Cuteness Overload

What a great week. It finally felt like spring! Weather up in the 60's and 70's, sunshine, snow is 99% gone, and lots of fun on the farm.

Cutest Trio Ever

Happy Family

It's been one week since our broody Barred Rock hen, Mayzie, adopted the two baby Welsummer chicks. And can I just say, they are the cutest trio ever. I wish life wasn't so busy because all I really want to do is sit and watch the three of them interact all day long. (These chicks still haven't been named. They look so identical, that I can't tell them apart yet.)

Mayzie has been a wonderful mom. She takes the chick feed out of the feeder for them, breaks it up into smaller pieces and drops them on the floor at the chicks' feet. It really is so sweet to watch. (Of course, where it is chick feed, the chicks don't really need this service, but I love that Mayzie is going that extra mile for them.) This morning I brought out a few grapes just for Mayzie as a treat. Knowing that the chicks shouldn't get treats til they are bit older, I was careful to feed the grape directly to Mayzie. Well, Mayzie disagreed. Mayzie bit off a tiny bit of grape and brought it over to share it with her babies. Just a tiny taste. I'm assuming Mayzie knows better than me in these matters!

Mayzie breaking up food for her babies

And my favorite part is to see those tiny chicks snuggle up under Mayzie. To watch them hide under her wing, or disappear under her belly, and then slowly their peeping quiets down and you know that they are falling asleep, warm and safe. I also love to spot their tiny feet sticking out from under Mayzie. Or they will pop just their heads out of her fluffy feathers. It really does melt my heart. 

Can you find the baby chick peeking out?

How about in this one?

And to my surprise, Mayzie lets her babies wander a bit farther than I would have expected. (They have the run of a horse stall during the day.) The babies stay out from under her longer than I would have thought. Where I'm raising three other chicks in a regular brooder, under a heat lamp 24 hours a day, I just expected that the chicks really needed constant warmth. But actually, according to Mayzie's chicks, they don't. (But obviously the heat lamp needs to stay on in the brooder all the time so it's there for when they do need it, since they don't have a momma to run under.)

Here is the set-up we have going on for this little family. It's actually got 4 layers to it... a bit overkill, I know!
--Their nest box is a plastic pet carrier.
--That is inside a large wire dog crate that has cardboard attached to keep the drafts out.
--That is inside a mesh/wood box that Jonathan built.
--And that is inside a horse stall in our barn.

LOL! Too much?

During the day, I open up the wire dog crate and the mesh/wood box so they can run around the horse stall. At night, once they've gone to bed inside the plastic pet carrier, I lock up the wire dog crate and close up the mesh/wood box. That's to make sure they don't become someone's dinner. I'm sure those peeping noises sound delicious to the predators nearby.

Mayzie and the chick's set-up

Twins! Hard to tell them apart so far.

Yes, this chick still tries to peck at her sister's eyes.

She pecks at Mayzie's eyes, too.
Little troublemaker!

One chick seems to be more adventurous than the other.

Mayzie is so tolerant!

Such a great mom!

I have some really cute videos to share, but it will have to wait because my computer is on its last leg and won't let me upload anything else. Next time!

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Our older chicks are doing great, as well! They are growing their feathers quickly. They are at the stage where they start to lose that chick cuteness and enter into their scraggly awkward phase. (I happen to love that awkward phase.) So adorably funny looking! These girls seem to be very friendly and curious. And they have names! Ruby, Pearl & Matilda.

Pearl is on the left, with the lighter colored head, Ruby is on the right, and Matilda is in the middle.
Ruby & Pearl are Silver Grey Dorking chicks and Matilda is an Easter Egger.

Matilda, standing on their feeder, thinking about flying the coop.
She's just a little bit naughty! 
(That's a "Matilda The Musical" reference there, for any Broadway fans. And it looks to be true, too!)

Awkward phase? Me?
(Pearl can't believe you think she's funny looking!)

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Our big girls have been taking field trips this week.... to our garden plot! We are letting these girls prep our soil for this year's garden. They are doing a great job digging through the soil, eating any bugs and weeds they can find. And they are breaking up the soil while they're at it. Thanks ladies!

Ryan is standing guard over the chickens
to make sure the hawks don't grab one of our girls.
We have lots of hawks to worry about here.

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My happy place.
Hanging out in the barn with my pups on a sunny day.

Cooper was loving the sunshine, too!

Always a good time with Farmer Jonathan and the tractor!
Yes, I warned the boys that the tractor bucket was once filled with horse poop.
Obviously, they didn't care.
Pass the Purell!

This is where my labradoodle likes to hang out.
I think she'd crawl in my pocket if she could. :)

So great to see the crocuses popping up along the driveway!