September 22, 2012 The New Chick on the Block

Friday, September 21st.,  Chicken Mentor Barb called and said she had a chicken for my husband Steve;  a Sicilian Buttercup...which is funny because his paternal grandparents came from Sicily...SO, naturally I had to adopt her.

She is 4 months old and I brought her home Saturday; made an isolation pen to separate her from the other Girls; and I hope to integrate her tonight while they are roosting and sleeping. All the chicken books say this is a good way to introduce a 'newbie': when they wake up in the morning with her in the flock, they are more accepting. I did re-introduce both Fearless and Blondie this way after they were in hospital isolation, so it does work.  I do expect some pecking as they fit her into the hierarchy. Fearless is gonna love moving up from her lowest status. It will be interesting to see how that plays out.

Miss Buttercup, as yet unnamed

UPDATE on Wednesday, 26th:
After 5 days, she is still living inside the little coop-house: occasionally being chased around or out by one of the others who wants to get in to sit on a nest or be bratty. But, thankfully, no vicious pecking  by her 'sisters'. She still pecks my fingers if I try to pick her up, but she is eating and drinking and for the most part seems to be okay and will come up to me if I "chick chick chick" call her.

She has the most beautiful olive green legs:

I think she will fit in fine with the others and it is just a matter of time before I know I will see her outside with the Girls when I go down in the mornings to open the pasture.

If you would like to toss a name suggestion in the hat, I am at the upper part of the alphabet with this first group, so her name can start with "A", "E" or 
a replacement "D" for the now-gone Dolly.

Stay tuned for name announcement and personality description.

September 8, 2012 Blondie Update

Here's a photo of Blondie 6 weeks after the gate accident, which cracked her beak.  You can see there is still a nick in both parts of the beak, but she is scratching and eating fine. The biggest news in her recovery is that she is able to peck corn on the cob again and sheer off pieces of green leaves; neither of which she could do for the first 3-4 weeks!

And she has become sweeter since her injury; always the first at the coop door in the morning and the first to run out into the playground ready to plunder worms.  Now I can even pick her up more often than before.

Here are the Girls in their newly grown pasture, which is attached to the chicken coop and protected from overhead predators with plastic chicken fencing. While this side gets destroyed and eaten, I have re-seeded the other side and it will be open for grazing at the end of October. I keep the rotation going, as well as letting them out into the bigger open aired playground - but I saw a coyote yesterday morning on the outside of the big main fence: scared him off with some clapping and I hope he/she stays away! Kind of worried about that but I guess I have to let that go and let them get outside and be 'chickens'.

I used some old leftover seeds: broccoli, corn, bok choy, sunflowers, and spinach as well as new alfalfa, oats and wheat. They seem to appreciate the variety!

Curious is STILL broody - it's been 28 days! Last time she was broody for 30 days and took another 16 until she started laying again. What a good mommy she would have made if she had been sitting on fertilized eggs.