Day 3

The chicks are handling their new life rather well. They're not thrilled with being picked up all the time, but they accept it. According to all sources I can find, they will have a much better temperament if they're handled on a regular basis (one source said to allow the kids to handle them whenever they want). If they're used to being handled by humans, then they'll even be likely to follow us around the yard when they're not penned in.

Last night, I went to the farm store to look for legbands, for identification of the chicks. No luck finding them, but I did pick up a brooder-box thermometer. The chicks do seem to do a wonderful job of letting us know when they're too warm or too cold (huddling together under the lamp if they're too cold; moving out to the edges of the box if they're too warm), but I wanted another way to ensure the box would stay at the right temperature.

For the first week, the box is supposed to be kept at a temperature of 90-95 degrees; each week thereafter, the temperature should be reduced by around 5 degrees. I placed the thermometer in the box, and it confirmed the chicks' behavior: it hovers right around 92 degrees. So the thermometer isn't really a necessity, but it can't hurt, either.

I changed the bedding this morning. Rather than trying to work around the chicks, I transferred them to the box that we used to transport them home. I was stunned to realize they've already nearly doubled in size, in only two days. I shouldn't be surprised; after all, we bought 3 day old chicks, and they were already FAR bigger than could've fit in an egg.

Upon removing the old bedding, I discovered that the waterer wasn't sitting very well on it; a good amount of water had dripped out and soaked through the papers on the bottom of the box. I will have to try to adjust the layout accordingly.

I still haven't decided on a design for the run that they'll eventually live in outdoors. I need to get on that, and get started building it. Normally, I would think (and all my sources advise) that this should be done before you even buy the chicks. However, I know our arrangement will be fairly simply, probably something small enough, and light-weight enough, to move around the yard. This way, they'll be given regular access to new scratching ground, as well as fresh sources of bugs and worms to dig up.



Whatever the design, it will include this hutch we purchased. I love the look of this little thing, and we certainly couldn't build one for the price we paid. It even has a sturdy metal tray underneath it to catch waste, so I can slide it out and empty it right into the compost. In addition to the perch, it has an asphalt-style roof, which I'm sure the chickens will love to perch on in warmer weather. An easy-access door for retrieving eggs and good sliding bolts on the large front door pretty much sold us on it. I also have a sheet of plywood from a previous project; I'm going to use this to build a few nesting boxes to place inside for egg-laying purposes.

I've found several designs that look pretty good. I simply need to compare them, and apply the design features that we want to use for our coop.



I'm going to speak to our neighbors in the next week or so, if I can manage to catch them outside. I don't think there will be any issues there; of our three immediate neighbors [both sides, and directly behind], one house is vacant and one is inhabited by someone we've actually spoken to only 3 or 4 times in the 7 years we've lived here. I'm sure he won't have any issues, either; a couple of years ago, he stopped mowing his back yard, simply because he never uses it, and didn't see wasting the fuel to mow it. When he did so, he made sure to speak to us, and ask that, if it was an issue for us, to please let him know. He even said he was fine if our kids wanted to play back there whenever we liked. The third neighbor is an older couple, who have multiple dogs, and love their gardens. When I spoke to their adult son, he said that his dad always wanted to have chickens. So again, I don't foresee any issues. But I will be sure to tell them that, if any issues arise, to please not hesitate to let us know. We don't want our flock to be a problem for anyone.

And now, it's about time to put the rack back on the brooder, and head for bed. I'm going to spend a good portion of tomorrow working on designs for the coop and run, so I need to get some real sleep.