Right now, they're living under a heat lamp in the basement; we can't put them outside, even though it's been quite warm this year, but they would get eaten up in a minute by the hawk, I fear. The grown hens might also peck at them (actually, I'm sure of it). We'll have to introduce them gradually. We'll see who ends up being "alpha" and taking over the entire flock once we throw in this new mix in a month or so. Sort of like "Survivor" for chickens. "All right, everybody, there are new players and you're going to have to switch teams!" Yeah, always throwing a wrench into things at Just Laid Farms. Keeps them on their toes....all eight of them. Yes, for the uninitiated, all birds have four toes on each foot, with the exception of some chicken breeds (non-bearded Silkie banties, for instance and Favorelles, among a few others, have five). For the anatomy minded thinkers among us, the following is a nice diagram from the University of Illinois extension website:
Can you picture these digits on
a giant bird in the Land of the Dinosaurs?
