Monday, March 25, 2013

The Rest of the Flock










Meet Milly, Stella, Hazel and Penelope. They are my Black Star chickens. Black Stars are also called Black Sex-link because when they hatch, the males are colored differently than the females. I chose this breed for a pen of three at the fair. They are prolific layers of large brown eggs and also very hardy. They are a wonderful all-around breed and will definitely be stars in our flock!    ~Caroline












For my pen of three this year, I got four Delaware chicks. Their names are Izzy, Patsy, Betty, and Annie. All my girls love to flap around and sing. Delawares are globally endangered birds. When they are older, they will be white with black speckled necks and lay large brown eggs. I cant wait to take three of these girls to the fair! ~Natalie












Monday, March 11, 2013

Wet Weekend


Our pond is finally filling up! After about two inches of rain over the weekend, the water by the dock is almost eight feet deep. The water level rose roughly six feet this weekend! This morning, our first visitors arrived for a swim. 




Thanks to all of our customers who came out in the rain to meet our chicks.

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Chick Days

Dark Brahma hen
Nellie, the Dark Brahma

Did you know that Dark Brahma chickens have feathered feet? I have two Dark Brahma chicks, Nellie and Jolene. They are very noisy and energetic. When they are older, they will lay brown eggs. It is going to be interesting to see what my girls look like as they get older. I cant wait until they start laying!
~Natalie







Golden Laced Hen
Golden Laced Wyandottes are beautiful birds and great layers. I chose them for the show bird category. Doris and Ingrid, my Golden Laced Wyandottes, are very playful and friendly. When they start laying, they will lay big brown eggs. This breed is considered rare, so we are lucky to have two of our very own!
Ingrid, Golden Laced Wyandotte
~Caroline


Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Meet the Chicks



Salmon Faverolle Hen
Flo and Bev are my Salmon Faverolles. They have fluffy feet, fluffy cheeks and a fifth toe! They are hardy and great layers of light brown to white eggs. My Salmon Faverolle chicks are very friendly and love to be held. They like to lay on their back in your hands. I’m excited to show this rare breed at the fair this summer.
Flo, three days old
~Caroline











Tina



Meet my Araucanas, Wanda and Gretel! Araucanas are also called Easter egg chickens. They will eventually lay lots of green and blue eggs. Our adult Araucanas, Tina and Piper, dont look at all alike. Our chicks look the same now, but you never know! Im planning on taking one of these girls to the fair.
~Natalie
Wanda, one of our new chicks
Piper

Monday, March 4, 2013

Chicks Galore!




The day finally arrived! On Saturday, we traveled for about two hours to pick up our little bundles of fluff. When we got to Murray McMurray, they brought out our chicks and took off the lid. We knew there were more than twelve , but they were too jumbled up to count. They told us they sometimes pack  extras, but we didn't know how many! As we unloaded them at home, we counted 16 little peepers! After dipping all of their beaks in the waterer and putting the heat light on, some of the chicks were very hungry and the others seemed pretty confused. Once they had all explored the brooder, they decided to take a nice long snooze. We got six different breeds of chicks, and we will feature one breed every day this week.