Baby Chicks!
Little Hoot and Cocoa Been Queen in ‘22.
Mole in ‘23 out on adventures to give her siblings a break from her pecking.
Little Miso ‘23, who looks a lot like her offspring, Ravioli ‘24!
Cutie pie Gorgonzola, a heartbreak to have to let him go.
It’s finally the season for enjoying my daily dopamine rush!
My hen Mole (as in chicken mole, the delicious Oaxacan delicacy), has been doing a great job defending her basket of prized possessions for the past 3 weeks, and she has finally been rewarded by the emergence of cute fluffy babies! I love them so much, I can’t help but visit and sneak a cuddle, despite Mama Mole’s warning pecks. Every round of chickens I’ve had so far, I’ve named after a food theme, so before I introduce the new members, let me acknowledge their parents!
My first batch of chicks were the Sweets, May 2022. I purchased eight baby chicks from the local feed store and quickly became obsessed with Cocoa Bean Queen, Loca Lavender Late, Creme Brulee, Smores Torte, Tangerine Dream (RIP) and Lil Red Velvet (RIP), as well as their brother Hoot Hoot (everyone’s favorite, until he became an aggressive guy and got sent to another flock). These were a mix of ISA Browns, Americaunas and one Rhode Island Red. I will always have a special connection with each of these sweeties, since I spent so much time hanging out with them as babies. Cocoa and Loca were especially adventurous babies and loved to fly up to hang out on my hands and shoulders, and Loca still does this to me as I garden, hopping up for a ride (and probably waiting for a good snack) or letting me hold her as I wander (leaving my hands useless but unable to set the sweet thing down).
My second go at it was with a local silkie farmer, May 2023, who I tried to order chicks from, but who suggested I get some 6 week old chickens because it would be a while for chickens. I agreed and picked up my Italian cuties - Rigatoni, Gnocci, Zuppa and Gorgonzola. These guys were always super spooked - I don’t think their first few weeks had a lot of positive human interactions. Zuppa and Gorgie were the cutest strangest tiniest naked neck silkies but they had a huge attitude and would scream and peck when I tried to pick them up. Unfortunately, it turned out they were ALL ROOSTERS. The situation was very stressful, especially since Zuppa and Gorgie were agressive to my other chickens in a way that involved attacking them and biting their wings out of fear, it seemed, and not out of mating interest. They were all so cute, but they all couldn’t stay (the 5 am crowing of multiple roosters is enough to make you go slightly wacko). I reluctantly rehomed everyone except Big Toni (Rigatoni had an extra toe on one foot - a common silkie trait)!
My third go at chicks were the Ricos, my Mexican foodies, June 2023. I am pretty sure that they were a bit of an emotional feed-store purchase - how can anyone say no to cute babies in spring when there are varieties you haven’t seen there before and you already have a chick area set up? I welcomed home two Brahmas - Quesillo and Cotija, and two Black Marans - Beans and Mole. While I am grateful for the hardwork Mole is currently doing, protecting little fluffies while still trying to have the rest of her nest possibly hatch, she gave me a ton of trouble as a young chick. She would peck at the eyes of her siblings until they were bloodied! I needed to separate her, but she was too little to introduce to the other hens and too lonely to be by herself for long, so I ended up taking her around with me in my fanny pack for her own fun mommy-and-me adventures, until the other chicks eyes were able to heal.
My fourth go at chicks was unexpected - Smores Torte (who I know call Momma Marsha) became broody a few weeks after we got the last set of chickens. And so it was that we introduced the Sushis in July 2023 - Gyoza, Miso, Edamame and Tamago, our first set of farm-hatched chicks! All of them inherited their father’s fluffy face, and because the father had a blue egg gene, they became my rainbow layers. Miso lays blue eggs, Tamago pink eggs, and Edamame very aptly lays green eggs! Gyoza turned into another rooster, the spitting image of his father, so we call him Little Hoot, and he is looking for a new home! If you know of one, PLEASE LET ME KNOW! He is an easter egger and will add delight to his future family’s basket!
And so here we are, the fifth round of chicks at Forest Edge Farm! Please let me introduce the Pasta Generation, May 2024! Macaroni, Ravioli and Manicotti have arrived! There’s still a chance that they will have a few more siblings as I am giving the last few eggs a few more days to hatch, as they were eggs marked as being added 1 or 2 days after the other eggs. I was hoping for a more successful hatch rate, as Mole was on 12 eggs, but I think I let her keep too many eggs, and she may not have been able to keep them all properly warmed. There was also the issue of every other gal wanting to sit on the basket, often laying on top of Mole and causing a ruckus, which I think stressed everyone out and roughed up a few eggs. I feel blessed to have these three new cuties in my life, who so far let me hold them without too much of a peep.
Your new Great Grandma Hen,
T
Ravioli and Manicotti.
Little Macaroni! The first to hatch of the new chicks, so perhaps he’ll be Big Mac.
Fresh out the egg, little Ravioli.