My how they grow

Howdy!  The chicks are now 8 weeks old, fully feathered, and gorgeous.  Roxie is my favorite, but it turns out that Roxie may be a boy.  She crowed the last couple mornings.  This is upsetting to me as Roxie is the prettiest in coloring and I will only have Buff Orpington roosters to keep my Orpingtons breeding true.  I have heard of dominant females crowing, and am hoping this is the case, but Roxie is getting a crest sooner then the others and it is pinker then the others.
Roxie and Misty have the best muffs and beards.  I am beginning to wonder if Louise and Sarah are true Americanas, as they have no muffs or beards.  So, out of 5 Americana pullets, looks like I got 1 rooster, and two that aren't true americanas.  Not too happy about this.
I have had no luck in taming these girls.  They still totally freak out whenever I am near.  Once you have a hold of one, they calm down, but getting a hold of one is another story.
The silkie chicks are growing and I have to figure out something to do with them.  They are getting too big for their container, but the Americanas have a few more months before they can go in with the big girls.  I lost a Silkie chick, one of my buffs.  I did not think they were big enough to jump out of the container.  I was wrong, and came home to one having drowned in the toilet tank.  I was so upset and cried for hours.  They now have a cover over the container, and a board over the toilet tank.
I also lost one of my big girls to a hit and run on the road in front of the house.
Here are update pictures of the Americana girls (boy?)
Sookie at 8 weeks

 Louise at 8 weeks

 Sarah at 8 weeks

 Misty at 8 weeks

 Roxie at 8 weeks

More new chicks and 4 week update

I just got eight Silkie chicks yesterday and they are so very tiny and sweet.  I could not decide what color I wanted, so I got two each of Buff, White, Black and Blue.  I am hoping I get a few hens out of the deal.  Any roosters will be re-homed or become dinner if unable to find homes for them.  I have found a home for my Blue splash Silkie roo and my black Silkie/polish mix hen.  I am going to put my Cochin/Silkie hen with the bigger chickens at the same time I introduce the Ameracana hens to the flock.  So that will leave my white Silkie roster, my polish hen, and any new Silkie hens I get with this new bunch of chicks.
My Ameracana chicks are now 4 weeks old.  They are growing like weeds  and I can see changes in them daily.  Following are their four week pics, and some picks of the new Silkie chicks.

 Sookie at 4 weeks.  Looks like she is going to be all white.

 Loise at 4 weeks.  She is telling me how unhappy she is being picked up.

 Sarah at four weeks  I think she looks like a little hawk with her coloring.

 Misty at 4 weeks.  She still has grey on her head, but the body is white with light rust highlights.

 Roxie at four weeks.  Still mostly grey, but getting some brown in her wings.

 White silkie chicks.  I am figuring the silkie chicks are around three or four days old.

 Black Sikie chicks.

 Buff Silkie chicks.

 Blue Silkie chicks.

Here is a pic of one of the Silkie chicks in my hand to give you an idea of their size.  So very tiny.  Sorry the picture is blurry.  My camera is starting to mess up.

Zoomer and I have looked at several promising pieces of land in Crawford county.  We are looking there, because they do not have building restrictions.  Before we decide on which one to make an offer on, we are going to also check on properties that are available for back taxes owed.
One we looked at a few days ago is only 3 acres and I really want more then that, but this one has an old house on it that, with some work, would be livable until we build our house, then could be used for an art studio or a garage for Zoomer to work on his bikes.  Two points against it though, it is right on the state highway, and is only three acres.  So, still looking.

Leaps and Bounds

Wow, it always amazes me how fast the chicks change.  You can see changes daily.  Since the last set of pictures they have nearly doubled their size, the patterns are popping out on them and the colors are changing, and their tails are doubled in length.  They are entering that dinosaur stage.  Sookie is still mostly white with varying shades of white in places.  Louise is more brown with beautiful patterning in her wings.  Sarah is gong to be gorgeous and is shades of brown, rust and grays.  Misty , well, she is interesting with different shades of cream and grays, and Roxie is all shades of gray with some patterning in her wings.  I don't have as much time to spend with them as I had hoped so they are still afraid of me and freak out whenever I try to pick them up.  I am going to go get some parakeet grit so I can start giving them treats.  Maybe I can get on their good side that way.  Here are their pictures taken this morning.

Sookie

Louise

Sarah

Misty

Roxie

Two weeks old

The chicks will be two weeks old tomorrow.  Already there have been changes in their appearances.  They are definitely Ameraucanas as they have tails and a couple are already showing the cheek muffs.   Their colors have changed slightly and the patterns are becoming more defined.  I haven't had a lot of time to hold them and tame them, but have sat at the computer with one sleeping on my chest at times.
Here are some pictures I took today.
Sookie is starting to show a little pale color in her wings.

 Louise has some nice patterning in her wing and tail feathers.  She is showing more grey and less brown.

 Sarah still has quite a bit of brown and her wings are not as patterned.

 Misty's wings are getting whiter with some darker areas.  She is turning a soft grey all over with the light tan spots on her head and neck.

 Roxie is also showing more pattern in  her wings and tail and more grey all over.  Her black areas on her back and the back of her head are not as large.

I really do need to work with them.  The re terrified every time I approach the tub.

I have decided to re-home BG, my blue splash Silkie rooster, and Ebony my Black Silkie/Polish mix hen.  I have to many rooters and BG is my least favorite.  Ebony is picking on Phoenix, who I just found out was a hen as she started laying a couple weeks ago, and she is picking on my slow Silkie Rooster, Singer.

New babies

It has been a while since I posted.  Sorry, with work and recent physical problems, I was way behind on everything.  All the chickens are doing well.  In fact, Sunday, we went to get some new chicks.  Our local Rural KIng had pullet chicks in and I saw some Auracanas I fell in love with.  And they lay colored egs.  Anything from light blue to dark blue, green, and a pinkish beige.  I picked out five and each one is a different color.  Auracanas come in different colors and patterns.  It may turn out these are Ameraucanas, but the sign said Auracanas, which have not tails and tufted ears.  Then below it it had an explanation of Ameraucanas, which have tails and beards and cheek muffs.  So will have to wait to  see which ones I actually have.

A few days ago, I found a really strange egg below the roost.  It had no shell, felt like a water balloon, and had a tail.  Here are some pics of it.

Here are my new babies.  I took these yesterday.  They are about four days old in these pics.  So tiny and precious, I just want to hold them all day.  This first one is Sookie.  She is such a pale yellow that she is almost white.

 This is Louise.  I think she looks like a little owl.  I love the stripes on her wings.

 This is Sarah.  She has more brown on her and does not have the striped wings.

 Here is Misty.  She is a pale yellow with a peach color on her face and cheeks and her back and the back of her head is grey.  Really very pretty.

 And finally, here is Roxie.  She is bit more grey, striped wings, and almost black on the back and back of  her head.

Aren't they just the sweetest?  It is going to be fun, as they grow, to see what colors and patterns they take on. I will take pictures as they develop and post here.

Zoomer and I may have found some land.  We have looked at a place that is a little over 7 acres.  Most of the property is on the top of a hill, all wooded, and at the base of the hill is open area with a creek running through it where we could have gardens and animals like goats and alpacas.  We may be making an offer on it.  Keep your fingers crossed that they accept it.