Home at Last!

Two days after Christmas, I took the chickens out to the coop. It was a cold day and a colder night, so I worried about them and shut them in tight despite all I’ve read and heard about giving them adequate ventilation (now that it’s warmer, both windows are open). They slept huddled in a pile wedged in next to their water bucket, but seemed none the worse for wear the next morning.

It’s finally warmed up and the sun’s out today so I took advantage of the thawed soil to readjust the fencing a little. The energizer quit in the rain two nights ago, but the battery’s fine, so I’m guessing I need to protect it from the weather. Once I have that squared away, I can let the chickens out.

I’ve had their chicken door open to the little run for a couple of days now, but they’re only now thinking about coming out, tempted by treats left at the bottom of the ramp and their first experience of the sun!

In Transition

By the time the chicks were five weeks old, they had thoroughly outgrown the tank and needed to be housed in something a little more spacious.

They're little chickens now, bantam size, and fully feathered.

Zen is getting very tall.

Rachel, hoping for a handout.

I had hoped to be able to transfer them outside to the coop at this stage, but they're still a little tender for our current Arctic conditions.

I rigged up a very inelegant pen in my unheated mudroom with a piece of drywall and the top I had made for the tank. They are enjoying their space, but it's pretty cold, even here.

Currently I'm keeping the heatlamp on at night and they huddle under it to sleep.

The weather's predicted to remain cold, with a string of single digit nights this weekend. I think I'll be keeping them in until after Christmas.