Lucy and the Ghastly Nuggets

I had read about hens accepting young chicks and caring for them, and I was eager to see if Lucy, having already raised a chick of her own, might take a shining to these wee nuggets.

So on a nice warm day, when they were exactly two weeks old and their Marek’s vaccine was well-integrated into their immune systems, I scooped up the chicks and whisked them outside to greet the sun ---

  

and to meet an honest-to-goodness chicken. 

Once the chicks were situated on the lawn, I carried Lucy over to take a look. 

I placed her beside the cage.

For a moment, she ignored them  -  but only for a moment.

 

Then Lucy lifted her head, raised her hackles, and shrieked like a banshee.

  

The nuggets just stared at her. 

Lucy was terrified. I wonder if she even recognized them as chicks.

She turned and lumbered away from their cage, and scrambled to the safety of my lap. 

Only when she discovered the tag on my pants

did her hackles settle 

 

and her panic subside. 

 

After a while she glanced up to find that those freaky little nightmares were still there. 

Poor Lucy. The prospect of enduring motherhood again nearly sent her over the edge.

I carried her back to the safety of the coop and the reassuring company of her geriatric companions.

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Once the chicks had grown and it was time to integrate them with the old ladies, I worried for Lucy.....as I always do.  Her disability is evident, and the youngsters might very well choose to pick on her.   

But Lucy held her own. 

  

She and Lil'White share the position of Top Chicken in the coop, and the nuggets have not contested their status.  

 

They stick pretty closely together, these little gals -  they're a sub-flock within the big flock. 

  

They don't aim to bother Lucy. 

But Lucy's peaceful afternoons beneath the forsythia

 

are no longer so peaceful.

And in the coop, I've noticed young Dorrie choosing to stand right beside Lucy --- 

---just because.

Dorrie reminds me of Pigeon.  

I told Danny this, and he replied, "Maybe she IS Pigeon."

Pigeon or not, I think Lucy's in for another big adventure.

BECOMING A CHICKEN

continued from previous post: The Same Only Different


Ahhh - hot summer days - 

The ladies recently helped me add a back room to their coop.  I got creative and made it with bits and pieces of wood and fencing that I already had, so it technically cost me nothing. -- which technically makes up for the cost of the original coop, which technically cost quite a bit.

Now that their coop is twice as big, do you think they'd enjoy it more?  

No.

They still hurl themselves indignantly against the door every time I pass by, expecting me to come let them out of their prison.

They do get plenty of free-range time.

When I let the girls out, Lil'White heads straight to the garden to hunt for her favorite treats: 

plastic vegetable tags.  

If she could swallow them whole, she would.

On these hot days, Lucy heads for the densest shade to lie down.

I have to listen very carefully to find her.

Fern and Daisy aren't big enough yet to wander the yard.

But a few days ago, they had their first supervised playdate with the big gals.

There is no tried-and-true method for introducing new chicks to a flock.

My method:  I rolled out some fencing, put everyone together, and sat on a stool in the center of things.

It all began pleasantly.

But things soured quickly.

Lil'White attacked, babies screamed... it was ugly there for a minute.

I scooped the babies away from Lil'White and let them chill out in the corner.

Just when they were beginning to calm down, 

along came Pigeon, the queen bee.

I felt sorry for the little ones, but knew they'd have to learn to protect themselves eventually, so I waited and watched as Pigeon sauntered slowly in their direction.

Little Fern and Daisy cowered in the corner.

They hid their heads and squealed in terror as Pigeon craned her neck and.....

took a good close look at Fern's beautiful plumage.

Then Pigeon turned and walked away.

So you just never know...

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Something else you just never know about until it's too late:

Are these chicks going to one day lay eggs, or are they going to crow?

I've been burned once by Mother Nature----

She gave me this:

which turned into this:

...so what's with this tail on little Daisy?

....and these little black neck-feathers?

...and how about this tail of Fern's:

???

Am I paranoid?

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Next post: Critters