Click on any of the images in this blog to see larger versions...
Well, the chicks are starting to name themselves. Their personalities are really showing through, as well as some individual physical characteristics.
This is Lemon Head. The photo to the right is Not Lemon Head. Lemon Head and Not Lemon Head are the 2 Salmon Faverolles. We think they are both female because of the salmon colored wing feathers. Lemon Head is the one with the more pronounced sprinkles on his back. You can see their sprinkles in the picture below...
Here you can see Clarice to the left. She is the tamest one so far. We do not know what kind she is (I am hoping for a Golden Laced Wyandotte, but I just don't know.) But her personality is great! A real "people chicken" and fairly sweet with the other birds. We don't know if she is a hen or a rooster but her disposition makes us think she is a little girl...
We call the one above Lazarus because when we first got the chicks this one got quite a chill and we did not expect him (or her) to make it through the night. But here it is 2 weeks later and Lazarus is still with us. I think it might be a White Laced Red Cornish Game, but not sure...
The one to the right here is called King Tut. We believe he is an Egyptian Fayoumi. We have 3 of them, and right now I cannot tell them apart so for all intents and purposes I guess they are all called King Tut! I think he is a rooster because he is very aggressive with the rest of the chickens, but I think this is part of the temperament of this breed. They are gorgeous chicks with this lovely red coat. But they are very skittish and don't really like to be messed with. If they are all 3 roosters we will have a problem...
Quasimodo is the one above. He (or she - who knows?) is the one who had a mysterious lump before. I am pretty sure he is a Dominique. We have about 5-6 Dominiques, I think... He started developing adult plumage before any of the others, yet he is still one of the smallest. He is semi-tame and will tolerate a little petting, but not much. He looks really awkward with his feathers and down. The rest are starting to catch up with him in terms of plumage.
The one to the left is Pedro, the Araucana (I think) and the one to the right is Owl Face, also an Araucana (maybe.) Either that or one is an Araucana and one is a Phoenix. I really hope I have a male Phoenix, but I don't think I was that lucky this time. I think Pedro is a rooster because he is very aggressive toward the other birds, but if he starts laying eggs in a few weeks I will know I had that one wrong!
But now, let's talk about an aggressive bird! I have saved the best (!) for last - Godzilla!
It is almost impossible to get a decent picture of him since he likes t run the other way when I get near... He knows he is in trouble, I am sure of it! He, and I am sure it is a HE, is a bully. And he is still bigger than the others, although several are reaching his size now. He earned the name Godzilla because he will terrorize the others. I have watched him randomly walk past a group of chicks minding their own business, and suddenly he will run up and peck one in the face and stare it down. He seems to say, "Go ahead, Punk, make my day!" One of his best tricks (and I am sure no real thought goes into it on his part, but I am not truly convinced it isn't calculated...) is to step on a group of sleeping chicks! And since his dinosaur roots are so obvious in his giant scaly feet, the only name for his was Godzilla! He is a Dominique rooster, I believe. But if he keeps it up his name will be Dinner!
