Easter is a favorite time of year, spring is on the way, great time to reflect on my faith and there are the goodies. Milk chocolate and those sugar filled marshmallow treats that I eat every year and wonder why. Of course I am eating one this year! Easter has the best of colors with pastels taking away the winter dirt covered snow. Easter colors just make you feel good. Fashion, eggs and candy all seem to bring forth the color of spring. Patterns at Easter are just plain fun, with socks, hats, children’s outfits, umbrellas, plants, as well as animals such as bunnies, lambs and chicks.
With spring coming there can be a mess with mud and melting snow but cherry blossoms and small flowers poking through the snow turn dirt covered snow into spring. Get out the
waterproof boots, because we all like to walk through puddle after puddle on the sidewalk.
The sounds are beginning to change with spring in the air. One sound that I love this time of year is the sound of the new, small animals. Watching the new calve run around in the sun, lambs looking so perfect white, bunnies that are so cute and cuddly and then of course the baby chicks at Murdock’s. The sound of baby chicks and children wide eyed looking at the chicks is just pure fun.
So why not a little discus
sion about chicks and chickens? Chicks become chickens, which are a domestic bird that cannot fly. The adult female is a hen and the adult make is a rooster. Chickens eat insects, worms, seeds, acorns grains, slugs, snails, and many other foods.
The chicken egg starts as an egg yolk inside a hen. The yolk is fertilized inside the hen. The egg travels through the hen’s system, turning and rolling forming rope-like strands that wrap around the yolk forming an egg. The eggshell is formed which is made of calcite, a form of calcium carbonate. It takes about 21 days for the development of a chick.
With spring coming there can be a mess with mud and melting snow but cherry blossoms and small flowers poking through the snow turn dirt covered snow into spring. Get out the
waterproof boots, because we all like to walk through puddle after puddle on the sidewalk.The sounds are beginning to change with spring in the air. One sound that I love this time of year is the sound of the new, small animals. Watching the new calve run around in the sun, lambs looking so perfect white, bunnies that are so cute and cuddly and then of course the baby chicks at Murdock’s. The sound of baby chicks and children wide eyed looking at the chicks is just pure fun.
So why not a little discus
sion about chicks and chickens? Chicks become chickens, which are a domestic bird that cannot fly. The adult female is a hen and the adult make is a rooster. Chickens eat insects, worms, seeds, acorns grains, slugs, snails, and many other foods.The chicken egg starts as an egg yolk inside a hen. The yolk is fertilized inside the hen. The egg travels through the hen’s system, turning and rolling forming rope-like strands that wrap around the yolk forming an egg. The eggshell is formed which is made of calcite, a form of calcium carbonate. It takes about 21 days for the development of a chick.
How To Care For A Chick -
• The first 60 days a chick can be kept sturdy cardboard box or a small animal cage
• Place wood shavings in the box or cage
• Keep box 90 -100 deg. for the first week, 100 watt bulb mounted above the cage works well
• Chick crumble food and a chick waterer
• Chicks like to be played with when young to get the use to being around people
• Section off an area in your yard where the chicks can explore, scratch, etc
• As the chicks begin to grow they will need an area of about 2-3 sq ft per chicken for a house and about 4-5 sq ft per chicken in an outside run
• Vegetables, bugs, cracked corn, milo and wheat are good food for chicks as they grow
• The first 60 days a chick can be kept sturdy cardboard box or a small animal cage
• Place wood shavings in the box or cage
• Keep box 90 -100 deg. for the first week, 100 watt bulb mounted above the cage works well
• Chick crumble food and a chick waterer
• Chicks like to be played with when young to get the use to being around people
• Section off an area in your yard where the chicks can explore, scratch, etc
• As the chicks begin to grow they will need an area of about 2-3 sq ft per chicken for a house and about 4-5 sq ft per chicken in an outside run
• Vegetables, bugs, cracked corn, milo and wheat are good food for chicks as they grow Bozeman allows chickens; refer to the City Ordinances on chickens, go to http://www.bozeman.net/Residents/Pets/Urban-Chicken for more information as well as application and guidelines for chickens in the City of Bozeman.
