I'll start with the T update. He's so mobile at the moment, not quite crawling, more like dragging himself everywhere, put a cloth on his belly and I'd have the cleanest floors in the land!
He's pretty much settled into a routine now sleeps 7/8pm till 5/6am. On a morning he's awake for 1 hr 15 mins in between naps, he'll nap for 2 hours first thing on a morning, then 45 minute naps for the rest of the day.
He's into touching everything, and he's got the undying trust that only babies have, he'll throw himself backwards whilst you're carrying him to try and touch a painting that you're walking past and he knows that you'll catch him.
Anyways onto the chickens, we got 9 babies:
They didn't brave outside the coop yesterday morning so whilst I had T down for a nap I set about the challenge of getting them into the run. I had a peek into the coop whilst their front door was open and found out that the OH's chicken (Korma) was bullying the poor babies, they kept screaming then running in a huddle to the corner. Korma would then chase after them and start pecking them again and they all screamed and ran to the other corner. Now maybe it wasn't wise to get babies so soon after I'd become a new mother as I was nearly in tears, so I shouted at Korma "STOP PICKING ON THEM!!!!!" Needless to say she wasn't too bothered by my outburst so I had to climb in the coop and chuck her out so the babies were left alone.
I then decided (after a discussion with the OH) that I should get the older chickens into the garden and then get the babies into the run so they could get used to their surroundings and get some confidence.
So I opened the gate and spent an hour coaxing the big chickens out, using a variety of techniques such as, leaving a trail of food (fail, one chicken would eat it all then bored would go back in the run) flapping my arms about and running at them shouting 'raaah' (fail, they just looked at me like I was an idiot, which they were probably right with)
In the end they took pity on me and casually wandered out of their own accord.
So I shut the gate and then set about the challenge of getting the babies out into the run.
This took about half an hour by which time I'd only persuaded 3 to come out.
So OH came home, lifted them all out and put them in the run, and let the bigger chickens back in.
An hour later I wandered out to see how they were doing and found all the babies herded into a corner protecting their heads with their bums stuck up in the air, shaking in fear, as Korma and Martha, showed them who was boss. So I shooed them away and spent the next hour trying to protect the babies from the cruelness of bullying.
The OH then came into the run and told me off for being soft. I explained that I was protecting my babies, and he sat down and told me that it was the natural order of things and I had to let them battle it out. So I sulkily left them to it.
When the bigger chickens went to bed, the babies ran round the run shouting 'we're freeeee, we're freeeee!'
Then they all went to bed.
This morning, 5 of the babies have braved running halfway across the run to be scared back into their corner by Korma, Martha and Georgie (Georgie was lovely to them yesterday, I'm very disappointed in her behaviour!)
So I'm hoping that the babies realise that there's power in numbers and start standing up for themselves.
Although to be fair to the older chickens, it must be like having a group of 9 screaming girls having a sleepover, so I can understand they may be a bit vexed.
Anyhooo's that's it for today as T has started grumbling for a nap, I'm sure I'll bore you all soon with my chicken nonsense.
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