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All 4 Chicks Now Outside In the Regular Coop
We tried separating the youngest 2 chicks from the older 2 who were definitely ready to be outside all the time last week. There were a couple of heart-rending nights and mornings where the chicks cried and missed each other and were obviously not happy to be separated at night. However, the younger chicks worked it out after only a couple of days of this by following the older ones into the coop to roost for the night with all the older chickens. When Gerick tried to take them out to put them in the heated cage indoors, they pretty much screamed and pecked at him, which is NOT their normal behavior. They were determined to stay together.
So, with misgivings about the younger ones staying warm enough in the chilly nights, he left them alone.
We kept an eye on things over the following week to make sure none of them got sick or showed signs of distress, but nope! They're doing great. When Gerick went to open the coop on a particularly cold morning, the younger 4 were all piled on top of one another, keeping warm on top of a heap of hay. The older hens don't seem bothered by their new roomies, and so things seem to be okay all around. The older ones are pulling rank from time to time and chasing the younger chicks away from particularly nummy piles of food scraps, but that's fixed by scattering the scraps so that the hens can't hoard it all.
End result-? Happy chicks getting to stay with their friends and do chicken things. Everyone's satisfied.
However, their long period living on the deck and in the kitchen has made its impression. The 4 youngest chicks are by far the most friendly and tame. You can plunk 'em up and sit 'em on your lap if you want to! They follow me around whenever I enter the yard and coo at my feet until I pet them. So cute! I'm glad they're happy. (Only the dark-barred Amy is that friendly with me from the batch of older hens.)
AND I got my kitchen back last week! So nice not to have a cage full of critters in my food-prep area! There was no where else for them to go however. I recall I used to wonder why people in some places would have chickens in their houses and stuff, but I wonder no more. We don't have electric lines outside that could be used to heat a place for the chicks, and chicks can't get too cold or they die when they're young and vulnerable. The only solution is therefore inside one's home. Not ideal, but it works.
Source: http://lucretiasheart.livejournal.com/983670.html
