They are adjusting well to the cube and their new backyard. There is a heat lamp suspended in the cube to keep them warm - fresh water and "chick starter" for food - and a bedding of pine chips/shavings.
They peep when they are awake, but mostly they sleep - standing, laying down, whenever the mood strikes. They have received lots of handling today, along with short runs in the grass. They are now bedded down for their first night with their new family! Sleep well little peeps!
Okay, so they're kind of cute. Not converted yet - I'm waiting for the eggs! - but I do welcome them into our "arc".
ReplyDeleteThis is Chicken Two in the picture. I can tell them apart (at least on Day 1) by their heads and their body sizes.
ReplyDeleteChicken One is the largest, very solid and pleasingly plump, easy to hold. She has four white dots on her head. She's also the bravest, exploring in the grass. I was watching her sleep standing up, head propped on the side of a cardboard nesting box.
Chicken Two is very calm. She has a single white dot on her head, and white markings around her eyes. She was held most of the way home in the truck because she's so calm.
Chicken Three is a little bit smaller. She has a large yellow dot on her head. She's the most frantic one, and was peep-screetching all the way home. Once at home she settled down a bit, but seems to like to stretch up very tall when she's held.
Chicken Four is the scragly one. She's the smallest, and seems to have missing feathers, almost like wounds, under her wings where her skin is exposed. She has a small yellow dot on her head and the white markings around her eyes.
If cupped in warm, calm hands, all four will fall asleep quite quickly.
I learned something about chicken eyelids. They seem to have a set of thin white eyelids that close rapidly from the top when they blink. When the fall asleep their second outter set of eyelids close. These eyelids close from the bottom up. Fascinating...
And my lessons in chicken anatomy will continue, I'm sure...