Eleven days ago I brought home four baby chicks. Oh, they were so adorable. This is the third time we have brought in chicks in the last ten years. Any of you who have raised chickens know that chicks literally grow overnight. So if anyone ever announces they have chicks, would you like to come see them, you’d better get over there quick!
When it comes to choosing which variety to get, I usually start by browsing what’s available at my local Wilco store. From there I choose ones that I had before and liked, and I also like to try a new breed. I look for ones described as calm, docile, or friendly and good egg-layers. If the eggs are a special color, that’s a plus.
So far we have owned Buff Orpington, Plymouth Barred Rock, Auracana, Red Sex Link (Novogen), and Speckled Sussex. The two new ones we got this time are a Blue Australorp and a Dominant Copper Maran. I had intended to get a Blue Wyandotte and a Rhode Island, but then we went to a different Wilco and the selection wasn’t quite the same.
Why do I have backyard hens? I find that my backyard is rather lonely without the little ladies. Usually we choose three chicks, but we’ve always had a bit of back luck, like one will be a rooster or one will be too aggressive, and too soon we are down to two. So this time we started with four.
Yesterday was warm and we brought them out (they are still living indoors) to the yard. It won’t be long now that I have to fence off the garden. 🙂
As I enjoyed the warm spring weather, thinking about how fluffy chicks soon become gangly as they mature into pullets, I remembered when I was a child and my grandparents used to get the new chicks. How we’d go over and enjoy all the little yellow peeps. And like every child, I suppose we wanted to go see them again. But they don’t last long. They grow fast. (Much like our own children.) Enjoy them while you can.
Do you have a favorite breed of backyard hens? Comment box below. 🙂
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Heavens! They grow fast 🙂