Kimberly's Newest Seven

Kimberly instructs her newest brood in a little-used stall

Yesterday afternoon when I was beside the boys' side of the home pasture I noticed that that pert hen Miss Kimberly had--whaddya know--more new chicks in tow. That gal is on a roll, it seems. I counted seven chicks as they scuttled along the edges of the home pasture fence, weaving about the Nubian bucklings' feet, and thought back to when I had collected another eight or ten from Kimberly's stash in the barn to give to our farm sitter earlier in the month.

I wondered if he had eaten those eggs yet and hoped that they'd been full of yolk and white when he'd cracked them--although it seems as if it was only very recently that we took off for an overnight trip. Having seen half-hatched eggs, I can imagine how disappointing it might be to crack open an egg in search of breakfast only to encounter a partially-formed chick inside. Yuck.

Kimberly shepherds her brood along the fence-line; Maguire is unfazed.

Kimberly's new brood followed her smartly about the pasture. Maguire's legs were of no interest to the hen or her chicks. Similarly, he saw little of interest around them.

Samuel and Maguire have been sequestered into the alpaca boys' pasture along with the large milking does for the time being. They've lost weight over the past couple of weeks, so I wormed them and put them where they could again nurse if they so chose. Marcie's milk is so healing, and their mom's milk--that would be Leslie's--will help them as well. Perhaps in the morning I'll let the Nubians and Marcie out to vacuum up the freshly-fallen leaves in the back acres up here.

In the meantime, I wonder how long Kimberly will continue hatching out chicks. I would think she would back off as the weather turns cool; then again, the thermometer registered 98 degrees F when I stepped outside in Nashville this afternoon.

Welcome little chickadees!