We have peeping!!!

This evening when we went out to give the chickens their evening scraps I went in to check on Beach Bunny, one of our Buff Orpington hens who went broody on 12 eggs approximately 18 days ago. I smelt something stinky and thought one of the eggs had broken or maybe was rotten in the nest, so I checked the eggs under her. All the eggs were intact, so I figured it was something else. As I sat quietly feeding her bits of apple I heard peeping!!! WOO HOO!!! We have peeping eggs!!!

The eggs are not due to hatch until this Friday and I've heard chicks can sometimes peep for a few days, but then again our dates could also be off by a few days, LOL! So I called for the kids, ran inside to grab the digital camera and I was able to catch the sound of the eggs peeping under the her. We're so excited! Maya is beside herself with excitement since she's been waiting for this event for weeks. She says she is going to get up at the crack of dawn and go out to see if any have hatched.

Luckily last week I constructed a separate enclosure in the run area and moved Beach Bunny while in her nesting box into it. Now all I have to do is secure some chicken wire around the area of the enclosure that has larger spaced wire that chick can easily get through and get a feeder and watering jug from my mom's so we'll be ready for the chicks. Luckily in hopes of having chicks this season, I ordered chick starter and broiler food the last time I purchased feed.

My only concern is we have a recouperating hen, Chew Hair, in with Beach Bunny and her soon to hatch chicks and this may pose a problem. Chew Hair may peck at the new chicks and kill them if they aren't well protected by Beach Bunny, so I will need to set up a secondary enclosure for her... just in case.

I will post more tomorrow if new chicks arrive. I'm curious how these hatchlings will look since the eggs are a mix from our three breeds of hens (Auracanas, Buff Orpingtons and Black Stars) and will most likely be fathered by our head Auracana rooster, Fluffy... what a mix!!!!!