Chickam Chicks 2022!

 Welp, after another rough start with a low hatch rate and several chicks that didn't make it, here are our Chickam chicks for this year. Only two of the six chicks we hatched made it, so we supplemented them with six chicks from the feed store--chickens are flock animals and suffer without company. So here they are in order of hatch and purchased feed store chicks!

Arson, a chick hatched from eggs we got from our neighbor who runs a mixed flock of Dark & Light Brahmas, Salmon Faverolles, Australorp, and Barred Rocks. Time will tell what Arson turns out to be!

Next is Mr. Boombastic Call Me Fantastic. YES, this is her full legal name, but she only uses it for formal affairs such as state dinners at the White House. We've been calling her Boombastic or Boomer for short. Boombastic is from our flock, likely has Bobbie our buff Brahma roo for dad, maybe Chonk the light Brahma or Jonesy the Buff Orpington for mom. Again, time will tell. Boomer preferred to sleep through picture time.

Feed store chicks next. All are pullets (hens) except for  Mjolnir, who is a straight run (mixed hens/roos) chick. The next two are a bit older than our hatch, about a week old.

Apricot, a Welsummer hen, who in this picture desires for you to admire her foot.

Frittata, a Danish Brown Leghorn hen who looks like she is posing for the definition of 'Glum'.

The next four feed store chicks are closer in age to our hatch.

Mjolnir (straight run, which means an unsexed batch of chicks, so time will tell if hen or roo!), a buff Orpington chick.

Bu Lu, a black Jersey Giant hen. Bu Lu decided to channel her inner ninja during picture time and practice her Sneak.

Bu Lu's bilateral face spots are like those hand-held airport traffic wands...a guidance system for FOOD GOES IN BEAK.

 

Next are two Smokey Pearl chicks--a new breed for us. Don't know much about them, but they sure are pretty! Yellow chicks with random black streaks, they keep the black as adults but their feathers are a pretty gray-blue.

Sesame, who has lovely slatey-grey legs (and skin!) and dark beak. Here, Sesame upholds Chickam tradition by being a Leaning Tower of Chicken.

Lastly, here is Enkidu, our other Smokey Pearl hen. Interesting that her legs aren't dark like Sesame's are. My daughter always picks out any chicks we get from feed stores, but we didn't notice Enkidu's special birthmark until we got her home.

Enkidu posing like an 'action shot' from a catalog from 1975 for men's polyester slacks:

...and Enkidu's cute lil' black heart mark on her left thigh! I really hope she keeps it.