It was a typical Tuesday morning at 1840 Farm. I was 90 minutes into a tomato soup canning session when the phone rang. When I picked it up, I could immediately hear the “cheep, cheep, cheep” in the background as a not very impressed postal employee informed me that I needed to come pick up my chicks. I could tell from the tone of his voice that he wanted me there yesterday.
So, hot water bath canner bubbling on the stove, I calmly told him, “I’ll be there in thirty minutes!” I raced to the garage to set up their new home. I wasn’t expecting for them to arrive until later this week, but luckily we had already gathered the necessary supplies. I ran back into the house, turned the heat off under the canning pot, set the timer for five minutes and watched the time tick down. There was nothing that I could do but wait and hope that they would still be “peeping” when I got there.
They were. As soon as I entered the post office, I could hear them from the back room. I waited my turn and told them that I was there for the baby chicks. They never asked my name. They didn’t ask to see any form of identification. They quickly handed over the baby chicks. They were happy to see my pick up my package and head for the door. I can tell you that I got a lot of interesting glances as I was walking out to my car. People tend to stare when you are carrying a package the size of a child’s shoe box that is peeping.
We ordered our heritage breed chicks from . They were great about offering resources for first time chicken keepers. They kept recommending not to open the box in front of children as a few of them might not have made the journey and lived to peep about it. So, I knew what I needed to do. I carefully cut the strapping tape away from three of the sides. I gently lifted the lid and tried to count the little fluff balls inside.
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight! They had all made it. Now to get them home and settled in. My daughter couldn’t wait to get them out of the box and into their little warm brooder. We opened the box and two hopped right out into the pine shavings. The rest of them quickly decided that living in their little shipping box forever seemed like a good idea. Finally, with a little encouragement, they gently set foot into their new space.
We watched them with bated breath. Would they drink? Would they eat? Were they warm enough? Too warm? Who knew that chicken keeping was this difficult? I carefully picked each chick up and dipped its beak into the waterer. Some happily drank water while others immediately pulled their beaks out of the water as if they were being waterboarded. Those chicks ran away from the water to the safety of the opposite corner of the brooder. They were definitely keeping an eye on me. I was not to be trusted.
That was, until I brought more food. Then I was back in their good graces as they all investigated their surroundings, had a snack, and settled in under the heat lamp for a well deserved nap. They were exhausted from their journey. I was certainly exhausted from mine.
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Baby Chicks And Ducks in
Platte, South Dakota
We have many Rare Chicken Breeds for sale in Platte South Dakota,
including Sussex Chickens, Welsummer Chickens, Turken Chickens and more.
Be sure to check out the Bargain Specials, as you can combine different
egg layers in smaller amounts and buy as an assortment. Platte
South Dakota also has poultry equipment for sale, game chickens for sale in
Platte South Dakota, bantams for sale, ducks for sale, geese for sale,
turkeys for sale, guinea for sale, peafowl for sale, pheasant for sale,
chukar partridge for sale, bobwhite for sale, many different breeds of
baby chicks for sale in Platte SD.
Baby Chicks As
Pets in
Platte, South Dakota
Thumbing through a baby chickens for sale in Platte South Dakota
catalog is a yearly traditions in many houses. My kids and I eagerly await
the Murray McMurray Hatchery catalog. We love looking at all the cool and
different chicken breeds available. Catalogs are free so head on over to
their site and request one if you are interested.
Typically hatcheries online offer both standard breeds
and bantams. Bantams are fun hardy little chickens, they lay tiny eggs
that kids especially love collecting. Bantams typically weigh less than 2
pounds when full grown. Just like ordering anything online there are pros
and cons to ordering baby chicks online. Pros of buying baby chicks in
Platte South Dakota * Big Selection - If you are wanting a large
variety of different chicken breeds and egg colors, you will find the best
selection at an online hatchery. * Both Bantams and full sized chickens
available * You get to choose what sex you want. If you want a mixture of
both male and female then choosing a "straight run" will save you money
and you will get a mixture of male and female chicks. You can also choose
all males or all females too. * Weekly specials. Hatcheries have sales on
chicks, you are likely to get a good deal if you are flexible with the
breeds you are wanting. Cons of buying baby chicks in Platte
South Dakota * Order early to get the best selection. Certain breeds sell
out fast, sometimes as early as 6 months in advance of shipping! If you
are wanting a certain breed it's best to order your chicks in the fall
before their orders sell out.
