Chicken Update

 Here’s our chicken coop.  Maybe I should say: this is what will be our chicken coop.  It still needs some work.  The building is no longer tipping over, and it’s been emptied out for the most part. 

 It still needs some work, but the little chicks aren’t ready for it yet anyway.  Knut’s been spending every waking hour he’s not at work, finishing up the fireplace mantel.  I think he’s more nervous about that job because we he kinda has to get it right the first time, and doesn’t want to stare at some mistake of his for years to come.  If he does a job on this coop where it works but isn’t pretty, the only ones who will stare at it is the chickens.  Everyone knows chickens aren’t judgmental about these kinds of things.

 19 of them are getting big.  Little “Celina” as Silje calls her, is still so small.  I can’t tell you how many times I go out there wondering if she is still alive.  For awhile, (sorry I’m not so eloquent with this description) she had poop stuck to her butt, and the poop just kept getting bigger and bigger.  We were wondering if her pooping issue was preventing her from growing.  Last Monday I soaked her bum in warm water and took an old rag and scrubbed it all off.  She didn’t fight me a bit, and felt so weak between my fingers.  Everytime I go out there, I just see her standing, taking long blinks and not eating or drinking.

“Queenie” the largest of the chicks will push her to water and food, but she didn’t move.  When I reach in to handle a bird, Queenie will pull Celina under her breast to protect her.  Now, even though she’s still tiny, she’s running and leaping like the rest of them, and I’ve even seen her eat.  I cannot believe she’s made it through the week and keeps trudging on. 

Knut said they’re finally getting to their “ugly” adolescent age, but I still think they’re kind of pretty.  I like to see their feathers come in, as it’s becoming easier to tell them apart.  I like watching them clean and primp up their new feathers and take care of themselves.  Whenever I put down new bedding, they all spend a good amount of time scratching it around.  All except Celina.  She doesn’t scratch, but she does clean her feathers.  As you can see from this pictures she’s at least half the size of the other hamburgs now.  With every day, I’m more and more surprised that she is still here, which gives me glimmers of hope that she’ll make it.  I’m not sure what kind of chicken she will be, but so far I’d say she’s a surprising one.