1 Week Old Baby Chickens!!!!

The babies are starting to grow their feathers.  It is AMAZING how quick these little things grow.  They are one week old today and soooo cute.

We ordered a set of three rare breeds from My Pet Chicken.  We always order from them because you can order as little as three regular sized chickens or as little as five miniature chickens (Bantams).  Additionally, they will sex the chickens for you, so we have never had to worry about ending up with roosters.

Basically the rare breed collection that we ordered means that we ordered three and they surprise from a list of rare breeds based on what had a good hatch the week of shipment.  So here's who we got.

This is a photo of the strangest looking little girl.  Her name is Bubbles.  And as if there were any doubt, seeing as how it looks like someone circumcised her head, she is of the Naked Neck (aka Turken) Breed.  The alternate name comes from the fact that they look like a cross between a chicken and a turkey.  Here she is:

Bubbles - She is such a sweet little girl

Bubbles - Getting her wings!

The photos have a bit of a red tinge to them because of the heat lamp right above the brooder box.  I have to hold them over the box when I take their picture because they are wiggly little things and they will wiggle right out of your hands.  I don't want one of them to fall and get hurt.

It's a little strange petting Bubbles.  She has a nice tuft of furry feathers on the top of her head but then you get to her neck and chest and it's very thin, wrinkly, and slightly transparent skin that moves as you run your finger over it.

It's anybody's guess as to what color she will end up being, but here's a picture (and an article) of an adult black naked neck chicken. Tee hee hee.

Our next little girl is Cotton Candy, courtesy of my 5-year old step-minion, Jack. We believe that she's another Buff Brahma, based on her coloring and the feathering on her feet.  We have one Buff Brahma already, named Buffy, and she's a wonderful bird.  It's a real delight to get another.  Here's a couple photos of our new little one:

I have to hold her a little snugger cause she's a real wiggler.

Her coloring is much darker than the other two, but that will change when they get older

Cotton Candy, aka "Cotton", will grow up to be a nicely feathered, stout and round bird.  They carry themselves very proudly, and their coloring is quite different as an adult.  There is a picture of one here.

And the last of the bunch is Daphne, courtesy of my other step-minion, Wyatt, who is very into Scooby Doo at the moment.  She is what we believe to be a Buckeye.  What makes that really cool is that the bird originates from this great state of Ohio, the only breed developed by a lady, and is an endangered breed.

Daphne

Pretty little Daphne

You can see a picture of a bearded guy holding an adult Buckeye Chicken at the website for The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy.  I didn't know this group existed till I was searching for her breed on the net, it's a quite interesting site really.

And finally, here is a photo of the whole group of them.  Every time I come around they go running away and huddle in the corner.  They're not quite used to me yet!

Little bundles of fluff

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.

Goetz Nano Plantation & Estate

According to research that I have conducted on the internet a micro-farm  is defined as, "as little as an acre."  Our estate consists of a whopping 0.245 acres, i.e. "nano-plantation" (or for those not of my world, nano-farm).   What I actually refer to as "the farm" is the basement, where the chickens live. 
 We have four wonderful pet chickens living in our basement, and three baby chicks that joined our posse two days ago.  Added to the seven birds, we also have one cat and two dogs, as well as two aquariums.  I really want to get a miniature pig, but I'm afraid that might make the neighbors start looking.  I'm sure they've already been looking with my husband the chickens running around the backyard all the time.

I really really want a farm, but until that becomes a reality I have been practicing at the home I have.  And seeing as how I'm pretty klutsy, uncoordinated, and somewhat absentminded, I surprisingly do not have a green thumb.

I finally planted a garden and made an attempt at landscaping my yard.  I went out yesterday to admire my new plants popping up in my shade garden under the Persimmon Tree.  In other words, I was going to start this blog yesterday but a bird pooped on me... to which my loving hubby smiled and said, "awesome."