Chickens move outside

As you can see, by the title of this post, the chicks have turned into chickens.
I haven't posted for a while, they have been outside for about 4 weeks. They grew so fast that every day we thought they grew another 3 inches. Another "UP" in life =).

They are 8 weeks old and they should start to lay eggs when they are 5-6 months old.

The chicken in the middle of the box at the top of the picture is Cluckles. She is so good and has never pecked or pooped on me. The others are getting a little aggressive.

I know that we have a rooster. At first it was just a guess, just by his behavior, but now we are certain. And with him, we wont have to buy any more chicks from the hatchery. YAY! I can see how they made the mistake. WARNING: This may be unsuitable for the weak stomach and children. =) They way they tell the gender of the chicks is by squeezing their poop out then sticking a finger in the vent (A.K.A. bum hole) to feel if there is a bump for a boy or not for a girl. They do this process so fast that it would be easy to mess up.

Since I have 6 of the Rhode Island Whites and they all look alike it sometimes can be hard to tell which one is Cluckles. So, a week ago we put a leg band to tell that it is her. Today it got too tight, so Michael brought her into the workshop, cut it off, and I placed a red rubber band on her leg. She liked it, did not peck at it, but stared. When I opened the gate to put her back all of the other chickens rushed out. Trying not to hurt Cluckles, I pushed them back in and placed her in front of the food.

I'm training Cluckles to do some tricks. I can get her attention by saying her name and she perches on my arm when I say. "Good Cluckles"
See you next time.