We have been flipping back and forth on our plans for a spring flock for several months now. Originally we were going to skip chicks all together this year and wait until next year to start an entire new flock, but there is that 4-5 month window where you have no eggs if you wipe out all of your laying hens and replace them with younger hens. (I don't think I can deal with the Reluctant Farmer whining about no eggs for that long ever again!) Then I made plans to teach a class at the cultural center and decided that we would buy chicks when I placed an order for my classroom, however I caved tonight and could not wait until summer to get chicks.
When I called our local feed store and asked what breeds of chicks they had available. We were told they had Americaunas in stock, so Katzya and I rushed over only to find out that they had all been sold minutes before we got there. Disappointed, we called another feed store, and we were excited to find out that they had still had Americaunas, so off we hurried. When we got there we immediately headed back to the chicks and were excited to hear the soft "peeping" coming from the brood boxes. We missed out on a few of our favorite breeds (which we will order later this summer...), but they still had plenty of Americaunas!
We brought home 6 little Americauna pullets tonight, and they are so cute. Katzya still has not named them yet, but I am sure that is coming! With their little blue feet and their puffy cheeks, I am so glad we did not wait until summer to start our flock. I don't think I could have managed to not have chicks for an entire year! All 6 of them are brown, but with different markings and shades of brown, so it will be interesting to see how they develop and grow! My heart is content....
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