A few years ago, after starting out with a flock of grown hens given to me by a friend, I decided to get a few chicks to raise. A young and inexperienced chick keeper, I headed over to TSC and carefully picked out six chicks in breeds of interest to me. I was naive to the TSC stories of woe, in which chicks are sick, breeds are mislabeled and straight runs marked as pullets. At any rate, those babies were thankfully healthy and grew up strong and happy, though one “Maran” turned out to be a Jersey giant cockerel, the other a Dominique pullet (who turned out to be my favorite chicken, ever), and my two “Orpingtons” were Appenzeller Spitzhauben cockerels! I found homes for my boys, integrated the girls into my existing flock, and vowed to purchase chicks from a more reliable source in the future.
To that end, I placed an order for 10 Easter Eggers from a local, family-run business, due to arrive April 21st (splitting the order with another chicken keeping friend). My big mistake came when I agreed to take a trip to TSC with my 10 year old, ”just to look” at the babies. So...meet our six new babies, fingers crossed that they’re girls! My husband shook his head when I returned home, and got to designing plans for a larger coop.
The first chick is the one who got me in trouble. I looked into her eyes, and she into mine, and that was it, I had to have her. In NY iyou have to buy a minimum of six, so we are now the proud owners of two light Brahma (hopefully) pullets, two “Ameraucana” straight runs (the cheeks on number four are astounding), and two silver laced Wyandotte (hopefully) pullets. I have no regrets, just look at their sweet faces! Everyone has been thriving, and I can’t wait to watch them grow up. Be sure to check back here when I start panicking over whether their wattles are getting red too fast or I think I see one crow...
To that end, I placed an order for 10 Easter Eggers from a local, family-run business, due to arrive April 21st (splitting the order with another chicken keeping friend). My big mistake came when I agreed to take a trip to TSC with my 10 year old, ”just to look” at the babies. So...meet our six new babies, fingers crossed that they’re girls! My husband shook his head when I returned home, and got to designing plans for a larger coop.
The first chick is the one who got me in trouble. I looked into her eyes, and she into mine, and that was it, I had to have her. In NY iyou have to buy a minimum of six, so we are now the proud owners of two light Brahma (hopefully) pullets, two “Ameraucana” straight runs (the cheeks on number four are astounding), and two silver laced Wyandotte (hopefully) pullets. I have no regrets, just look at their sweet faces! Everyone has been thriving, and I can’t wait to watch them grow up. Be sure to check back here when I start panicking over whether their wattles are getting red too fast or I think I see one crow...
Attachments
Last edited:
Hope #4 is a pullet. Such a cutie.
