Spring is really springing now! Our first batch of meat chicks are getting close to leaving their brooder. It's hard to believe how time is flying! Our tank brooders in the tack room have our first two hatches of ducklings, and our first hatch of Rhode Island Reds. The brooders in the house have freshly hatched ducklings, and more Rhode Island Reds are getting ready to hatch today.
Last but not least, or first batch of heritage turkeys have arrived! These guys will be the first round of re-starting our turkey flock on the farm. Most of the toms will be for Thanksgiving, but most of the ladies will get to stay to hatch my own turkeys for next year.
We try to be self-sustaining here on the farm. This is our third year hatching our own Rhode Island Reds. I hatch new ones each year to replace birds we have lost to predators, as well as to replace hens that age out of laying eggs. We haven't hit that just yet, as my flock is relatively new, but we'll have some this year. So I have a lot of birds to hatch to grow the flock some, and replace the older ladies.
The ducklings, well, we've been selling most of those! The ones that don't sell will stay here at the farm. The boys will end up in freezer camp, but such is the future of male birds on the farm. Like all of our meat birds, they will have a great life outside until then.