It's late in the year to be having chicks, but I guess we forgot to tell the hens that. Miss "My Pad Is A Purple Bucket" just hatched out 4 little chicks.
And see one of the little chicks peeking out from under Mama Hen?
She would have had more, but several eggs somehow rolled out of the bucket and got too cold. I picked them up thinking other chickens had been in there laying eggs, and cracked them open to feed the dogs. There were half-formed chicks in them... ewwwwww....
A chick, chick here...
It wasn't long until she was walking over the pastures foraging while her little peeps stumbled through the tall grass in her wake.
Of course, Miss Peepers still has her 3 little chicks, and they too are running around in the fields. They also come out in the morning with the other chickens to peck at the corn I throw out.
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Cute, little chickies. And her purple bucket….she loves that thing.
It *is* kind of funny. That’s in an unused jug (pen) that’s used during lambing season. We don’t have as many critters now, so don’t need to use as many buckets to keep water handy, and this one just got left in there at some point, and ended up on its side. She scratched some dirt in there and made her a nest. Quite enterprising little builder, that hen!
Awwww! How nice to have two mama hens and their chicklets running around. I don’t know if I’ll ever let one of my hens sit on her eggs, but maybe. How much of a hassle is it when mama does all the work? I think I’d be most concerned about the other chickens hurting the babies. I suppose if the hen was a good protective mother it wouldn’t be too much of an issue.
Actually, the easiest way to raise chicks is to let the mama hens do it. I’ve even put peafowl eggs under hens and they’ll raise those too. I’ve never had one that didn’t look after the chicks and protect them from other chickens, though to tell the truth, I’ve never seen another chicken try to hurt any chicks, not even the roosters. Of course, these chickens roam free during the day and aren’t penned up in a small area, so that might make a diference.
Congratulations to Mrs. Buff on her new babies. I love hens and chicks together—mommas are so attentive.
How caring it is to watch a mother hen with her chicks.
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My hobby is pencil art and I’m always on the lookout for photos on which to base my artwork. In a recent search for the perfect chicken photo, I found your October 2, 2008 posting with the photo of the hen and her four chicks (second one down). What an absolutely glorious photo! I am writing to ask your permission to draw a picture using this photo. I do not plan to publish the photo in any way — I’d just like to use it as a reference photo and, perhaps, enter the artwork in a local art show — it it turns out good! Your consideration of this request would be greatly appreciated!
Donna, feel free to use the photo as a base for your artwork. If you need the original, bigger file, just let me know. ( Tish@ruralramblings.com) And I’d love to see a pic of your original artwork. Have fun!
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