meowthekitty321
Hatching
- Jun 29, 2022
- 1
- 1
- 4
This is a long story. Two years ago, an unexpected hen with chicks showed up in the neighborhood (I’m in San Jose, California). We assumed she escaped from the nearby farm, but we’ll never know. She was scared of people and ran away, squawking, whenever we came near. Her chicks grew into chickens, still unclaimed, feral, and flighty. They are quite good at flying, perching on fences, roaming backyards, and even sleeping in a big tree.
Last spring, we found a big surprise behind an outdoor metal appliance. White eggs! There were more every day, and sometimes we’d see a hen sitting on top of them. Then they hatched into fluffy yellow chicks. We have a picture of the newborn babies and their mother scratching in the compost pile. The chickens seem to be more docile once they have chicks. I even hand-fed the broody hen some uncooked rice and water. Only two of the babies made it in the end.
Fast-forward to this year, and the chickens are still around and still running from people. Our neighbors have become fed up with them destroying their garden, so a few have been relocated to some faraway mountain. There are two hens and two roosters. One or two months ago, they had four chicks with them. Recently, we’ve been only seeing one hen, two roosters, and an young chicken or old chick. The surprising reason why one hen was missing? I found that out today…
This afternoon, we saw one hen, one rooster, and their older chick on the lawn. I ran outside barefoot, hoping to get a picture before they ran away. They escaped over the fence into the neighbor’s backyard, but not before I snapped some photos that I will share with you in a bit.
I heard some growling under a bush, so I put shoes on and peeked under with my phone. I discovered why one hen was missing. She was mothering lots of baby chicks! They looked to be only a few days old. I took pictures, completely ignoring the hen’s warning growl. Then she leapt up and attacked me! She stayed puffed up for a while after I ran inside.
What breed are these chickens? Here are pictures that I took today (June 29 2022), and I’ll update this thread as I take more:
Rooster and hen on the grass, before they flew up to the fence.
Hen perched on the fence
Fluffy butt view, right before she flew down to the other side. The white lines are electricity wires.
Rooster on the fence, I think he’s crowing in this picture.
Another picture of the rooster. The hen is on the fence too, just out of frame to the right.
Broody hen and chicks, underneath the lemon bush. You can see the metal machine the chickens laid eggs behind last year in the background.
Hen and chicks again, running away from the scary human taking pictures.
Through the bush’s branches, you can see the chickens.
A blurry zoomed in shot of a very displeased mother.
You can see the chickens at the top of the frame, as they escape.
Mother hen mauling me- oh wait, I don’t have a picture of this since I dropped my phone.
Digging through my photos, I found this pic, probably a few years old.
Post your guesses to the breed in the replies! Looking at my pictures, the chickens have very small combs. How do they survive in 100+ degree summers?!?
Edit 6/29/2022: Here are some pictures from two years ago, of a hen and her chicks foraging in the compost pile.
Last spring, we found a big surprise behind an outdoor metal appliance. White eggs! There were more every day, and sometimes we’d see a hen sitting on top of them. Then they hatched into fluffy yellow chicks. We have a picture of the newborn babies and their mother scratching in the compost pile. The chickens seem to be more docile once they have chicks. I even hand-fed the broody hen some uncooked rice and water. Only two of the babies made it in the end.
Fast-forward to this year, and the chickens are still around and still running from people. Our neighbors have become fed up with them destroying their garden, so a few have been relocated to some faraway mountain. There are two hens and two roosters. One or two months ago, they had four chicks with them. Recently, we’ve been only seeing one hen, two roosters, and an young chicken or old chick. The surprising reason why one hen was missing? I found that out today…
This afternoon, we saw one hen, one rooster, and their older chick on the lawn. I ran outside barefoot, hoping to get a picture before they ran away. They escaped over the fence into the neighbor’s backyard, but not before I snapped some photos that I will share with you in a bit.
I heard some growling under a bush, so I put shoes on and peeked under with my phone. I discovered why one hen was missing. She was mothering lots of baby chicks! They looked to be only a few days old. I took pictures, completely ignoring the hen’s warning growl. Then she leapt up and attacked me! She stayed puffed up for a while after I ran inside.
What breed are these chickens? Here are pictures that I took today (June 29 2022), and I’ll update this thread as I take more:
Rooster and hen on the grass, before they flew up to the fence.
Hen perched on the fence
Fluffy butt view, right before she flew down to the other side. The white lines are electricity wires.
Rooster on the fence, I think he’s crowing in this picture.
Another picture of the rooster. The hen is on the fence too, just out of frame to the right.
Broody hen and chicks, underneath the lemon bush. You can see the metal machine the chickens laid eggs behind last year in the background.
Hen and chicks again, running away from the scary human taking pictures.
Through the bush’s branches, you can see the chickens.
A blurry zoomed in shot of a very displeased mother.
You can see the chickens at the top of the frame, as they escape.
Mother hen mauling me- oh wait, I don’t have a picture of this since I dropped my phone.
Digging through my photos, I found this pic, probably a few years old.
Post your guesses to the breed in the replies! Looking at my pictures, the chickens have very small combs. How do they survive in 100+ degree summers?!?
Edit 6/29/2022: Here are some pictures from two years ago, of a hen and her chicks foraging in the compost pile.
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