The Baby Chicks

The new baby chicks arrived early on Tuesday morning.  I raced up to the Post Office like a kid on Christmas morning excited to pick up the new babies.  Other Post Office customers were smiling.  Baby chicks are pure happiness. 

Luckily, this is our second set of chicks, so we already had all of the equipment neccessary (brooder box, chick feeder, waterer and heat lamp).  I got them all set up for the day, but still wished that one of my hens was still broody.

Later that evening, before bed, I grabbed Bluebell and put her in the brooder box with them and turned off the heat lamp.  Bluebell is a very loving and shy Black Silkie.  I set her down, and she just stood there looking at me like I was a total idiot.  Finally all the chicks discovered how warm it was underneath her (perhaps with my hints, or as my husband put it, "did you push them under her?" fyi - I did not) and began to gather under her belly.  Hesitantly, I decided it was okay to leave them for a bit and routinely I went back down and checked on them.   Then, at bedtime, my husband said, "are you just going to leave them there?!" So, I ran down and Bluebell was still sitting there allowing the new babies to sleep under her.  She seemed all nice, content and motherly.  I smiled.


Bluebell & the Chicks

So, I went back up to bed and told my husband that they were all fine. It seemed we had an adoptive mother on hour hands.  And I love to know when I'm right. He informed me that I was going to be "real sorry" when we woke up and they were dead.

In the morning, I got up and went down to the basement to check up.  Bluebell got up, stretched her legs and got herself a drink of water... then peck, peck, peck, she decided it was time to kill them.  What the? (luckily there were zero injuries or mortalities in this apparently stupid experiment)  Needless to say, I immediately removed her from the box and I am now once again a proud and doting mother hen.