Well I did it, having viewed some juvenile Orpingtons on Saturday there was NO WAY I was going to resist! At 12 weeks, they are a bit smaller than I am used to, but I decided not to let that deter me.
“I’ll take these two,” I found myself blurting out. A friend was also collecting hers, so the little flock was minus 6 by the time we had both filled our cat carriers!
“I think they’re about the same size as Lily,” said hubby, obviously deluded by scale. They are not the same size as Lily (Cream Legbar), still less as Florence (Welsummer), known fondly as Fatty Florence. In fact, they are smaller than any chickens I have owned, since I have not grown on any youngsters before. They appear as Lilliputians next to Florence, who if unzipped, could fit at least 3 into her volume!
You can loosely describe their colouring as Chocolate – Bunty has got a buff head and neck, with more chestnut and milk chocolate colouring elsewhere, whilst Bertha is much more chocolatey all over, with speckling. At present she looks exactly like a large baby robin, and almost became Robyn because of this.
They are living in temporary accommodation in the base of our Ark but this is not satisfactory and a plan has been hatched – more on this soon!
Meantime, they have settled in well and love their food. They have been introduced to the deliciousness of dried mealworms and fall over each other to get to them, their loose derriere feathers flapping violently like little brown bustles, heads down, bloomers up, keen eyes seeking out the treats.
The only problem is I can’t stop going into the garden to check on them!
Perhaps a hencam would be a good idea after all…!