Almost 3 weeks old,

in 2 days my little chicks will be 3 weeks old and today I made them a larger indoor area with an x-pen (thanks Cheri). I took their box outside and threw out all the old shavings and put fresh in there. now they have the box with the heatlamp and a snuggle safe disc for warmth, and and an approximately 6 x 8 "yard" to run around, the sandbox, a perch that is one foot up, a board on 2 x 4s and their branch. In between I give them some fresh hay, or some fresh grass or lettuce to entertain themselves with. The first picture shows the first two chicks emerging at the door when I opened it for them to come out into their new pen. On the second picture they all came out to investigate. This x-pen enclosure is a lot higher than the other one was, so they won't be able to get out anytime soon.

They have gotten quite used to me now and several of them are very eager to fly up on my hand or arm, even when it's a foot of the ground, especially Tobi keeps finding ways to get up on my hand or my arm. The 3rd picture shows them at the feeder, notice Sophie on the left, she is the biggest chick, huge feet. Tobi on the right has a much different body shape and is medium size, note the smaller feet.

Their little combs are growing now too. Goldie's is the most visible at the moment, and Bella who is the same breed of chicken as Goldie, a Golden Campine, is also just starting to show a hint of a comb.

Chickens are really entertaining birds, I could watch them all day. They are quite flighty, even when I have been exposing them to all kinds of novel things as well as the daily routines, they still don't like to be picked up, though some seem to get better about it. If one of them panics over something EVERYBODY is in a panic.

Tippi is checking me out here. She has been the slowest in participating in eating lettuce, taking food from me and trying new foods, she just started eating lettuce yesterday, when everybody else has been eating lettuce for about a week now. For a while I thought something was wrong with her and I thought maybe she won't make it, but it seems like she is just slower to grow.

Pearl, the little Delaware is also one that now likes to fly up on my arm when she thinks I have food for her.

Buffy, a Buff Orpington, and Tippi a Barred Leghorn.

The last one is Lucy, one of my Ameraucanas. She is getting very curious and flies up on my arm any chance she gets.