Baby Chicks in
Platte, South Dakota
Quantity - you must order a certain number of chicks. Typically hatcheries
will require you buy a minimum of 25 chicks at a time. The number is
necessary for the chicks survival during shipping. All 25 chicks are put
in one small box without heat. They are crowded in the box and produce
enough body heat to arrive in good shape. * The wait - If you choose to
buy chicks from a feed store you will have them the same day but if you
choose to go with a hatchery you have to wait until they are ready to ship
and then wait for the chicks to arrive. Ordering baby chicks online in
Platte South Dakota is easy and has always been a very pleasant
experience of me. It can be a little frustrating waiting for the chicks
but it's so worth the wait. When the post office calls and you hear all
those little "cheeps" or "chirps" in the background you'll know the wait
was worth it! How to Care for your new baby chickens in Platte,
South Dakota Baby chicks are really
charming and
tough to resist,
yet it's finest to prepare for their
arrival before you obtain them. Prepare first
by collecting not only the
proper materials, yet
additionally the proper
knowledge to care for
them. Raising baby chicks is fairly
simple, you simply need
to give them with the following: A
clean as well as warm
habitat A lot of food and water Interest and also
love Environment Your environment can be an easy box, fish tank,
feline carrier, or guinea
pig cage. Line it with old towels and also
coverings (without loose
strings!) to start, and also after a few weeks use straw over paper.
Note: Avoid making use of only
newspaper or various other slipper
surface areas-- or your chicks legs could grow
misshapen. You likewise require
something to dish out food and
water in, such as a chicken feeder and water
recipe from the feed shop, or a pickle jar
cover for food and also a family
pet bird water dispenser from an animal store. Also, as the chicks age you can present a perch
right into the environment to obtain them
trained on perching. Heat To
maintain your chicks heat you need to
provide them with a heat resource.
This could be as easy as a 100 watt
light bulb in a reflective clamp style lamp from a
hardware store, or an infrared reptile warmth
bulb likewise work extremely well (my
referral). Chicks require this
warmth 24/7 up until their downy fluff is
changed with feathers (which could occupy to two months). The newly
hatched out need a temperature level
between 90 and also 100 levels,
and every week this could
be reduced by
about 5 degrees or
so. The warmth resource need to be on simply one side of the cage
to permit chicks a variety of
temperature levels. The chicks are your ideal
thermometer- if they are concealing in the
other corner of your warmth
lamp, you should
decrease the temperature level. If
they are smothering each various other under the
warmth (not merely snuggling),
you have to add some heat.
Home cleaning
Cleanliness is crucial and it maintains your chicks healthy and
balanced. Be sure to alter
the bed linens
often and also
consistently offer tidy
food as well as water Food and water.
Chicks grow very quickly
which needs plenty of clean
food and also water. Give
enough at all times as well
as check
usually to prevent thirsty and
starving chicks. Chick food is various than adult chicken food, and it comes
in both medicated and
also non-medicated selections. Feed chick food for the
first 2 months, after that
switch over to a raiser food (~ 17 %
protein) for another 2 months,
and then to a slightly
reduced healthy protein feed or a layer feed
(if you have layers). Soil Some chicks like to get a running start on taking
dust bathrooms, while others will not use up that activity till they are
older. If you have the space in your chick
unit, present a tray of sand or
dust for them to shower in.
Interest as well as love There are a couple of benefits to spending time with your chicks. First of all, they will certainly probably bond with you and
not escape as adults. Second, if you
examine your chicks daily as well as
watch their behavior, you could
catch illness or various
other troubles earlier. Watch out for wheezing, limping, or
various other undesirable
signs. Make certain to
likewise check out
their poop, as diarrhea could bring about matted plumes and clogged up cloaca.
Last but not least, it is very
important to watch out for social problems, such as the
smallest chick getting teased. Empty nest syndrome So your
chicks are currently fully feathery
as well as its time for them to leave the
security of your residence
and also relocate outside right into a
coop. Take a look at our
area on chicken coops to get more information
regarding coops as well as
proper coop habitats.
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