My babies have moved out........

and into larger accommodation. The chicks were getting too big for the box in our ensuite so we have made a bigger 'cage' for them. They are now in the new chook house (the yard is not yet complete). They will be 4 weeks old tomorrow - so hard to believe!

The new chook house (the yard still has to get done - when the weather cools down) - it is in amongst trees and a cooler spot than the existing chook yard.

Their new box.......

This is Shadow.........

This is Custard......

And this is George or Georgina - depending on whether the chick turns out to be a he or a she!

Update on my feathered friends

There has been no further progress on the new chook pen - too darn hot!!! The chickies are still happily living in my ensuite and are growing fast! They are losing their down and getting their feathers. We need to build them a box so they can go outside for some time through the day and back in at night. It's hard to believe but they will be 4 weeks old on Friday! I'll try and get some photos this afternoon when we clean their cage out.

Chook progress

So far so good - the three chicks are happy and healthy and growing incredibly fast!

All our other chooks are okay too despite the weather warming up - hopefully they stay that way!

No more progress on the chook houses - it may be a little while before we get back to them, too much else on at the moment!

Chickies are one week old today

and they are doing well so far! I can see their wing feathers starting to grow and they stretch their little legs and wings often! I am constantly surprised by how fast they are - even playing what looks like 'tag' around their box ;-) They are eating and drinking well and seem to be quite healthy for now - keeping fingers crossed!

Not sure if we will get much done on the new chook pen this weekend, they are forcasting storms and rain (and it has just been too hot) - not to mention we have lots of SCA stuff to do at the moment! (See here if you want to know what I am talking about.) Lots of armour to make and sewing to do!

Here are some of the other chooks

Okay, did a count tonight. We have four roosters and five hens in one pen, and one rooster and 4 hens in the other pen. Once we get the new pens built we will re-look at our stock. I think the 3 silkie cross roosters can go back to the auction and we will keep the one 'big fella' that I think is the dad of our chicks. The other rooster can stay too as he is in the other pen and is quite quiet. If our chicks turn out to be roosters not sure what we will do - they may go to the auction or we may keep the old pen and keep them over there as the bachelor pad ;-) LOL I don't think I could part with out first chicks...........of course that is if they survive, after all they are not quite a week old yet!

The new area for the Poultry Palace

This is the area where we are going to build the poultry palace - I will be able to watch my chickens from the kitchen window and dining room. The fence has now been pulled down between the BBQ area and the alloted spot. My mum is a keen gardener so she will be putting lots of geraniums and the like around the outside of the chook yard to help with visual appeal and smell ;-) My lovely husband is also going to build me a 'proper' chook house with raised timber floor so it will be easier to clean and help with air circulation (especially in summer). The current chook yard is not that far from the house and we rarely get smell so I cannot see it being a problem for us. I'm really starting to get excited about the whole idea!

The current chicken accommodation

Photo taken from the back of our house (near the BBQ area). This is where the chickens currently live until we get their poultry palace built ;-)

More photos of the chickalings (as they have become known)

My 14 year old son made the box and my 11 year old has adopted them (he is referred to as the 'mother hen' ;-))

A couple of photos of the new chicks

It is now 4 days after they have been 'discovered' - not sure if it was their hatching date though ;-)

What came first - the chicken or the egg?

To that - I have no answer and I am not going to get my brain in a knot trying to figure it out! LOL

I wanted a space to diarise some of my chicken thoughts and ideas. Yes, I am probably a tad eccentric or should that be eggcentric? okay, enough of the puns!

We have been keeping chickens for a couple of years now with moderate success - things go along alright for a while and then we usually have a few tragedies. The latest is the death of our mother hen with six chicks - one chick also died, two went missing and the other three are living in my bathroom. It is the first time we have had live chicks so it was a pretty exciting event. My husband grew up on the land so for him it is 'meh' but for me (who grew up in the city and only went west when I was 19) and our three boys it is a new experience! I actually love my chickens - I find them fascinating to watch and they have their own personalities. I have decided this year I want to learn about raising chickens properly and have set out to learn as much as I can - I think I may join the local poultry club too. I have books to read and plans to make......

At the moment, we have about 5 roosters (long story - we did have about 15!) and about 8 or 10 hens (I want to count them and start keeping records - see which ones do well and which ones don't). One of the hens is too old to lay (she was a pity case) and is more of a pet - she is a cute little white Silkie. We get between 4 and 10 eggs a day depending on the weather - it is really hot at the moment so they are not laying. We have a large pen that is divided into a smaller yard (the Silkie pen -which contains a Wyondotte rooster and hen, a modern game hen, an Australorp hen and the Silkie hen) - this was more for our fragile and invalid stock ;-) The larger pen has 3 Silkie cross roosters, another gorgeous rooster (don't know the breed) and the rest of the hens, most of which are referred to as the 'owl faces' due to the feathering on their faces - I have no idea what breed they are! The chook house is made out of recycled tin and wood and has netting on some walls to allow for ventilation. The yard is on a bit of a slope and the ground is hard and rocky (hence some of the foot injuries the chooks have had). There is some shade but not enough for our liking. We have picked a new site near our house where there are lots of shady pine trees, soft dirt for scratching and very few rocks. We plan to build a 'poultry palace' there off the ground to allow for better air circulation and easier cleaning. We will have two yards and a seperate smaller brooding pen (each with their own accommodation). At the moment, the low fence seperating the two yards is causing issues as some of the chooks have been trying to 'hop' across and have been getting caught. I also want to get hanging feeders and waterers which will be easier to fill and maintain, rather than the ground dishes we have at the moment. I am even looking at an automatic waterer for the hotter weather. I will also be setting up properly to hand raise any future chicks. I also want a small pen and box set up for any sick or injured chooks we may get so I can look after them better. Hmmmm, big plans afoot! LOL

I think we are going to have to name our three little chicks, and even if they end up being roosters I can see us keeping them as they will be 'the first' hand raised chickens we have ever had (providing they survive of course). We thought if they do turn out to be roosters we would take them to the auction but I don't know if we will be able to part with these three special ones. *sigh*

Apparently yesterday, the yellow one 'accidently' got out when our youngest son was cleaning the cage. Apparently Rex the cat went to have a sniff, the chick pecked his nose, the cat ran, and the chick chased. Would have been hilarious! I reminded the boys though it could have ended very differently and they need to be more careful! I couldn't stop chuckling though everytime I pictured it!

Will try and upload some photos tonight - for now it is back to work!