Meet Our Backyard Chickens
As I am typing this, I’m sitting in our family room looking out into the backyard and watching our chickens hanging out in their chicken run. It’s a wonderful way to start the day!
When we moved to the country, Dennis immediately started talking about all of the animals he wanted. Chickens, goats, llamas, emus. Thankfully, he wasn’t interested in horses or cows! I thought maybe chickens would be a reasonable place to start but I needed some time.
A few months after we moved to the country, he found a cool custom-built chicken coop on Craigslist. It was maybe the last thing we really needed but he convinced me by saying it was so cool and unique that if we passed it up, we may not be able to find something similar once we are ready for chickens. So, he bought the coop and it sat in our backyard almost a year before having any inhabitants.
Once we decided it was time to start our chicken adventure, we also purchased a nice chicken run to attach to the coop so our little ladies can roam around outside safely. The link to that chick run kit is at the end of this post.
On April 21, we became he proud and excited owners of seven 8-week-old pullets. Pullets are young hens that are not mature enough to lay eggs. Usually, they start laying around 18-20 weeks. So currently, we have about 2 more months before we will see eggs.
I was surprised how quickly their little personalities became apparent and we named them all within a few days. There will no doubt be many more chicken posts in the future but I thought I’d start by introducing our seven sweet little ladies.
Meet Brave:
She was the first one we named. When we brought them home and put them into their chicken run, they were a little unsure of their new surroundings. Brave was the most curious and outgoing. She immediately started checking things out on her own and even let us pick her up and hold her. Her feathers are also a beautiful red color and reminded us of the Disney character Brave.
Meet Lulu
Dennis named three of the chickens and Lulu was the first. He’s already trained her to act like a puppy! She comes running when he calls her name and she is very friendly.
Meet Lola
Dennis also named Lola. She and Lulu look very similar. They are Buff Orpingtons; a breed known to be friendly and docile. You can tell Lulu and Lola apart because Lola is larger and her feathers are darker than Lulu’s. Lola is also very aggressive when it comes to treats. She will jump up and peck at you. It’s pretty funny.
Meet Penelope (Cruz)
Penelope is the third chicken Dennis named. He named her because she is the most exotic and very beautiful. She has unique, green feet. She is also the smallest chicken in our flock and can sometimes be a bit of a bully, so we are keeping an eye on her. Bullying will not be tolerated in our coop!
Meet Karlie
Karlie was the second chicken I named. She is a Lavender Orpington and also one of the smaller chickens in our flock. She is so cute and fluffy and reminded me of a puff of fog. In San Francisco, somebody decided to name the city’s infamous fog “Karl”, so I thought Karlie would be an appropriate name for her. She is also one of the shyest in the flock but has recently started eating out of our hands. She’s not so comfortable being picked up yet.
Meet Punky
I named Punky because she has a feathered mohawk like a punk rocker. She has a very cool look and I’m not sure about her personality yet. She’s also more reserved but also seems friendly and I’ve observed her defending Karlie from Penelope a few times, so I think she’s a tough one. Her feathers are also beautiful. I’m looking forward to getting to know her better as she comes out of her shell.
Meet Rosie
Rosie is the largest chicken in our flock, and I’ve decided she’s taken on the “Mother Hen” role because she interacts well with the other ladies but will not interact with us. She’s the only one who won’t eat out of our hands (yet) and sometimes even runs and hides when we come into the chicken run. She also seems to be an over-thinker (if that’s even a thing with chickens). At night, she takes a long time to decide how to get up onto the roost. We know she is capable! Rosie is our shyest lady for sure but I think it’s just her nature.
So far, these chickens have really brought joy into our lives. We got them a week before we said goodbye to our dear Lucy Valentina, so not only have they been a new way for us to direct our attention but also a source of comfort. Every day we are learning about the best ways to make sure they have the best lives with us. I’m looking forward to sharing our adventures with them with you too!
Here the link to the NUGRIART Large Metal Chicken Coop kit we purchased: https://amzn.to/3K2els0
It was fairly easy to assemble and has worked out great so far.
**As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. If you buy something through the links on this website, I may earn an affiliate commission, at no cost to you. I only recommend products I use, love, and want to share with my audience.**
