Moms, For Real: A Month of Chicks

How freaking ADORABLE is that face!

Hello Peeps!

This post comes with a warning!!! Well actually 2.

Moms For Real Food Initiative will not be held responsible for the sudden upswing in chicken ownership throughout Alberta!

Also SUPER CUTE FLUFFY CHICK PHOTOS ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK!

So the cheeps are growing. FAST! A month ago we picked up the sweet fuzzy little buggers now they look like mini chickens.

This was our brooder set up. Parts of an old pig feeder. Worked amazing!

We ordered 200 chicks. On arrival date there was a miscount (whoops) so we had 197. Which is still a lot! With transport we lost 5 chicks. It's a sad part of having chickens sometimes they die. So we had a little funeral. They all settled in quite fast which was amazing. all snug and sleeping in the brooders.

They enjoyed the brooder

We did end up having a few in a 'sick pen' in the house. The first one we had was Hoppy a little Barred Rock. Hoppy had a sprained ankle when she arrived. So we kept her in a small pen and her ankle did get better! Woo hoo! And then there was Teeny. Teeny was a super small (in comparison) yellow chicky with a infected toe. After almost a week of 3x per day salt water soaks, iodine, Blue Kote (which if you accidentally spray on yourself will stain your skin forever) and twice we had to lance it to push the infection out. She was so used to getting her foot soaked she would either sleep in the little container or just stand there. She's good to go the infection is gone and growing much faster now!

Teeny having her foot bath

Next thing I knew they were out gowing the 3 brooders and we had to set up another one! Along with the brooders came playgrounds. Some scrap wood and sticks from the neighbour and boom playground!

About a week and a half after that they had really outgrown the 4 pens and we moved them to the farm. What? You think we would have kept 190 chicks in town forever? Yes we did have a plan. We turned the old red barn into Fort Knox. Or as we call it Fort Chox. 150ft of chicken wire on the inside alone! New lights, new roof, and boom 'The Great Chicken Shuffle of 2016' happened! 6 MASSIVE rubbermaid totes per load, 2 vehicles (I love my mini van) and we shuffled them the 16km in 2 loads. They had more than enough space to move around and lay down. Happy chickies now!

The Great Chicken Shuffle of 2016

SOOOOOOOOOO much space

Lots of feed and water

Settling in

Here Chicky Chicky Chicky

This is what I have learned:

Chicks eat A LOT! We weren't expecting as much. We started with the tiny chick feeders. Awwww so cute. After they started plowing through that in less than 6 hours (at a week and a half!) we moved up to the massive 33lbs metal hanging feeders. Now I only have to fill them every other day. All 4 of them.

Along with a lot of food there's a lot of poop. EVERYWHERE. In the brooder we put down shavings from UFA. It's 4 cu ft per bale (or bag or whatever you want to call it). We have already used around 35 bales. While I'm a stickler for a clean pen it doesn't last long that's for sure. Now they are in the coop we are going to do the 'deep litter method' and see if it doesn't appease my levels of clean.

Water. It's hot they are drinking a lot. Oh and yes they poop in the water too! The cute little chick waterers only lasted about a week and a half as well. We are now up to the big 5 gal waterers.

Their temperament went from snuggly and sleepy to ninja fighting flappity flyers pretty darn quick. We built playground for each of the brooders and they are happy with them. Now they are in the barn with a ton of space we are going to build a larger structure. Crazy little ninja chickens.

They have basically moved past the awkward teenage stage of only half feathers and fuzz to mostly feathered and they are cute again. Honestly, half feathered chicks look deranged! But that's just my opinion.

I am really enjoying being a chicken Mama and am way less neurotic about it. They will do their chick things and I just have to make sure they are protected from that nasty fox.

Now I have been through it once I don't think I would do quite as many chicks at once. It was fun. Well maybe I will. Ha!

With 100 booked in for butcher on July 19 then we will be keeping about a total of 75 layers. And a freezer full!

Well yeah I'll do it again. We picked up 6 White Chantecler chicks on Friday. OMG so fluffy and SO cute! This might end up being a revolving door of babies for a while!

Keep on Cluckin'!