Gimme all the babies! Yes, I know they are really chicks and ducklings and goslings – but they are still just little babies. The photos at the top show how they arrive in the mail. The local USPS calls Sue first thing in the morning and she runs over to get them; ok she doesn’t really run, she drives over and picks them up. Generally they are hungry and thirsty. They are shipped when they are first hatched and have not eaten. I’ve talked about how they survive this once before, so you can search through earlier posts for that dissertation. Did they all make it? Keep reading to see.

ducksThe ducklings and gosling arrived Wednesday morning. I think these guys are usually my favorites. They are just so cute and fuzzy. Sue gave them “Magic Water” right away. That’s water with honey and garlic and apple cider vinegar. They seem to really like the energy booster and it’s great for boosting their immune system as well. They got to enjoy the brooder all by themselves for only two days, because the chicks came  Friday morning.

redrangers2How can you not love little sweet fuzzy creatures? I think these guys are usually my favorites. OK, not really true; they are my second favorites. These guys are meat birds and we make a concerted effort to NOT become attached to them. So, they can’t be my favorites. Sue’s comment, when she texted me a photo, was, “The Red Rangers sure are yellow!” Yellow little balls of fluff. They seemed to have fared pretty well. One did not make the it the first night. It must be a very stressful transport, I can only imagine, so it is not uncommon to loose one or two in the first couple of days. Along with the Red Rangers, we also got a “fancy” – but we don’t know exactly what he/she is. It’s always interesting to try to figure that out, after the fact. They don’t ever tell you what you’re getting. Can you pick out the one that is different??

all the babiesNow they are all together, one big happy family. The goose, who we have dubbed “Octave”, is already bossing everyone around.  He is the man in charge. So far, the ducks and chickens just kind of blend in together and they all enjoy eating and drinking all day long. Sue found these ceramic heat bulbs that just screw into the regular heat lamps, but they aren’t as fragile – there’s less chance of breakage and if something happens and the lamps fall there isn’t the same fire danger. They seem to be working great and provide the heat zones that the chicks and everyone, need. Also, it’s been rather warm here, so not too much of a worry about them getting cold, except maybe at night.  This Wednesday we may be giving the ducks and goose their first opportunity at a bath. I hope we do this when I can be home so I can get a video to share with you. It’ll be so fun! Until then, as always~
Thanks for reading!

June week 1 eggsEgg Report: OK, as you may (or may not) know – I had a training session in Washington, DC this past week – so that’s why we were silent for our normal publishing days. Due to that, I’m posting another little spreadsheet detailing the egg report. Just is easier when we have a full 7 days to report. So here you are.

oops! I rather did that backwards, didn’t I.

thunderstormHere is Today’s Weather:  It has been in the mid to high 90’s for several days now. We did have our first burst of Monsoon Weather on Friday, with a short prelude on Thursday. Sue got a nice photo of the clouds, looking off of the back porch. The total rainfall for the week? .06″ Not really enough to write home about, but that is exactly what I’m doing. Hopefully that number will only go up as we get deep into the season. Unfortunately, because of the wind that came before the rain on Friday, my Friday Night Neighborhood Market has turned into the Food Truck only Market. The Market Master is thinking of starting a Saturday morning market, but it’s at the same time as the Bisbee market. I may be going to every other Saturday,  until I can find out which one is more profitable. I’ll let you know.