Adding Baby Chicks to our Backyard Flock

This spring marks our second year of welcoming chicks into our lives, and I couldn’t be more excited! We started our journey last March with 15 chicks. It was such a fun experience to wait for them to arrive at the post office and to go pick them up with our son! Watching them grow, and see their personalities come out was an absolute joy. We learned so much in the first few months of owning and caring for those babies. I'm hoping to put together a blog post for the essentials for baby chicks for anyone that's interested.

Unfortunately, we faced heartbreak this autumn when a possum attack took seven of our hens and both our roosters. We had already lost two hens to seemingly natural causes, so after this loss we were left with four hens. I miss hearing our roosters crow! They were the friendliest roo's we could have asked for.

One morning as I was making breakfast with the eggs we had left from our hens, I noticed that the eggs were fertile. There is a spot on the yolk that looks like a bullseye, completely harmless to eat by the way. So on a whim, I ordered an incubator off Amazon to try to hatch the eggs. I knew our changes were low, these eggs had already been washed and were stored in the fridge for a few weeks.

We set up the incubator for the nine eggs we had left. When we candled the eggs and were beyond excited when we saw the first signs of developement in five of the eggs. Just after Thanksgiving, four precious chicks hatched! This definitely isn't the ideal time to be raising chicks, but its definitely worth it to continue on the legacy of our intial flock.

New Additions to Our Flock

In just a few weeks, we’ll be adding even more baby chicks to our backyard flock. This time, we’re building a new chicken coop and expanding the diversity of our breeds. We are looking for reliable egg layers to maintain a constant supply of eggs for our family and farmstand, but also are delving into colored egg layers!

Here’s who we’re welcoming:

• Salmon Favorelle: A sweet, fluffy breed with a calm disposition.

• Lavender Orpington: Their soft lavender-gray feathers are a so unique.

• Blue Laced Red Wyandotte: Stunning feathers with a unique lacing pattern.

• Easter Egger: The eggs are beautiful from the easter eggers.

• Whiting True Green: Known for their bright green eggs.

• Speckled Sussex: A charming breed with striking speckled feathers.

• Black Copper Marans: The one I’m most excited for! Their rich, chocolate-brown eggs are simply stunning.

  
  

We’re focusing on adding both variety and vibrancy to our flock, and I can’t wait to see how these breeds settle into their new home.

Transitioning New Chicks into the Flock

One of the most important steps in raising chicks is a slow introduction the existing flock. Pecking order is a very real thing!

• Gradual Acclimation: We’ll start by letting the new chicks and older hens see each other through a wire divider to get familiar without direct contact.

• Supervised Integration: Once everyone seems comfortable, we’ll allow short, supervised interactions, gradually increasing their time together.

• Extra Space and Hiding Spots: Ensuring plenty of space and places for the younger chicks to retreat to will help reduce stress.

• Quarentine: Our baby chicks will be isolated in their brooder until we are sure they are healthy enough and big enough to transition in with our hens. Especially with the rise of bird flu cases we don't want to risk harming our existing hens.

  
  

Looking Ahead

With a new coop in the works and these beautiful breeds joining our flock, this spring is shaping up to be an exciting one! There’s something so special raising chickens, from their first fluffy days to the very first egg they lay.

I’d love to hear about the chicks or chickens you’re raising this year! Share your stories or questions in the comments or tag me @MoirlyMakes. Here’s to another season of happy hens!