Spring Chickens-2

Well it has been a couple days since my chick update and now we are only at day 9 but I just starting thinking about the different things that will need done for our chicks this year.
For one our hen Lil Banti is going to try to raise them. This means we have to go into the coop and make some changes. Plus I have been reading that it is best to remove Lil Banti and her chicks so none of the adults will hurt them. So now we have to make a separate home for them. But at the same time I have been wanting to make a separate coop for the roosters. So I am thinking that we might build a smaller coop and let her use it first. Then move the rooster to it as well as their new enclosure. I have not yet decided if I am defiantly going to separate them. I have been debating it for a while. all 8 of our flock has always been together and I feel awful for trying to separate them. But at the same time they pick on the hens and since its spring they are ripping out the hens feathers while trying to mate. Even if we separate them from the hens they will still be right beside the hens. Plus they are very mean and I am now kinda afraid to go in with the Hens who really like socializing with us. So. I am not sure yet. But that is what I am thinking.

That hawk that tried to take out of chickens this winter is living in the pine tree in my parents back yard. Less than 300 ft from the chicken coop.....Thats one more concern for our coming new babies...

We also need to fix the snow damage to our current enclosure and put a new ramp up into the coop. Shovel out all the winter straw from the ground. It is pretty much all mulched up but at the same time I don't want any of the babies coming in to contact with it. Put some smaller mesh around the bottom of the enclosure to keep the chicks in and away from the road, dogs, cats, & hawks... Just a general over all fix I think. But alot of it needs done any ways.

But I am excited to have babies again. Even though they were not planned. We have never really had any babies around except our chicks last year. We are very responsible with our animals. So all the animals at our house have been spayed or neutered. Except the roosters because the vet told us it is very risky to neuter an adult rooster. So they are still doing what they do. Since we don't take their eggs out on a regular basis. We leave most of them to let them eat and only clean them out ever so often when they haven't been eaten. So separation may be the key here. :(

But hope we can get stuff done outside before they hatch. Hopefully our day count is right...