding it to my library, it's nearly 300 pages, can't wait to read it. I already have 99% of the books on chickens and other poultry, so I have to be on the look out for new ones that come out. The other book is Keeping Chickens:Self Sufficiency, by Michael Hatcher. Am about to order it, too. Will try and get these out on my http://www.fortheloveofchickens.com/ site soon and will 'review' them for your benefit.

Pet Chickens in Halloween Costumes

Hi Fellow Chicken Enthusiasts,

According to the Stat's, this post gets quite a few views, even though it's really old. Thought I'd give you a little update, since you may be interested in chickens in costumes.
Since this video was done, there are a few more costumes. They're over on a website named The Runway Chicks. (the 22 more mentioned haven't yet come to fruition [turns out, they're sewn by hand, that takes awhile], and neither is last year's calendar, but there's always this year, right?). 

To great ideas and worthy plans and never giving up,

Scott 


Two of my pet chickens are appearing in a Halloween video . . . see it by clicking the link below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xR1N1H-dEPk

It's pretty cute, they're dressed in Halloween costumes.

My friend Carrie made the little outfits. now she's working on 22 more. She'll be making a 2011calendar with a pair of chickens all dressed up in appropriate outfits for each month.

Happy Halloween, everybody!