Our chicken adoption experiment is proving to be much more than a success. It’s been a joy!
Our chicken, Nix, was broody and so sad without hatching her eggs that we got her some chicks from our local farmer’s market, and she took to them right away. They loved her instantly and they became the sweetest little family!
Right away, Nix would sit with them while eating and let the chicks eat the crumbs off of her beak. She showed them how to eat ants and drink water.
She was a perfect mother, watching over her chicks and protecting them from the other birds.
Once the chicks were about 6 or 8 weeks old, they were bigger, more independent, and loved exploring on their own. It was right around this period that Nix started walking away and stopped nesting with them entirely. Now, she likes to check on them, but she is done being a mommy and back to her usual self.
She’s raised her babies, and that’s that.
My family and I weren’t sure if she’d keep brooding and want more babies, but all signs indicate that she just wanted her own babies, and now that they’re big enough to take care of themselves, she is fulfilled.
It’s been quite a journey. We named the chicks Gold Stripe and Pee Wee, and they still aren’t fully grown, but they have so much life in them.
Gold Stripe is an adventurer. She loves seeking new places and finding small gaps in the fence to escape our vast chicken run. Her sister Pee Wee follows her everywhere but is more timid. She likes to be held and nap in our hands.
I highly recommend raising backyard chickens. They’re incredibly wonderful.
Jessica Marie Baumgartner 
A story that combines affectionate observation, a love of animals, and a subtle reflection on motherhood and detachment.