I got new chicks!
This isn't a big surprise and I plan on getting more in a few weeks to fully round out my flock to ten (or twelve) birds. The new chicks are a Blue Maran and a Silkie. I had two Silkies, but the second one didn't make it.
Sometimes that's life on a homestead. She was my favorite.
But this group of chicks is a lot more friendly than my first group. Of that group, only Little Miss allows me to pet her or pick her up. The other three just run.
Hey-Hey, our rooster is a very good protector of the girls. And thankfully we live in a town where no body minds the crowing.
A dog wandered into our yard the other day. While the majority of our yard is fenced in, our driveway is located on the side of our house and there is an open gate where that is. I pulled in from grocery shopping just in time to see a high flagged fluffy tail disappear behind our house. As soon as I parked the dog came back around and then trotted out past me and down the street. I ran to the backyard as I didn't see the chickens in their pen. Hey-Hey had them rounded up underneath the rabbit hutch and they were all hiding behind the potted plants being very very quiet.
As I said, he's a good protector.
The rabbits are a constant evaluation process. The Satin Angoras are going to be a true dual purpose breed for me as we ended up harvesting most of the kits from this spring. Both litters came down with a respiratory infection of some sort. None of them died from it, nor did any of the other rabbits get sick, so I'm not sure what to make of it. But due to that, all of the rabbits that got sick were processed. I'm not going to pass on genetics that are prone to illness. A good immune system is a must for a rabbit. Two kits were kept back, the only two that showed no signs or symptoms, unlike their litter mates. A broken black doe from one litter and a REW buck from the other. Both currently have nice growth on their wool, with a nice sheen to it. Only time will tell if they hold onto their wool as they age or not as Satin Angoras are still prone to become overrun with guard hair as they get new coats growing in. Both of them have decent bodies as well. Nothing spectacular, but nothing problematic either (One doe I'm having to cull has a phenomenal type and choosing to processing her was a difficult decision, but one that has to be made). This will also help me make determinations of where my current stock is at and what changes I'll need to make going forward.
I kept one of the meat mutt bunnies. She grew very quickly and is now almost as big as her mom and only 7 months. And she's sweet. So she'll stay on as another meat mama. I'm thinking of calling her either Pollen or Nectar, since her mom is Honey.
