Sammie is the Quarantine Baby of the family. She was picked up as a stray on the last day before lockdowns began in March 2020 and has never
known a world where Mom and Dad had to (gasp) leave for work every day. Sammie's favorite spot is acting as lumbar support in Mom's office chair while she works from home.
<p>We purchased our very first batch of baby chicks from Little Birdie Hatchery in Wake Forest, NC in April 2021. As beginners, we chose to start with Rhode Island Reds, Buff Orpingtons, and Easter Eggers. When we saw that they also had straight run white Silkies, we couldn't resist grabbing two just for fun. The birds from this generation are all named after cheeses. We try our best to "love our flock, not individual birds," but there are a few standouts who won our hearts as they were growing out in our guest bathtub.</p>
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<img src="style/img/bio/Feta.jpg" alt="Feta"/>
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<h1>Feta</h1>
<h2>Silkie Rooster</h2>
<p>We just knew Feta would be a rooster as soon as we brought him and his sister Mozzarella home after adding them to our order on a whim. He was noisy and bossy as a chick, and he was always the last to be caught whenever we needed to move the group. He grew up to be a very handsome roo who is very attentive to his hens, and he always wins his frequent wins crow-offs with the neighbor's roo.</p>
<p>Mozz is our only Silkie hen and has a special place in our hearts here at Dundo Farms. Her tiny eggs are adorable next to her sisters' larger output, and she always chooses to lay in the weirdest spots on the coop floor. She goes broody pretty often, and we think she'll make a great mom one of these days! She's extremely hygenic and can frequently be found dust bathing. Her fluffy head and feet get hilariously muddy in the rain, but she's always back to her bright, clean white on the next dry day.</p>
<p>"Little Parm" is the smallest of the Buff Orpingtons in the flock and low in the pecking order. She was always the easiest to catch as a baby chick, and therefore bonded with Mom more than her sisters back the bathtub days. As a pullet she would perch on Mom's shoulder, and she's one of our friendliest hens and most willing to be picked up.</p>
<p>We noticed early on that one of the Easter Eggers had mostly black coloring, unlike her more golden sisters, and seemed to always hang out in a corner of the bathtub by herself. We dubbed her the "loner goth" of the group and named her Gorgonzola, the most goth name of the blue cheeses. Even as an adult, she can usually be found eating and foraging on her own away from the group and is often the last to roost for the night.</p>
<p>We picked up our second batch of baby chicks at Pittsboro Feed in February 2022. Looking to increase the diversity of the flock, we added: Salmon Faverolles, Gold Wyandottes, Partridge Rocks, Blue Australorps, and Blue Stars. This time around we have a brooder set up in nursery section of the coop where they will grow up in close proximity to their cheesy aunts. Their naming scheme is pending review.</p>