Suki finds New Baby Chicks!

About three days after these chicks hatched, we had the first real rainstorm in months. Not the little sprinkles we’ve been getting off and on, but an actual downpour. The chickens all ran for cover.

I looked out the window to see Suki, the border collie who told us about the chicks in the first place, following one of them around the yard. She will often “help” the mother hens keep track of their babies by herding them. She thinks that’s what she’s doing, anyway. Really she’s just following them as they try to run away from her.

I went outside to see if I could find the mother, but got mobbed by all the rest of the birds asking for their dinner. Craig came out and rescued the chick and we looked all over for the mom. We couldn’t find her anywhere so we set up a tub in the house with some hay and a heat lamp, and the little chick spent the night in the house.

It got lonely and did a lot of very loud cheeping until I picked it up and snuggled with it. I had it cupped in my hand and the cat came and jumped on my lap. He sat there for at least ten minutes before he noticed I had somebody in my lap already. He sniffed the chick’s head for a minute and then got bored.

The next morning I saw the mother with the rest of her babies so my little foster chick was reunited with its family.