Oh my they don't even look like chickens yet, just fuzz balls. And one of them is doing the chicken scratch thing were they scratch with their legs for food or whatnot. I just looks so funny doing that. Since its on the paper towels, all it manages is to make some funny scratching noises. Chicken TV here is very entertaining :-))
Funny chick antics
Isn't it amazing that they already know how to be chickens when they are only a few days old? I know it's what they are, but still....
Got pictures??
I forgot to take pictures today even though I was going to. I will try for tomorrow. I was really getting a big kick out of the chicks scratching, too funny.
I just hatched out a bunch of silkies (from shipped eggs) and some blue copper marans (from my own birds) about 5 days ago and they are already doing the fuzzy butt chicken scratch as well. Aren't they cute at that age!
Ok Rita and angel_tree_baby, we're going to need pictures!
Took my camera out and put it on my desk so that I will remember to do pics tomorrow.
they are so adorable as chicks
This is all new to me. I love when I see them do something they had not done before. For instance, they now have all done the wipeing of the beaks. They usually just do that on their paper towel bedding but I have seen them wipe beaks on each others back. Its funny because their beaks are clean. It's not as if they needed to wipe them.
This morning it was too funny. When I was changing the bedding I noticed one of those tiny house spiders tried to move in and was on the side of the grass. Since it was really small I just slapped it and left it be for the chicks to find. So a little later I see one literally running around the aquarium with the other two in hot pursuit. It had the tiny spider in its beak and was trying to keep it for itself while everyone else tried to take it away. Spider finially got swallowed which took care of those antics but it was such a hoot while it was going on. Chick TV is so much fun.
Have they started taking dust baths yet?I remember when my dh and I seen them do that for the first time we thought they were dying and thought when we got up in the morning they would all be dead.I got on here and asked what it could be and they asked if they could be taking a dust bath and of corse being new to raising chicks I had to ask what that was.
I do know what dust bathing is but figgured they were too small to try that. Besides there is nothing for them to dust bath in as its just paper towels. So I have never seen dust bathing yet.
I do like the puppy pads with the paper towels for the starter brooder which is what this is. Originally I was going to use a bigger and deeper green solid colored plastic storage bin but I am so glad I decided to start them in the aquarium. I can see them so well, not just from looking down which is what I would have to do in the other.
Today they are a week old and I am surprised at how much they have grown.
A lady that raises silkies suggesting getting a box and putting child's play sand in it for my roosters to bathe in.
Don't see why you could not make a small one for chicks. Not sure how old they are when they want to dust bathe.
I don't figgure they need a dust bath in the aquarium first brooder. They will come out of this for a brooder and be moved to something larger. I might be able to fix up a dust bath for them them. For now they will just have their paper towel bedding.
Rita get that next box ready. Once they start scratching good they will tear the puppy pads and try to eat it. I can usually only keep them on pads for 2 weeks then I move to the lg. Pine Shavings so they don't eat it. It is cheap. I pay 5 dollars for a compressed bale. It is Sun Coast brand
I already have a bag of the shavings ready them when they move. They are getting more fiesty every day ha-ha. They seem to really want to fly as they are always flapping those wings. Funny little things. Growing like weeds.
I moved two rescue hens into a new ground pen today. They had been in a raised pen with wire on the floor. They went into a pen that has a dirt floor. First they pecked the dried grass and sticks and then started scratching... Soon the dust was flying and they were digging holes and flinging dust. The fresh bowl of water became muddy.. It was such a hoot to watch. By next week they should be good enough to be moved to the big girl pen that was just vacated by 7 ducks and has 6 chickens in there already...
The busy little guys are growing like weeds and more and more feathers come so they start to look like chickens instead of fuzz balls. Now in the past day or two I have noticed a comb on the one black olive egger. It is suddenly quite noticable to me while I can see nothing really starting on the other two at all. I figgure this might mean he is a boy? The real Black copper Marans and the blue grey olive egger still show nothing.
Could be...
Is early comb development while the rest show nothing signs of a rooster? Or does it just mean its developing faster than the others? These are things I just don't know about because of no experience.
Sprinkles has decided to fly the coop, or at least try. Good thing I had the top on the brooder. It has been standing at the grass looking out and since it can't get thru its decided to fly over. You can just about see it thinking as it looks up, flaps and jumps at at the same time. Funny chicken.
Some hens develop more comb and earlier than others. However there is a good chance the one growing more comb could be a rooster. Watch for developing waddles they are a more accurate sign of roosterhood.
They are so young yet. Only a week old last Saturday.
Now that they have bedding they can do real dust bathing. What a riot and what a mess. The poor chick is covered in sawdust and puffed up. Rolling around like a ninny and the others are picking off sawdust and eating it. I have given them a small dish of sand that I sterilized in the microwave as I figgured they might need some grit. Don't worry, I waited for it too cool off.
