Ongoing Latest Farm Animal Project.

We have failed to post anything during the month of February or into March regarding our latest farm animal project... A new adventure found us and we picked our ten newest two-legged babies back the first week in February. Yep, ten tiny little baby Cornish Rock chicks... They were the smallest yet cutest little baby chicks (and the first ones we have ever purchased or raised) when we picked them up from the feed store south of Hamilton. So what are Cornish Rocks you ask? Why they are broilers... a.k.a. meat birds. What does this mean? This means we are raising these ten chicks into ten 5+ pound meat chickens to process and eat... That's right: FOR US TO EAT! These are not your usual egg-layer chicks that take weeks to raise up and live for years of entertainment, family enjoyment, etc. They are bred and raised to be eaten... Just like the ones you buy at your local (or chain) grocery store. Except there is one HUGE difference... Ours will live their full 9-10 weeks lives while eating good food and drinking clean water inside a large sheltered 8 ft x 16 ft coop/pen... vs. those chickens you buy at the grocery that live in a 12 inch square cage where they eat and drink while sitting in their feces... all the while being pumped full of chemicals therefore shortening their lives to around 6 weeks to meet the nations' demand for chicken meat. So with that being said, we are trying this out to see what the end result is for us on the dinner plate. So why not??
P.S. We agreed not name the ten meat birds... so we would not get attached to them in any form or fashion... So the whole "processing" part would be less painful (for us emotionally)...

The chicks outgrew the washtub in the first 3 days after we brought them to the farm... so Hubby constructed a bigger taller indoor pen for them.

Since it was clearly obvious the chicks were going to outgrow the indoor box much sooner than later, Hubby and "BJ" started welding up a new chicken coop shelter for the chicks... We would use it once they are big enough to move outside.

By the way, baby meat bird chicks are nasty! They eat so much they poop just as much... and the smell is like no other. They fight over the food and water jugs all day and night since they eat all day and night, therefore knocking over the feed and water bottles is very common. And what's nastier than baby chicks? Baby chicks in a wet pen full of food and poop. So we got a second water bottle which helped with that and we elevated all bottles to keep the pine shavings out of them too.

Even ol' Mom is getting in on their cuteness.

Cleaning out their pen is a nasty job... but, it's gonna be done!

Moving them back into the clean digs.

Getting so big, we removed the brooder and it is about time to move outside.

Almost done welding up the new coop!

Our bird dog, TT-Girl, spends a LOT of time near the chick box... she just KNOWS something is in there... she listens very carefully everyday...

Got the new coop placed outside and set up for the big move!

It took them a while to venture out of the box, but the water and food wooed them out.

Setting up the heat lamps for them to stay warm at night.

They venture WAY out to the edge as the weather has warmed.

Still love a group drink of fresh water! Would ya look at the size of them birds now?