meet the chook family

i'd like to introduce you to our little chooks. there's six girls all up- 4 light Sussex and the two little black Australorp-cross chicks. together they free range in our backyard during the day, dust bathing as they please and scratching up the soil to prepare the vegie beds for a new season of planting.

lighty. one of the original girls. and one of the friendliest too. she will happily let you pick her up for a cuddle. lighty is a dedicated layer too and always lets us know when an egg has been laid by way of loud squawking around 7 o'clock every morning.

henny-penny. she's always first to run up to the back step when she sees us outside and quickly follows us into the shed to reach her head in and peck the first grain from the feed bucket. she's only a small chook but is a big personality.

big hen. the adoptive mother of the two little chicks. she's not the friendliest of chooks but her mothering instincts are exceptional. she has stood her ground to protect the babies when they were little against the cats and will shoo away the other chooks if they get too close.

scruffy. the quirkiest of the brood. there's still some uncertainty as to if scruffy is a hen or a rooster. scruffy has long running legs and when vegie scraps are tossed outside she's the first to grab the best bits and run off from the others and eat it all up.

the chicks. two Australorp-cross chicks that are growing quickly. they are yet to be named but as their personalities develop I'm sure a fitting name will arrive. just last week they progressed from sleeping under mum's wings of a night to sitting on the perch with the rest of the chooks.

so there you have it, the chook family.
do you have chooks? do you find they each have there own little personality?

a little video of the chooks digging in the garden.