If you saw the post about Pepper going broody, you have probably been waiting for this update. And if you’re on YT, you may have already seen this short and know there are new baby chicks.

But what you don’t know is the how and why, and what happened with Pepper’s eggs.

First, I’ve got to say: Pepper did an amazing job sitting on her eggs. Sometimes things just don’t work out the way we hope, and this was one of those instances. Long and sad story short: 2 of the eggs did hatch, but the chicks did not make it, and 2 eggs did not hatch.

The first egg to hatch must have hatched early: the chick had not finished absorbing the yolk sac, which is not a good sign. I was not surprised it did not make it through the night. The second seemed healthy and active at first check, so I’m not sure if it got squished or hadn’t finished absorbing the yolk sac, because it did not make it either + showed signs of yolk goo. However, it was under Pepper long enough to break the broody: the sound of chicks chirping and peeping under the hen is her sign to stop sitting.

After tiny funerals and the removal of defunct eggs, Mr told me if I cleaned up the brooder box, he’d take me to buy chicks. We toyed with the idea of slipping chicks under Pepper, in hopes of her adopting them, but …. the broody broke, and Pepper is no longer in Momma Hen mode. Which means new babies have to start inside and be integrated into the flock once they’re bigger.

And so, we officially have 6 baby hen chicks in the living room! They are super adorable and already have oodles of personality – which should be fun when it’s time to introduce everyone.

The first night we went to Tractor Supply, they were completely sold out of chicks. Happily, when we asked, they said a new shipment was coming the next morning: I got first pick of the super-fresh chicks! There was no way of knowing what breeds would be coming, but I had a list of hopeful-potentials in my mind. The top priority: calm, friendly chickens able to handle the weather.

Friends, I got extremely lucky.

The minimum chick purchase was 6 {which Mr suggested I get in the first place}, so I picked:

• 2 Barred Plymouth Rock
• 2 Speckled Sussex
• 2 Sapphire Gem

While I won’t get my rainbow of eggs {yet!}, these are all supposed to be cold+heat hardy, excellent foragers, and friendly birds. Plus they’re beautiful, which is always a win, and considered “medium” sized when full-grown.

Last year, all the chickens were given P names, and since it was going to be a while before I learned who was a hen versus rooster, I opted for neutral names. This year, the benefit of buying chicks is there’s a 90% likelihood they were sexed correctly, and I do indeed have 6 hens. We also decided to use H for all the names, in tribute to the cousin who has helped so much with the chickens.

I debated assigning names to the chickies, but then Mr suggested putting all my potential names in a teacup and drawing them out. The idea was to get a cute video of the naming “ceremony,” but only one chick behaved. All the others were too interested in cuddling, climbing up my arm, or attempting to fly! Needless to say, the resulting footage is hilarious, and I may have to compile a “blooper reel”.

Clearly it was adorable chaos trying to get that video, and the chickies are not afraid to chirp their thoughts. Loudly. Let’s take a closer look at the ladies of H class, shall we?

These fluffy babies are growing so fast, and have so much personality. The 2 Speckled Sussex, Helga and Hilda {it was random draw, by Mr, I promise!} are a pair of mischievous chipmunks. Meanwhile Harriet and Heidi just want to cuddle, which I am more than happy to oblige. And they are all discovering their wings, and testing them out!

I’m so excited to have baby chicks again {even if I am already wondering what in the world I’ll do with the potential of 6+ eggs a day}, and anticipate a lot of cute pictures and videos. And I cannot wait to see how they grow up – I have a feeling they will be gorgeous.