A couple weeks ago I showed you our new chicks.
We bought eight Buff Orpington pullets, with the hope that perhaps one of them would turn out to be a rooster for the others. It looks like we got our wish.
They are just a little over a month old, with only one of them showing a good start on a comb and wattles. Roosters tend to develop these before the hens, so it looks like we indeed have one rooster.
The chicks' box resides in the goat barn in the kidding stall, where I can hang a light for them. We started with a heat bulb, but after we got over our frosty nights, I switched to an incandescent bulb (can you believe I still have one?). Incandescent bulbs produce heat, which makes them un-useful in summer, but very useful in winter for warming a small space such as the chicks' box or under a reading lamp. They use a lot less energy than a heat lamp.
The hole in the box lets them get out to explore the kidding stall.
Yesterday they were all racing around the box in a circle, jumping and flapping their little wings. On warm days I turn off the lamp, but on cooler days they nestle down under it to warm up. At night I cover the opening with a piece of cardboard.
