The New Chick Experience

For us, bringing new chicks into our flock is a treasured adventure that begins long before the little balls of fluff ever hatch.

The process starts with evaluating the age, health, and dynamics of our current flock. We take very good care of our girls and always hope they will live forever. As chickens age, however, egg production naturally slows or stops altogether. That does not mean the end of life at Verdigris Market Garden — our girls are pets first, with the added benefit of fresh eggs.

Our flock enjoys an organic diet supplemented with fresh greens, herbs, weeds, fruits, and healthy treats. We also choose not to use supplemental lighting to force egg production during winter months. We believe our girls deserve their natural seasonal rest periods as well.

We strive to create an environment where our chickens can live comfortably and safely throughout their entire lives. Several members of our flock are between five and ten years old, while others are around three years old — the point when egg production typically begins to decline more noticeably. To maintain a healthy and balanced flock, we usually introduce new chickens every two years.

Last summer, we began building a new chicken coop and enclosure designed to be spacious, durable, and environmentally conscious. More than 70% of the materials used were reclaimed or repurposed, with many diverted directly from the waste stream. You can follow the progress of the build, along with the eventual move into the new coop, on our YouTube channel.

Once we assess the flock, we determine how many new chicks we would like to introduce, along with the breeds, temperaments, and egg colors we want to curate. In November of last year, we finalized our selections from our favorite breeder, Meyer Hatchery in Polk, Ohio — a women-owned hatchery that has consistently provided us with some of the healthiest and happiest chickens we have ever raised. The care and attention the Meyer team gives both their animals and customers is truly exceptional.

This year’s cohort includes a beautiful mix of green, blue, speckled, and dark chocolate brown egg layers — all wonderful additions to a backyard flock.

Once our order was placed, we scheduled our pickup date. We personally collect our chicks rather than having them shipped, which allows us to ensure they arrive home as calmly and safely as possible.

When pickup day finally arrived, I prepared the brooder — essentially the nursery for baby chicks — in a large modified storage tote on our sun porch. The setup included fresh aspen bedding, organic chick feed, fresh water, a reptile-style temperature gauge, and a plate heater for warmth. We only use heat lamps as supplemental heat when absolutely necessary.

A day spent in Ohio’s Amish country is always a treat. We visited Lehman’s, enjoyed lunch at Mrs. Yoder’s Kitchen, and spent time sightseeing before heading to the hatchery that afternoon to collect our tiny bits of fluff.

Once home, the girls were gently settled into their brooder. Each day afterward, we handled the chicks to help them become accustomed to human interaction — something that makes future handling, transportation, and medical care significantly easier. Daily care also included refreshing bedding, food, and water.

As the chicks settled into their new world and began to grow, they quickly became a constant source of entertainment for both us and our cats. You can follow their weekly growth and adventures on our YouTube channel.

Eventually, the girls transformed from tiny fluff balls into proper little dinosaurs and rapidly outgrew their brooder. To give them more space and begin preparing them for outdoor life, we decided to move them into our old chicken coop at the garden as a temporary grow-out space.

This intermediate coop provides a safe environment where the chicks can continue developing feathers, strength, and confidence before eventually joining our much larger and older adult flock between 12 and 15 weeks of age.

The older coop needed a bit of reinforcement before it could safely house the girls, so I spent some time waterproofing and making temporary modifications to extend its usefulness.

Once prepared, we transported the chicks to the garden in their brooder and settled them into the coop with fresh bedding, food, and water.

For the first two days, we kept the door to the outdoor run closed so the girls could learn that the coop itself was their safe resting place. It also happened to rain heavily during those first couple of days, which made the slower transition even more appropriate.

Since then, we have opened the run daily and allowed the chicks to explore at their own pace. After several days, we moved their food and water into the outdoor run to gently encourage exploration and activity. Their care has now become part of our daily garden routine — refreshing food and water, tidying the coop, and providing fresh greens, herbs, fruit, and supplemental treats.

In the coming weeks, we look forward to slowly introducing this young cohort to the older girls. Flock integration is always a gradual and carefully supervised process to ensure that everyone remains safe and stress is minimized during the transition.

Raising chickens is always a learning experience, but it is also one of the most rewarding parts of life at Verdigris Market Garden.

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