Don't Count Your Chickens After They Hatch

Well, I was super excited the other day when I found 2 mamas walking around with babies - 9 in total!

For some reason these Bantum baby chicks are just really fragile. One day I went out and Mama had 5 babies! 1 was a naked neck (my rooster is a naked neck), but the other 4 babies looked like Mama. I was super excited to watch the grow. This mama had just raised 2 babies and they are now teenagers hanging out with the other chickens.

A couple of days later, another mama came up with babies! I was totally surprised as I thought the babies had escaped the coop somehow. Then I realized it was a different mama and babies! She had 2 naked neck babies and 2 Bantum babies. Wahoo! 9 new Bantums for us!

I realized the other day that my brown Bantum disappeared recently. Now I have 2 adult females, 2 teenagers, and a handful of chicks. I was hopeful we could get a nice little flock going. They're wild, so they like to lay eggs and sleep outside the coop (even though they've started realizing inside the coop is much better). We have opossums and other animals that roam at night, so they aren't safe outside of the coop!

As the days went on, I realized chicks were disappearing. Were the mamas leaving them out in the rain and they were getting too cold? Were they too weak? What was the deal? I don't really know, but now I'm down to 2 chicks as of this morning. One is a naked neck and one is a regular Bantum. I'm hopeful the good chicken mama can get them far enough along that they can survive!

They're the tiniest little chicks, but they're tough. I've seen them in there fighting for food, telling Mama when other chickens beat up on them, and seeking refuge under Mama's feathers. It isn't super rainy right now, but it does feel chilly, especially in the morning. I hope these last 2 make it!