These are the two chicks that you could barely see in the photo from the last post...although you can only see the business end of the one. I was actually hoping for a shot like the night before when I didn't have my camera with me...two little fuzzy yellow bottoms. But the one turned around before I could take the picture. They are having a hard time getting used to be outdoor chickens. And will stand at the cat door and knock...just like Bocky used to do. It is pretty cute. Their first night out there I think the whole town knew they were most unhappy about the new accommodations PEEP! PEEP! PEEP! So funny. But it was time...they no longer stayed in the box and were doing their business all over the laundry room floor...and my walking tennis shoes...that did it!
Plus...we ended up having more house guests......
Plus...we ended up having more house guests......
Yep...four tiny baby birds. Their mommy had built the nest in the tongue of my brother in laws boat. When he moved it Saturday evening to get it ready to go camping he disturbed that poor momma. I told my sister to put the nest on the most high place she could find in the shop and let them call for momma. She never came back. I agreed to take them home figuring I was just going to make them as comfortable as humanly possible as they died. Who can keep these tiny, fragile little things alive!? Well..that was Sunday afternoon...and here they are today...
They couldn't be doing any better unless of course they were still with mommy! They are voracious eaters and noisy as can be when hungry...which is about every 15 minutes! They came out of an egg about the size of a large pea. I have no idea what they could be...I thought maybe swallowish type but now am wondering if it is more finchy type. Please...if anyone (Carol?) reading this has an idea please let me know! Go to the 'more' box and click the 'contact' box. So....they are surviving and thriving and I am thinking this is the easy part...how the heck do I turn them loose and hope they can survive since they will have had no one to teach them. Will instinct kick in? I was thinking I would contact a rehab place and go from there. I just am in utter amazement each time I take care of them that I have somehow managed to do everything right! Bless their little hearts...(that one is for you Kris:) )
In finding out how to properly care for them I learned that of these little 'perching/songbird' types less than 1/3 survive. That is very sad. Fiona sits at the door to the laundry room licking her lips...she would like to help dwindle the population...but these guys are safe, from her at least.
The nest is an interesting thing...it was huge! Mommy had been busy busy! The vast majority of it was chicken feathers...why not..readily available right outside the shop. There are a few twigs, some shredded paper, some bits of plastic...I think from a plastic Safeway bag, a shredded blue plastic item (you can see it right under the perching baby) , one section of a black zip tie, and last but not least, fishing line:) My brother in law is an avid fisherman:) Keeping them clean is proving to be very challenging...when they doo doo those little bottoms go straight up in the air and to heck with where it lands...and they doo doo every time they eat....and they eat every 15 minutes or so....so you can only imagine!!
It's been a busy summer so far...Bocky, who is doing wonderfully now even though he has no tail...he makes the look look good:) The brown 'hen' that turned out to be a rooster also and got really mean and is now in my sisters freezer, the baby possums that were released back into the 'wild' or at least the barn with plenty of food and water, the two chicks that needed to convalesce somewhere safe, and now these little fellows, or gals. Liam is quite excited about each new addition. Of course there is no holding these newest arrivals.
I have caught you up and now I think I will head for bed......nighty night.
In finding out how to properly care for them I learned that of these little 'perching/songbird' types less than 1/3 survive. That is very sad. Fiona sits at the door to the laundry room licking her lips...she would like to help dwindle the population...but these guys are safe, from her at least.
The nest is an interesting thing...it was huge! Mommy had been busy busy! The vast majority of it was chicken feathers...why not..readily available right outside the shop. There are a few twigs, some shredded paper, some bits of plastic...I think from a plastic Safeway bag, a shredded blue plastic item (you can see it right under the perching baby) , one section of a black zip tie, and last but not least, fishing line:) My brother in law is an avid fisherman:) Keeping them clean is proving to be very challenging...when they doo doo those little bottoms go straight up in the air and to heck with where it lands...and they doo doo every time they eat....and they eat every 15 minutes or so....so you can only imagine!!
It's been a busy summer so far...Bocky, who is doing wonderfully now even though he has no tail...he makes the look look good:) The brown 'hen' that turned out to be a rooster also and got really mean and is now in my sisters freezer, the baby possums that were released back into the 'wild' or at least the barn with plenty of food and water, the two chicks that needed to convalesce somewhere safe, and now these little fellows, or gals. Liam is quite excited about each new addition. Of course there is no holding these newest arrivals.
I have caught you up and now I think I will head for bed......nighty night.