How long does it take to sterilize something like sand in a microwave?
I did it for 5 minutes. Figgured it was good enough.
The chicks love the bedding. I think I put way too much in. They are having a great time scratching thru it. They eat some of it which is why I added the sand for grit. They ate some sand too. They have scattered feed out of their feeder and its mixed with the bedding around the feeder. They have flight practice and really want to fly out. I have a screen on top or they would have escaped already.
What a bunch of scruff balls. I mean they were starting to get to the raggedy stage as the feathers come in. But since they now have the bedding that they just wallow in (dust bath) they look even more scruffy than ever. But I think its good as it gives them something to do as they love to scratch in the bedding.
So now that they are two weeks old are they old enough for treats? I have not given them treats yet as I figgured they were too young before this. But I like bananas, eat some most days, I bet they would like a taste. And last week I threw out some leftover spagetti as I thought they were too young yet.
The main part of their diet should of course still be chick crumbles, but it won't hurt to offer treats as well. Mine especially liked fresh green goodies.
I tried. I really did. I cut up some chicken into really small pieces. They all looked at me like I was nuts and no one would try it.
I love the bird noises that the older chicks make. I knew chickens clucked and that chicks made peeping noises. I didn't realise that chickens made all these trilly and talkative bird sounds. I just love it. Do they keep doing this as they get older or is it only baby sounds? The two week olds are a very yakky group!
They will continue to yack as they get older, their voices just change.
This is a bad shot thru the screen on top but if I moved the screen they would all have gotten up. This is were they usually sleep, all of them together in one big pile. They like to be together. They like to make a mess of themselves dustbathing and then go to sleep.
So this time I am not as surprised by the new little chicks doing adult chicken things like the scratching that starting afew days ago. I am still amused and love to watch them, just not as surprised to see them doing it.
I decided to try treats again. This time treats were live mealworms. I tried the little guys first. After I had just cleaned thier house I just sprinkled afew mealworms on the paper towels. They went completely nuts grabbing and eating them. One guy had two of them in his mouth and was running from the other chicks for all it was worth. Lots of running around as each one grabbed a treat and tried to keep it while others tried to get it away. Really funny. Anyway, I didn't give very many as this was first treats for them.
Meantime the bigger guys next to them are seeing all this and going nuts trying to get at the goodies. So I put some mealworms in a small bowl for them and the idiots run away. But they came back and peered in the bowl until the young roo got brave and grabbed one. After that the free for all was on. They did love the treats.
So since the tiny chicks got food I gave them a small dish of the same sand for grit that the larger ones have. The sand must taste good, yumm, as they all decided to eat some.
When do we get new pictures?
Haven't taken any new pics yet. I guess I could do pictures tomorrow. We will see. The mealworm feeding was just too funny though.
What I want to do is give them afew each day until they learn that momma means treats are comming. I talk to them by saying Hi, chick, chicks, chicks. Now I added the word treats. So I hope they learn it means yummies.
I'll bet they do!
Who ever said food is the way to a chickens heart was certainly correct! :-)) Treats this morning were a way big sucess. All the bigger ones ate mealworms from my hand with no hesitation. One of them walked into my hand and just perched there. These bigger ones are very skittoid in spite of being handeled everyday so I am hoping this tames them right down.
The little ones were so funny. This morning when I went over to stand by chicken TV saying the usual -Hi chick, chick, chickies - (I keep repeating it) they all came over to me instead of rushing away. Some were brave enough to take mealworms from my hand. (the little one doesn't mind my hand at all, used to it I guess) But I just put the mealworms down for the rest. Such a frenzy.
Geezz those bigger guys used to run in terror from me, especially when I had to do food or water changes or tried to pick them up. They would literally crash into the walls of their enclosure. Things are different now, they run to me instead of away. They know seeing me means mealworms. That didn't take long to learn! Problem is since I have been feeding them from my hand they now peck at my hands. Beaks are sharp. Its uncomfortable but I think if it was a bigger chicken it would hurt. I am not so sure this eating out of hand (literally) was such a good idea.
But they do get excited to even see me in the morning, the chattering starts right up.
Silly little guys. They like the pellet bedding just like the bigger ones did. There is all sorts of dust bathing going on at chick TV right now. One guy is just wallowing in it. Turning on its side and all sorts of antics. I never get tired of watching them as they are so funny and cute.
I didn't realise that chickens slept with their head tucked under a wing like outside type songbirds often do. I have seen my young rooster from the olive eggs sleep like that often. In fact he is doing it now.
I have all the older ones really used to being picked up. They have always been picked up from the time they hatched. But now I hold them and offer them mealworms while holding. I make them take one mealworm at a time from my fingers. These chicks are getting tamer and tamer. Needless to say they love to see me LOL!