May 9: Tokena in my lap

I took the baby chickens outside on another chicken adventure on Sunday; this time we hung out in the adult chicken coop where they will eventually be living (with Pepper, Patty, and Tokena). Munchkin was, of course, the first baby chick to approach the adult chickens, and Tokena pecked her right in the eye (typical pecking order behavior). Saltina was the other baby chick who was brave enough to approach, and she got pecked by Pepper. Cecelia and Boco were WAY too scared to even get near the adults. The adults seemed more interested in the baby chicken food than they were in the baby chicks, and I had to continually push the adults away from the food (and thus the chicks). I wanted them to be in the same vicinity, but not too close, because the baby chicks are WAY too small to have even a remote possibility of defending themselves in the pecking order. It will be great for their eventual integration for them to be used to each others sounds and smells and bodies, so I hope to have them all hang out regularly (the babies probably won't live full time in there for another couple of weeks, until they have all their feathers and no more fluff.)  

At one point while hanging out in the coop, I took out the chicken treats to distract and to appease the adult chickens. This may have been a mistake, because I all of a sudden had three full-grown adult chickens on top of me, begging for treats. I'm used to having Pepper in my lap (she's been my favorite since she was one-day-old and she has always been the most personable chicken; it didn't hurt that she lived in our house for a few weeks as an adult while she recovered from an inflamed ankle). But since we adopted Tokena as an adult chicken, I've never really had any cuddle time with her. She really loved the treats I was giving her, and climbed right up into my lap and let me hug/cuddle/pet her. She is a super sweet chicken, and it was delightful to spend some time with her. I hope that she and Pepper and Patty accept our new baby chickens and that they all live happily ever after in their coop. Of course, that remains to be seen. Until them, I will delight in my daily adventures with the babies as they meet and greet with the adults. 

With delight,

♥Jamie