a man and his hoe

every day is a good day

Category: About My Chickens

  • How fast does a chick grow?

    So how fast does a chicken grow up? Here are some pictures of Lucy and Sunny. Sunny hatched October 14. Usually hens hatch clutches of 6 to 15, however once in a while we have hens who end up with single chicks. With the weather getting colder and wetter, I try to keep hens from hatching clutches after September, but sometimes hens surprise you.

    Here is Lucy and Sunny on October 15. Sunny is just one day old.

    Lucy and Sunny on October 15

    By November 9, Sunny is nearly fully fledged.

    Lucy and Sunny on November 9

    Here the two are on November 23, Sunny is nearly six weeks old. Many broiler chickens weigh 4 to 6 pounds by this age and are ready to be processed

    Lucy and Sunny November 23

    And here is Sunny on November 30, almost eight weeks old. She has at least another four months to go before she is fully grown.

    Lucy and Sunny November 30

    Next week, Sunny will be two months old. Its about the age at which hens stop raising chicks and let them be on their own. Since Sunny is an only chick she will most likely hang close to her mother for another month or more. Chicks with siblings have an easier time leaving their mothers. They’ll hang out together and form a clique that lasts a long time. Without siblings, single chicks take longer to develop their adult friends.

    And here is Sven, our Swedish Flower Chicken rooster. He has a very impressive crow.

    Sven

  • Early winter sun and new chicks

    None of the chicken you buy at your favorite store ever get to spend time in the sunshine with its flock. Chicken you buy in stores are almost always hens, and not a single one ever got to flirt with a handsome rooster.

    Chickens enjoying winter sunshine.
    Chickens enjoying winter sunshine.

    And you won’t find a single chicken for sale which ever got to spend time with its mother. Does it make a difference? It does to the chick, and having a mother gives the chick a great deal of comfort. There’s always a warm place to sleep at night and to take mid-day naps. And mother is always there to protect it.

    Mother and daughter feeding.
    Mother and daughter feeding.

    Normally I don’t let broody hens hatch chicks this late in the year, but this year there are several determined hens. This is a two day old chick stepping outside to catch up to its mother.

    New chick looking at mother
    New chick looking at mother

    And out in the woods is a scarecrow – not to frighten off any crows, but to stop any coyotes who venture too close. I recently saw a news report about scarecrows from around the world. According to the report, in Mongolia scarecrows are used to ward off wolves from flocks of sheep. So we’re putting up scarecrows in the woods to protect our chickens. Our two guard dogs do a great job, but there’s no harm in assisting them.

    Scarecrow to keep coyotes away
    Scarecrow to keep coyotes away