Phoenix: One Tough Chick

phoenix is the larger chick in the middle

I placed the order for 50 little chicks and then waited....

And then finally on a Sunday afternoon I received the text message that they were in the mail.

The second the post office opened Monday morning I was on the phone letting them know chicks were on the way and I'd be happy to come pick them up. Can you imagine being the mail man/woman and having to drive around all day with screaming chicks in the truck.

Monday, no chicks.

Tuesday, no chicks.

Wednesday, there were chicks...

I got the call Wednesday and headed over to pick them up. However it was cold.  Insanely, unseasonably cold and the chicks shipped on Saturday. They were held up by bad weather and when I peeked in the box there was little movement.

The boxes the chicks come in are split 25 chicks on the left and 25 on the right. For certain I knew all 25 on the left side of the box were dead.  On the ride from the post office to the farm I cried. It was just sad.

Upon arriving home Bill, (my chicken mentor) and I sprung into action dipping beaks and trying to get them warm. However only 1 or 2 were sitting upright and the rest were alive but sprawled out. The brooder in the barn was too cold so I packed them back up and brought them to the house. More dipping of beaks in sugar water and trying to get them to eat. So out of 50 I had 6 remaining. And then 5, and 4 and 3 and then 2.

2 were still living Thursday. Around lunch time it became only 1.  And she was very much alive...and sassy too. I took the little body of her friend out and she started to cry.

So in a moment of desperation I called Agway to see if they were open since we were having a snow storm. They were open so I headed out passing a car who couldn't get up the hill by my house and a car that had gone off the road. I teetered along at 15 MPH because at that point I'd only had my new truck for a week or two.

At Agway I said "I need 1 chick."
Girl: You have to take at least 3.
Me: Ok, I'll take 3.
Girl: Well the minimum is really 6 so you can take 3 but I have to charge you for 6.
Me: Oh my gosh that's fine...I'm desperate!

So I headed home (again at 15 MPH) with 3 little yellow chicks.  I put them in with my lone survivor and after saying their chicken hello's and a few pecks they all snugged up with each other.

They napped. I had a beer. All was right in the world.

My lone survivor I named Phoenix since she basically did rise from the ashes. I mean to be the only survivor of 50 is pretty crazy odds. As for the other 3...they are just known as the 3 musketeers.

My second batch of chicks which were sent to replace the ones that didn't make it arrived very opinionated and very much alive.  When the younger chicks turned 2 weeks old I introduced Phoenix and the 3 Muskateers to them.  They'll be in the brooder for a few more weeks and then it's off to join the other ladies.