I Now Know What I Would Write on Their Birth Certificates...

We've had chickens for a little over three months now, and it has taken this long for us to settle on names.  We thought about giving them old names (some of them family names, some of them just for fun).  None of those names stuck.  Now that I've spent a ton of time socializing with the ladies, I feel like I know their personalities well enough to assign them names that will hold true.

So, here they are:

The Ameraucanas

Stevie Martin (strikingly silver)

Paulie Newman (dull silver)
Roberta Redford (red)

Alex Baldwin (lighter red)

The Golden Laced Wyandottes

Rahmona Emanuel

Nancy Pelosi

Denise Kucinich

The Black Australorps

Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire Chapters One-Eleven

Please excuse the blurriness.  The girls are always in motion and difficult to photograph.


Roberta Redford [check out that mohawk!]

Nancy Pelosi

Denise Kucinich

Rahmona Emanuel

Paulie Newman

Stevie Martin


Precious...


Alex Baldwin

I can easily distinguish between all of the Golden Laced Wyandottes and Ameraucanas.  They all have different personalities and they are physically unique.  However, I must admit that I have found it impossible to keep track of which Australorp is which.  So, I simply call each one of them "Precious." Together, they are Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" Chapters One - Eleven.  It works.

Foreground: Rahmona Emanuel, midground: Stevie Martin, background: Preciouses

Stevie Martin with Rahmona Emanuel

Please don't tell the girls, but I do have my favorites.  Actually, I have one favorite in particular, and I think the feeling is mutual.  Stevie Martin LOVES me, and I have fallen in love with her.   While all the others are completely focused on the treat of the day during happy hour, Stevie sticks right by my side.  She's always the first to run up to me, and she eats out of my hand very gently.  Nancy and some of the Preciouses have warmed up to me enough to eat out of my hand, but all of them pinch my skin with their beaks.

Rahmona Emanuel, Alex Baldwin, and Roberta Redford

Stevie Martin, Rahmona Emanuel, and Alex Baldwin

Preciouses, Roberta Redford, and Alex Baldwin

As far as the Ameraucanas go, Paulie is the least gregarious.  She pretty much keeps to herself, but she's gentle and somewhat curious.  All of the Wyandottes are sweet and outgoing.  The Australorps are more interested in one another than they are in me.  They have a tight-knit family group.  The Australorps roost together, and the Wyandottes and Ameraucanas roost on the opposite side of the coop.  It seems that they've found a system that works for them, and they all know to play by the rules.  They have their cliques, but they also know how to share space and resources.

I always knew that I wanted several chickens, but I had no idea that I could become so attached to each and every one of them.  They're not even giving us eggs yet, and they've already paid us back for all of our efforts.  The entertainment, affection, and relaxation they bring to the farm is priceless.