Where does the time go!? When I sat down to write this post, I realized that it's been a couple of days since my latest post! Sheesh! I guess I need to pay more attention to time, and not let it get away from me like I have! I thought I'd give a HAPPY update on some of the farm animals, so this evening I picked up my camera and headed out to the barn to see what the chickens were up to.
This is Little Buddy, one of the Red Frizzle chickens we ordered as day-old chicks from Ideal Poultry. Isn't it just a crack-up how his feathers curl forwards!! And they're just as soft as can be, too! One thing we've noticed is that if the air is really damp (like during/after rain) or on high humidity mornings, their feathers actually straighten out a bit and aren't as curled. Wild!!
This little fella is as funny and cute as they come! He *loves* me! When I walk out to the chicken yard, I just have to say "Hey Little Buddy" and he comes running over to me, cooing little chicken noises. He loves to be held. I have a little crate I sit on while I'm out visiting with the chickens, and he'll sit on my leg, or let me hold him the entire time I'm out there.
As odd as this might sound, he even likes to snuggle. For anyone who has owned chickens and has ever had a chicken that just loved to be held, you'll know what I mean. We've got several chickens on the farm that really like to be held. Little Buddy is one, and Fancy Manetta is another. I don't know what it is about them, but they certainly respond more to people than the other chickens do.
This is Ginger, another one of the Red Frizzle chicks we ordered as day-old chicks from Ideal Poultry. Of the 6 Frizzle chicks that we bought, Ginger is the only one of them that didn't get the flipped/frizzled feathers. But she's just as soft, and her feathers are very translucent! If you look at the feathers on the lower part of her neck, you can see how you can see through them to the feathers below. She's a sweet little hen. If you're curious about the size of Ginger and Little Buddy, I'd say they're about the size of a small cantaloupe...or large grapefruit. But no where NEAR as heavy!
This is one of the Guinea hens we received in June. She's still very young, and just starting to lose the feathers on her head and neck. Guinea chicks are actually quite cute .... but, as you can see, they kind of lose their "cuteness" as they mature. This chick is almost 2 months old. A face only a mother could love....
This is a Golden Polish Bantam hen who's about 3 months old. The feathers of her headdress are long and fluffy. Polish Bantams have very large eyes for chickens, but because their head feathers are so long, they don't have very good vision. For this reason they're very easy to catch, but they're also easily spooked.
We have six Polish Bantams. Two are this gold and black color, two are white and gold, and two are solid black (actually called Crevecoeurs). You can see one of the Buff Polish Bantam chicks on one of my chicken updates from May.
The chicks are all too young for egg laying, but in a few months the hens will start laying. Until then, we rely on the older hens around the farm to provide our eggs. Nothing beats a farm fresh egg!
More updates later!
