29-19 = 10 Fluffy Chicks
Here's some pictures of the 10 chicks we still have. They are 4 weeks old now and fully feathered.
Yep. We do math here at the farm. 29 minus 19 equals 10 chicks left. How did this happen? Well, it's that farm math thing. You also have to factor in the two border collies that don't know they aren't moles, rats, mice or squeak toys-- so add 2 border collies to the equation and you come with the answer...
approximately $46.00 worth of fancy poultry GONE.
Our 29 chicks were fully feathered last week and ready to be transitioned to being out of the brooder. I had them in our kitchen entry and they were pretty stinky. I had been cleaning their cage twice a day and it was still REALLY bad. It was a warm day, so I placed the cage outside the front door. The dogs showed no interest in the birds, which I mistakenly took as a sign that they wouldn't bother the chicks.
At bedtime, I went out and put a heat lamp on the cage and covered the whole thing with a dark tablecloth, so that they would be concealed from view of any predators. Once poultry settles in for the night, they don't move around much. Even the meanest rooster can be handled like a football once he's asleep for the night.
Tim said that when he left for work that next morning, (the 18th of June), the cage was open and one chick was out. He gently placed it back in the cage and secured the latch again. As soon as the sun came up, the chicks became very noisy and active. By the time I realized they were in any kind of danger, the dogs had wiped out 19 of them. That was 8 AM -- Erin's carpool ride to school showed up at 8:15...these lil' kids had been checking on our chicks every day since we had them arrive from the hatchery.
It was a gruesome scene in our driveway -- sure to traumatize not only the little kids in the car, but the Mommy that was driving that day! I had to move fast to clean up every last feather! All of the mess was right where Mrs. Espinosa parks her car to load Erin into a car seat.
I was still dealing with the shock as I heard her diesel Excursion rumble up the driveway. I looked down and realized I was still wearing my bathrobe and Erin had not had breakfast yet. I spoke in hushed tones to the other Mommy about how our morning began and she waited while I gave Erin something to eat on the way to school.
It was quite an adventure. Most of the stories I share don't impact others that don't live here on the farm. Erin and Preston have learned to have a healthy view of loss and death of pets. They are always sad, but not traumatized by the experience. In this case, they both understood that the border collies didn't know any better until they have been TRAINED to know the difference.
They do now...
I'm still beating myself up. I put the chicks in harm's way, set up our wonderful border collies to fail, potentially exposed innocent children to the ugly side of raising farm animals and I won't be winning "Mother of the Year" by not having Erin fed and ready for school that day.
I wouldn't change a thing. We have a very good life.
As I write this, Erin and Preston are "socializing" the 10 chicks. That means they are chasing them around (and around) in the fenced garden area. They stop when they notice that the dogs are watching. Every so often I hear, "RINGO! LEAVE IT! MINE! NOOOOOOO. LEAVE IT! Good boy! Good dog, leave it. You're such a good boy!"
Counterpoint
By Tim Chovanak
8 AM? 8 AM? Since when is Brenda up at 8 AM? I think it was 11:53 AM, by which time the bobcats, mountain lions, coyotes, rats, and bears all had their share, and poor Riley got half the blame.
That's all -- now I have to go to a florist.
