Chick Update

At the one week marker of having the chicks in our home, we lost the smallish one. My aunt had come over to meet 'em and announced that Pip Squeak didn't look like she was doing too well and sure enough when I got up the next morning she was stiff. We'd tried to do some research and do what we could to help her, but she must have been too far gone by the time we noticed. Sad day for Pip Squeak, but luckily the other two seem to have really bonded and are thriving for now. The other plus side is that losing Pip Squeak got hub on board a bit more and he's been a fabulous help throughout the craziness of the last week. So here are the two survivors, pecking away at the area rug in the office:

 Hub built a perch and they've come to absolutely love it! They've also been upgraded to our mid-size dog kennel so they have even more room when they're "cooped up." :)

Major has stopped caring as much about the chicks. He still hangs out in "their" room most of the time but he's back to his regular lazy self.

It took Lady a week to even notice the chicks since she's in the house much less than any of the other animals and really only ventures into a few rooms in the house. She is the huntress and is fascinating by these chirping creatures that are behind bars. ;)

And ironically Anna continues to LOVE them. If they squawk and she's across the house, she comes running to investigate. If their cage is open she wants to be right there to keep watch and "help." First thing in the morning she runs to make sure they're still there and doing alright. We're continuing to build their relationship as we hope it will transfer outdoors--in case there start to be any critter issues, hopefully Anna will protect them.

We also are trying to make sure that we take them out of the dog kennel and give them time to run around free every day. Last week we alternating evenings running around in the office with sunny afternoons outside. Additionally, I introduced them to our raised beds a few days ago and they absolutely love them. They're fluffing their feathers and burrowing, plus are able to get some good grit from the dirt, etc. It's highly entertaining to watch and the dogs are constantly whining at the injustice of the chicks getting to be in the raised beds even though the dogs aren't allowed. ;)

To say the peepers are "cheep" entertainment is hardly even giving them full justice. ;)