And then there were 26

We lost Chirpy last night. Everything was status quo last night before bed; still sleepy, but I reminded him where his food was and he ate with enthusiasm. Went I went out earlier today, he had died. We buried him under the pine tree that gave our farm its name; this was both practical (we don't want to attract predators) and sappy (I wanted something I could remember him by).

I'm a little rattled, but we knew there was a strong possibility that Chirpy wouldn't make it. We did what we could, between the semi-isolation unit and the medicated water. But, as you know, Chirpy was a weak chick from the start (with his umbilical problems). Due to his required extra care, I kinda got a bit attached to the little guy; I knew it would be hard to slaughter him (plus with the need for medicated water, he was no longer anywhere near organic, and I had concerns about eating him), but I knew that I didn't want him to be part of a small reproducing flock (if we decide to take that route) because he'd pass on his problem-prone genes. In a way, I'm glad we didn't have to make that decision. But I also already miss the little fluffball.  He was the tamest of the chicks, by far.

Luckily, the other chicks continue to thrive.  I am considering trimming their flight feathers, as they are learning to run and launch themselves across the brooder.  One of these days, we'll go in to the barn and we'll have one (or four) outside of the brooder completely.  Yikes!  They're hilarious to watch; as they get bigger, they have started to challenge us as well, puffing up their chests and pecking at our fingers.  Little rascals.

In other news, I got a preemptive tetanus shot yesterday afternoon, and today I feel like I've been hit by a truck.  I'm achy, I'm lethargic, and I just want to sleep (but I can't because my back and shoulders and neck start to ache if I lay down for too long).  I'm really hoping I feel better tomorrow; I still need to get the chicken run/tractor built.  Today, I managed to: fix the hose, cutting out the part that Jordan ran over with the lawn tractor ("I thought I could make it... I guess not") and putting in hose ends; weed a bit of the garden (still only one carrot, and four cabbages.  Sigh.); add another two-way split to the hose connection at the house, so we can now run three hoses; make bread (in the breadmaker; cheating, maybe, but it's better and cheaper than store-bought bread); and cook supper (I know!  I'm shocked too!  But it was a one-pot meal that took less than 45 minutes from start to finish).

And now, I think I'm going to put the chicks to bed, and head to bed myself.  I'm wiped out, even after a great sleep on Thursday night.