Chick Habit

Three more chicks have officially taken up residence on our little patch of land.

At the present moment they are residing in the bedroom. A very large plastic bin serves as their brooder. Wood chips serve as their carpet*, they are kept warm with the radiance of the heat lamp, the grow timer ensures they have a nice heat cycle, feeder, water font and grit are all in and I am pleased to say they are thriving!


It is astounding how fast they grow. Their feathers are beginning to appear and they are attempting to break out of the brooder. The other morning we were fast asleep and awoke to the larger (Francis) of the chicks standing on the edge of the brooder. She hopped down nonchalantly and began her exploration of the bedroom. I promptly grabbed some chicken wire from the shed and placed it over the top of the brooder to keep them contained. I love the girls but I don’t want them in my bed.


Last time this process happened it was an amazing learning experience. I read so much information about raising chickens it was borderline sickening.


Did you know that chicks can be mail ordered (weird, I know.) They can survive for 24-48 hours on the nutrition left in the egg. Mail order is a good option if you want pullets only. Many cities have ordinances about roosters because of their tendency to “greet the morning”.


I have had many people ask questions about the logistics of the ladies, one of the most common is; “How do you have eggs if you don’t have a rooster?” The simple answer is that pullets lay eggs regardless of how much testosterone is around. If you want to hatch your own chicks a rooster is necessary to fertilize the egg.


Another common misconception is about the color of the eggs. Not all eggs are white. There are various shades of brown, blue, green, pinkish and your standard white. White eggs typically purchased at the grocery store are not bleached; they come from a breed of chicken that lays white eggs.


It’s all a remarkable process and I am pleased to share it with everyone, especially Josh. He seems to be awed by all of it.
“You are alive”.



*When you acquire day old chicks it is a good idea to place paper towels down at first. This ensures they eat the food and not the wood chips. The paper towels also serve as a softer surface for them. I read that sometimes when chicks are kept on newspaper they can develop deformities in their legs because of the hard surface.