Midnight and Daisy's foster mom reports that, "They huddle together some, but also run around the cage. They mostly stay in their food box." These chicks are receiving lot's of loving care!
The chicks are being given lots of attention and everything they need. They seem very content in their new foster home.
Our Student Mentors and their moms were a big help this year for the Foster Chick Care Training! They shared posters with pictures of their experience last year and tips about caring for the chicks.
The chicks will arrive next week!
We are all very excited!
It's that time of year again! Egg Hatching Week at the library begins on May 3rd.
Doug Akers will bring in eggs that have been in an incubator since the week of April 12th. The eggs will hatch 21 days after incubation starts. We will keep you posted as they hatch. You will also be able to watch them hatch via our library live web camera.
We had a great time at the carnival showing off our feathered friend!
Lemon visits her Foster parent at the carnival. "Wow have they grown!" These two expert "Foster Chick Parents" show how to hold and catch a chicken. Kids had a chance to pet a chicken and ask questions about the Foster Chick program.
These two hens were too hard to catch so they are staying with me. All the other chicks went to a farm in Southern Indiana.
I heard a story that you could tell a rooster from a hen by how quick they moved as chicks. The hens tend to run and hide while the rooster is more likely to be in the middle of the commotion. The comb grows slower on the hen's head and their legs may be shorter.
All the 2009 library chicks that I have (6) will attend the carnival on August 7th. See you there!
The chicks have grown a bit. It looks like one of the New Hamphire Bantams is a rooster. It has been quiet around the yard in the morning so he can add to the atmosphere when he learns to crow. He does not have any other rooster to compete with. It may take him a while to start crowing. The "peeps" have been replaced by a crackly murmur. It is a strange sound for a chicken. I think they are trying to find their grown up voice.
Look at these sweet ones. They are still friendly and will let me hold them. The White Leghorns are flighty and do not like to be caught.
Since my favorite contact to take the chicks did not want them this year all the chicks came to our home.
A dozen did find their way to a former foster chick family. They loved this project so much they moved so they could raise chickens. ( just kidding... I am not sure why they moved but they did want to raise chickens now that they are able.)
I am still looking for a suitable home for the chicks. Until then they are happy in the hen house....but eating like crazy!
