PandemicChickens
In the Brooder
Hello from downstate Illinois. I am new to chickens. My nieces, daughter, and I picked up day old baby chicks from Farm and Fleet on March 13th, the same day the governor ordered the shut down of the state. The timing was a complete coincidence, I had wanted to get chickens for years. Earlier in the month I'd had influenza, and used my bedridden time to finally make concrete chicken plans and set them in motion. I was amused and concerned to later learn that chickens were among the items people were panic buying, along with toilet paper and hand sanitizer.
Currently, we have 9 chickens. The original plan was only to start with 3 or 4, but I'm a pushover. Each of my kids, nieces, and my mother wanted their own chick. So I came home from that first trip to Farm and Fleet with 6 baby chicks. (Kudos to the guy that helped us at Farm and Fleet. My nieces weren't content with just selecting a breed, they wanted to choose the individual chick from the bucket. The man working in the chicken area was very good natured about capturing their chosen chicks.)
A friend of mine in Chicago who grew up on a farm wanted to get some backyard chickens as well, and to order them from McMurray Hatchery as he did growing up. His Chicago backyard isn't suited to the minimum 6 chickens, so I took in 3 of those chicks a couple of months later.
We don't have any breed duplication among the 9 chickens. In the first batch of 6 we have Marijane (Black Australorp), Betty (Light Brahma), Dinosaur (Golden Laced Wyandotte), Emily (Easter Egger), Leah (Barred Plymouth Rock), and Brown Sugar (Rhode Island Red). In the 2nd batch of 3 chicks we have Louise (Fayoumi), Animal (Amercauna), and Pineapple-Penny-Pooh (Lakenvelder). It's worth noting that I have not named a single chicken.
I really love the peacefulness of taking care of the chickens each day, especially now that they are out of the brooder and into the coop. I've been working from home and it's nice to go see them over a lunch break, or in the evening. It's fun to observe their behaviors and personalities, and the way that they behave as such a little crew. I also really enjoy watching my nieces and nephews interact with the chickens. They range in age from toddler to grade schooler, and the older grade schoolers speak with the authority of chicken experts now. (Post chicken hand washing is mandatory, and no chicken kisses. We don't need salmonella here.)
Currently, we have 9 chickens. The original plan was only to start with 3 or 4, but I'm a pushover. Each of my kids, nieces, and my mother wanted their own chick. So I came home from that first trip to Farm and Fleet with 6 baby chicks. (Kudos to the guy that helped us at Farm and Fleet. My nieces weren't content with just selecting a breed, they wanted to choose the individual chick from the bucket. The man working in the chicken area was very good natured about capturing their chosen chicks.)
A friend of mine in Chicago who grew up on a farm wanted to get some backyard chickens as well, and to order them from McMurray Hatchery as he did growing up. His Chicago backyard isn't suited to the minimum 6 chickens, so I took in 3 of those chicks a couple of months later.
We don't have any breed duplication among the 9 chickens. In the first batch of 6 we have Marijane (Black Australorp), Betty (Light Brahma), Dinosaur (Golden Laced Wyandotte), Emily (Easter Egger), Leah (Barred Plymouth Rock), and Brown Sugar (Rhode Island Red). In the 2nd batch of 3 chicks we have Louise (Fayoumi), Animal (Amercauna), and Pineapple-Penny-Pooh (Lakenvelder). It's worth noting that I have not named a single chicken.
I really love the peacefulness of taking care of the chickens each day, especially now that they are out of the brooder and into the coop. I've been working from home and it's nice to go see them over a lunch break, or in the evening. It's fun to observe their behaviors and personalities, and the way that they behave as such a little crew. I also really enjoy watching my nieces and nephews interact with the chickens. They range in age from toddler to grade schooler, and the older grade schoolers speak with the authority of chicken experts now. (Post chicken hand washing is mandatory, and no chicken kisses. We don't need salmonella here.)
cellent day!
