Growing Up and Moving Out

Did you think I was talking about my kids?  Did you know we started the school year yesterday and I sent the Cowboy, my little Cowboy, my little big-boy, off to K3?  That’s not what this post is about.  It still squeezes my heart too much for me to write about.  And we’re not kicking them out just yet.

But there was other relocations this weekend as well.

Mr. Fix-It getting ready for the move with his two helpers.

Our chicks have officially moved from the brooder house to the field pen.

The dog's job was to make sure no one flew out during the move.

From their sheltered home under the lean to with solid walls and a soothing fan to the green grass and fresh air of the elements.

The Ladybug's gotten braver about handling the chickens this year.

It was a whole family affair.  Like just about everything around here.

It's all about the team work!

The Cowboy worked the gate on the transport cage.  I take back anything I might ever have said about Mr. Fix-It being impatient.  You don’t know patience until you’ve had to depend on a 3 yr old when you’re hands are full of live chickens.

The Cowboy took his job seriously. Sort of.

The Ladybug handled the little guys.

Doesn't she just look like a pro?

And Speedracer…well, he was there for moral support.

A "family friendly" farm means everyone can help.

Now part of our daily chores is for Mr. Fix-It to move the pen each morning and feed them.  Then the kids and I check their water and feed them again in the evening when we get home.

It took a couple trips to move them all.

They get fresh grass, fresh bugs, fresh scenery each day.

Chickens aren't the only ones that need fresh air and green grass to grow up healthy and happy.

And we get chicken pot pie in a few more weeks.

Sounds like a good deal to me!

New Chicks Are Here!

I mentioned last week that we were mail ordering our next batch of chicks and expecting them any day now.  We got an email confirmation on Tuesday the 13th that they would be shipping out on the 14th and should arrive in 1-2 days.  At 7:43 am Friday morning I got “the call” from the Post Office.  “We’ve got some baby birds here for ya.”  So the kids and I piled into the Hemi and set off.

The moment of arrival! July 16, 2010.

This time we got two boxes.  The suspense while I set up the food and water in the brooder house was almost too much for the kids.

Food, water, shavings for bedding, and heat lamp (yeah, right!)--home sweet home.

The Ladybug is no longer nervous about handling the little guys, although I don’t let the Cowboy or Speedracer hold them without constant and immediate supervision.  They tend to squeeze, by accident, and baby chicks don’t respond well to squeezing.  So she was my unloader.

My big helper with all things baby chicken related!

One. Chick. At. A. Time.

75 times.

Yes, it took us awhile.

The Ladybug has learned how to "BE GENTLE!"

But they were soon all installed in their new home–the brooder house.  They’ll stay here for about two weeks until they grow enough to handle the field pen and less sheltered weather conditions.  Needless to say, they don’t really need a heat lamp right now and we also have a fan running during the afternoons.  But they have to be at 95° for 10 days, so if we get a cool down or rain we might need  to plug it in.

The little suckers are constant motion. It's hard to get pictures!

We use a vitamin supplement in their water (that’s why it’s yellow looking) for the first 10 days as well to help them get over any shipping stress and get a good start.  We use paper plates for the first few days because it’s easy for them to find and get to until they get used to things.  Then we switch to a regular metal feeder.  And we scatter the food around the pen for the first day or two so they can find it and don’t eat too many wood shavings instead.

They are so cute and fluffy that first day!

Water is so important for them too.  The first thing we do when we put each chick in is to dip their little beak in the water so they get a drink right off and know exactly where the waterer is.  I try to go back every couple of hours and make sure everyone is ok.  If anyone seems slow, we’ll move them by the waterer and maybe dip their little beaks again to make sure they got some.  It seems to help perk them up and get them going.

So far they’re a week old and we haven’t lost anyone, so we must be doing something right!

The Cowboy, June 2010.

Ok, I just couldn’t resist.  Isn’t that Cowboy the cutest thing ever?  Mr. Fix-It got him a new hat and boots and I can’t get him out of them.