These little chicks have been totally raised by Lil Banti and really want nothing to do with The husband and I. So It was really fun when we had to catch them to relocate them. Lil Banti was already in the big enclosure. We had let her out earlier today. She was all happy she had been walking around the yard, digging, scratching, and doing her thing, while eating her favorite snack, potato bugs. She had a nice day out of the enclosure by her self.
After we had let Lil Banti back into the enclosure we went back to catch the chicks from the brooder coop. I knew this would be hard. The brooder coop was set up about 2 feet from our creek bank. So when we opened the door the brown chick freaked out and flow out and we had to trap the poor baby to catch him. This took a couple minutes and her cornered himself up against the brooder side. I opened the door and our Big Rooster, Titan, came out of the enclosure to meet me. Scared me to death and John came over to protect me. Luckily he walked around a few times and then went back into the enclosure without trying to kill me first.. :) We put the little brown chick in the large enclosure first because he is the biggest. Gaia gave him a hard time but John stayed in there to make sure he didn't get hurt.
Next John decided we could catch the other two at the same time.... Yeah right... They both flew in different directions and over the creek bank which drops about 8 to 10 feet down. Luckily they grabbed ahold of the brick and grass and pulled them selves back up the steep fall. They did really good. Then I caught Snow white and John had to chase the Blue splash chick all the way around to the opposite side of the large enclosure... Then I trapped him with Snowwhite in my hand a caught him. I was so scared one of them was going to find the road. The part of the yard they got lose in isn't fenced off from the road. We put them both on a perch inside the enclosure so they would know where a safe spot was in case one of the hens chased them. John and I watched.
Now that everyone is in the enclosure together they are reforming a pecking order and the poor babies of course are dead last. So even their Mama, Little Banti is chaseing them.
We also had to catch them this evening again to put them into the coop. The had stayed outside when everyone else went inside, even Lil Banti. This time John seemed to have the good luck catching them. We shined a light for a while so they could find a safe spot. Then we went in for the evening. Around midnight I sent him back out to make sure they had found a spot to lay. They were all confused wanting someone to cuddle with when we had first put them in the coop.
The Little Blue splash chick jumped up onto the perch between Crownoses, Banti Roosters, legs. He did like this very well and tried to run him off. Then the splash tried to perch between everyone but they still picked on him. The little brown chick tried to find a home under Ivy. Then the splash went under her, then Snow white tried to and ended up getting all of them ran off and Snow White fell out the coop door. So I grabbed her put her back in and finely they all decided to jump up into the top of the coop and try to sleep up in the roof section. At Midnight when John checked on them they had moved though.
Hopefully tomorrow they will feel better and learn to come in and out of the coop on their own...
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