New Baby Chicks AGAIN!!!

I went out to make sure that Ebony, my black banty hen had put her babies to bed, she's been taking them out during the day and hunkering down outside at night, but with all the rain we've been having I make her move them inside.  These three were hatched on June 11th.

When my grandchildren and Great neices and Nephew come over and want to hold the chicks I have to pick up Ebony so that she doesn't peck them.  She doesn't seem to mind too much, just sits in my arm until they start squawking, then she tries to get loose.  I want the kids to handle them so that they are mellow when they grow up.  The more we handle them the more mellow they seem to be.  I like that because I have to pick them up sometimes and I don't like chasing them.

So when I made her move the babies inside I decided to check for eggs and heard a chick cheeping on the upper level of the coop.  I knew I had Josephine brooding, but didn't expect new chicks yet.

 If you look really close you can see a tiny face peeking out at the end of her wing feathers, right where the fluff lightens.  There is a broken shell on the floor behind her too. So I picked up her wing and sure enough this is what I found hiding under her.

 It is mostly black, but I could see feathers on it's legs.  It is a tiny one too, so most likely it is a banty.  I checked to see if there were any more and there is one more egg that I could see.  Hopefully by morning it will hatch too.  Josephine isn't as cranky as Ebony was.  Josephine scooted around until the chick came out where I could see it.  Just like her momma Sara Svati did when Josephine hatched.

I love watching the babies grow.  Can you tell I'm excited.

Happy Scrappin',

Janice