This post is a bit delayed---but here are the pictures of the four new baby chicks that have hatched over the last week, and are now staying in my bedroom beside my bed in a brood box. All four cheep during the night, and during the day (rather loudly, I might add) when I'm not around. Each are getting a profound education on how to kill vampires, and vampire lore---you see, they really enjoyed the movie Lost Boys, and are getting into the TV show Angel, which I've recently begun watching. We've also watched True Lies, and are starting the Haunting in Connecticut. They also like science fiction, and are big fans of Firefly.
This is the eldest, his name is Esposito, and he is a game-bird mix, whose father is our little scarred, one-eyed white Frizzled Cochin Pirate, whom roams the backyard.
Esposito is the brawn of the clutch, and is adamantly focusing on jumping out of the brooder, and even succeeded once yesterday evening.
Firefly is next; she is Esposito's sister (or brother, I can't tell for sure,) and is the most energetic of the lot. She has some interesting markings, and very dark "tear-streaks" down her face.
Sable is the third of the clutch. She is hatched from a black-colored, brown-egger, mixed-breed hen of our flock, and her father is unknown. She's the smallest of all the chicks, but already has large feathers coming in: all solid black so far. She is the most shy.
Then, last but not least, we have our newest baby, who hatched yesterday, and was actually due to hatch today! This little baby (whose gender is very hard to guess at) started piping Tuesday, a whole two days earlier than he was supposed to. There was another egg from our stock that was supposed to hatch yesterday, and we've seen no movement from it.
This little baby has some interesting markings that are similar to Firefly's, but of a different color. He is of mixed-breed origins on his mother's side for certain, and his father is unknown. He either shares Sable's mother, or was mothered by a Red Star (AKA, red sex-link) hen that roams our yard. I'm leaning towards Red Star.
His/her name is Doxa, though I toyed with naming him Angel after that TV show I mentioned above; I really like that show, partially because of the real vampire lore that it uses. No shiny vampires, for instance.
Here is Doxa:
He looks like he's wearing mascara.
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The Marans eggs go into lock-down Saturday, and my fingers are crossed! I'm really hoping they're all okay. I know at least some of them are developing, because the temperature in the 'bator keeps rising! It has affected some of the eggs, and I have proof. The reason Doxa hatched early was because of the heightened temperature, which went from 100, to roughly 103 overnight, and wouldn't go down quickly. It's possible that the rise in temperature prevented the egg that was actually supposed to hatch from hatching, so I'm giving it more time before tossing it out.
I've firmly corrected the temperature now.
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