Moving to Their New Home!! The Coop!!

It has been a very exciting week for the Kelly Chickens!  They have moved out to their coop!  Last weekend we finished up the interior of the coop and decided to move them in.  There are a few things we still need to build (nesting boxes, perches)  but those things can wait a bit.  The main project to get done with the coop is the fence so the chickens can go outside.  I hope this gets done this weekend!  Here are a few pictures of the chickens moving into their home:

Here is a video of the chickens exploring their new home!

Being in their new home there have been a lot of new experiences for them.  They are now being exposed to more "night" time.  We turn off the light during the day so they can experience cold weather, which helps them develop their winter feathers.  At night when it gets the coldest we turn back on the heat light.  The roosters have been trying to crow when the light comes on.  I guess they think it is the morning!  Here is a video of two of the roosters trying to crow.

Ms. Champeau's class also asked a questions about how chickens drink water.  See if you can describe the process by watching the video below:

    Who does this belong too? 

   Who does this belong too?

   What's on Mick's head?

     What is on Mick's chin?

   What is different about the hens head?

 

Chicken Updates

We have had the chickens for over 5 weeks now and it is time to post some pictures of their growth.  These pictures were taken on 10-21-2011.  Can you see a difference?

Dallas

Winifred

Honey Badger

Chippy

Nina

Pinta

Pocahontas

Santa Maria

Mick Jagger

Which chicken am I with in the picture below?

What is happening here??

Chicken Names and Updates

The chickens are doing very well!  We had to make them a bigger chick house because they were growing so much.  Here are pictures that I took of each of them from last week.  As you can see they are really growing into their feathers.  I have also put their names next to each chicken so that you know what to call them.  I hope you have a wonderful day!  Think of your best wonder questions to ask!

Dallas - Easter Egger Chicken

Winifred - Easter Egger Chicken

Honey Badger - Easter Egger Chicken

Chippy - Easter Egger Chicken

Nina - Plymouth Rock Chicken

Pinta - Plymouth Rock Chicken

Santa Maria - Plymouth Rock Chicken

Pocahontas - Plymouth Rock Chicken

Mick Jagger - Rooster

Info on the three ships Nina, Pinta, Santa Maria

Also this week my wife and I have been taking the chicks outside to play in the grass.  We set up a cardboard cage in the grass so that the chicks couldn't escape.  We let them explore the grass and have some fun.  They really enjoyed pecking the grass and seeing all the small critters that were moving around.  On a scary note, when we took the chicks inside we looked at our yard and a big hawk swooped down and landed where we had the chicks.  Hawks can be predators of chickens so we were glad we got them inside safely.  Here is a picture of them outside in the grass.

Here is an updated picture of the coop with some siding.

I am looking forward to all of your wonder questions!!

Horses

My wife Meg and I just purchased horses yesturday and we are really excited to add them to our family.

They are 7 and 8 years old.  We bought them from a horse ranch in Dodgeville Wisconsin.  The horses are both quarter horses and are called Paints because of their coloring.  They will be arriving to our house on Tuesday the 11th of October.  Their names are Jazz and KT.  We were thinking about changing KT's name, but are not sure to what.  We are both very excited to have them in our family.

Maybe I could answer a few questions you had about horses?

Jazz

KT

Chicken Coop Update

This weekend was a big day for the chicken coop!!  My brother and I worked hard on making the coop water tight and started the siding.  We have never installed vinyl siding before so it was a learning opportunity for both of us.  We worked together, learned a lot and I think it looks awesome.

Here is a picture of the coop while we were building it this weekend.  I will post some more detailed pictures later tonight.  Enjoy!