Letting the chicks go free range

On Monday, the first batch of cream legbar chicks - the ones we took to the allotment a couple of weeks ago - were released from the chickhouse to let them go free range. As is often the case when releasing new birds into the flock, we keep an eye on them to ensure they don't get into trouble or don't find a previously undiscovered escape route. And as usual, they were fine. Admittedly, they did attempt to roost on the ground in the evening when all the other hens had gone into the various henhouses but I simply picked them up rather than leave them where they would make a snack for the foxes and put them into a henhouse. Last night they made their own way back to roost, in the chickhouse.

The other hens, on releasing the chicks, immediately decided to invade the chickhouse. The chicks then took a bit of a liking to the goat paddock where they now spend most of their time.

Three of the cockerel chicks will be advertised for sale soon. The 4th will be kept as part of the flock. If no homes are found for the three, they will end up as dinner later in the year.

Meanwhile, we have 12 chicks in the back garden which will soon be brought over to the allotment to go into the chick house. This group contains 6 more cream legbars though only 2 of them are hens. The other 6 are barnevelders and exchequer leghorns and as yet we have no idea what sex they are.