Fun with Chicks

   It has been warm and sunny lately and some of the chicks have been flapping their wings and jumping to the top edge of the brooder walls, we decided to let them out into the run section of their coop to get some outside experience and exercise.  Chicks seem to love the dirt.  Dorito immediately started sand bathing like a seasoned pro.  We couldn't believe how good at it she was, digging and kicking with her leg and tossing the dirt with her wings onto herself.  They are only a little over a week old and so capable. :D

   They also figured out the exit ramp (a piece of board we put to the coop door) quite well.  The little feet walking up and down the ramp are so cute.  Some of them also just 'fly' off from mid point of the ramp, flapping their wings.  One jumped right off from the coop door and landed clear across on the far wall.  They can kind of 'fly' already.   So cute.

   Our kitties are definitely curious about the little birds in the big cage.  Although I was surprised to see that none of them have been having the 'chatter teeth' reaction to seeing the birds, like they usually do when they see sparrows and doves in the backyard.  They seem to know that these chicks belong to the humans and they are somehow special.  Every time I let the chicks out, the cats gather around the chicken coop and watch.  They have no idea how big these chicks are going to be. *giggles*  Some of our kitties will weight less than the grown hens at maturity.  Puccini is a Buff Orpington, so she will weigh about 7 pounds as a hen, and even more as a rooster (in case she was misidentified as a female as a day-old chick...  It happens.).

   The chicks love the chopped Swiss chard from the Square Foot Garden box in the backyard.  They go crazy pecking on the chopped pieces and stepping all over the bowl -- the little girls have no manners when it comes to food. XD  I'm composting their coop bedding in the compost pile for future use in the gardens.

   My family and I are having so much fun with the chicks.  They have grown used to being handled by us and some even falls asleep in our hands and Friglish (The black chick, which will be black and white marked "Barred Plymouth Rock".) is particularly friendly and casual, routinely jumping onto our arms and backs (when I'm crouching down).  They all seem pretty happy. :)