Our birds experienced a few changes this week, namely growth. They are getting bigger and as a result, I've expanded out the size of the brooder. It is now double the circumference that it was last week. The chicks are eating more and as a result, they are pooping more. They quickly foul the ground and I don't want them standing in that mess, so I push the chicken tractor and move them to fresh grass twice a day.
I still feed them morning, noon and night. I've added a third feed trough so they can all get around it and eat. I also added a second gallon-sized waterer. Although the coolest night we have so far has been 69 degrees, I turn the heat lamp on at night. The light attracts mosquitoes and bugs and you can hear the chicks' beaks tapping against the sides of the brooder as they catch and eat bugs. Good!
On Wednesdays, we call it weigh-in Wednesday. I indiscriminately pick one bird out of the 50 that are there and bring him or her into the garage where I have our kitchen scale temporarily sitting on my workbench. As you can see, more feathers are coming in and the only real peach fuzz remaining is on the bird's head and neck.
The fat little bird doesn't quite know what to think about this, but he behaved himself and didn't hop off or poop on Tricia's scale.
At the end of week two, the bird weighed 1 pound 4 ounces or 20 oz. Last week the birds weighed 8 ounces. That's a weight gain of 12 oz in 7 days.
At the end of week two last year, the bird weighed 1 pound 2 ounces or 18 oz. So we're ahead of last year's birds by two ounces.
Next Wednesday, we'll convene again for the Wednesday weigh-in.
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