Free Range

"I take time to smell the flowers!"

"Did you hear the one about the chicken that crossed the road?"

"I know there's a bug in here somewhere."

"I am sooo pretty, and I know it."

The chicks are approaching six weeks of age, and for the last week or so we've been letting them out of their pen for thirty minutes of supervised exploring. We stay with them to keep them safe from predators. Usually I sit in the grass and one or another will come to perch on me for a few minutes before setting off on a bug finding expedition. They are so fun to watch...much better than tv! They are both cautious and curious, goofy and gorgeous. They still do the chest bumping confrontation thing occasionally. When I hear the term "pecking order" I think of a sneek attack with claws or beak from behind, but with these kids it's a quick frontal bump like a jump shot, and one quickly backs off. They know how to fight fair and they don't hold a grudge. There are lessons to be learned here.

They are so happy to be out in the world doing chicken things like scratching in the dirt, tasting various plants, and taking dust baths. They crowd the pen door excitedly whenever one of walks by. When we open the door they run out and immediately become airborne, flying in short bursts like little whirling dervishes, before quickly settling in to an orderly exploration.

When it's time to get them back in the pen, we open the door and two or three will go in on their own. The remaining chicks are either herded in, or scooped up and put in. There is always one though, that plays hard to get. I'm not sure that this is the same girl each time (they do all look alike) or whether they take turns. Getting the last girl in is a two or three person ordeal while we rotate between trying to maneuver her home while one person stays by the door; holding it closed to keep the rest in, waiting to open it for the latecomer, or trying to corner and scoop her up. It's a 10-15 minute chase around the pen.

I think they're having fun with us.