New chicks on the block

In the Downey High School farm, Luis Zavala, 10, holds new eggs he picked up from the hen house and is ready to move them to their temporary homes to make room for the baby chickens on June 1. “It is easy to work with them since they are babies because they’re easier to handle,” Zavala stated.

Mehak Khan, Staff Writer
June 16, 2015

On Mon., June 1, Downey High School added several new baby chickens to its farm. The on-campus farm developed in 2011, which led to the creation of Farm Club in 2015 by Mr. Houts, Downey High School’s principal.

In the past years, new chicks were originally bought from a hatchery in Iowa, but until May they were sold out. The next option was to buy them from a feed store. On Apr. 22, 32 chicks came in to Downey High School and were kept in a brooder box in room Z-16. Six breeds were received on the first day, then on May 1 three additional breeds were added, and the last breed arrived on May 6.

Mr. Weisenburger, a CAHSEE math teacher, explains why it was necessary to replace the old chickens.

“Once the chickens come to a retirement age they stop laying eggs,” Weisenburger said. “We decided to replace them with all female chickens so that we can sell their eggs.”

To make room for the new chicks and keep them safe, some of the old chickens are kept in the back and others were butchered. The chicks will not be able to leave their chicken coop until they have fully adapted to the farm environment. Since they are still at a young age it is possible for them to be bullied by the older animals in the farm.

Briana Medina, 11, president of Farm Club, expresses her excitement for the new baby chickens.

“I’m really excited to see them grow up,” Medina said. “Once they are released from the coop, I will be observing them and feeding them to make sure they grow up healthy.”

The baby chickens that came before were bought as eggs which were kept in incubators in a science classroom. Those were not helpful because a couple of them did not end up hatching and some ended up being roosters.

Beda Murrieta, 11, vice president of Farm Club, explains why she likes being in farm club.

“I love taking care of the animals,” Murrieta said. “Not everyone can say they took care of baby chickens or goats during school.”

Farm club meets every Monday in room Z-16. Their main priority is to take care of the farm animals and maintain the farm. The chicks in the farm are currently situated in a chicken coop and will be residing there for one week.

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About the Contributors

Mehak Khan, Staff Writer

Joining The Downey Legend for the first time, 17-year-old writer, Mehak Khan feels that Newspaper has helped her improve her writing and allowed her to be more involved in school. She enjoys writing and hopes to bring in interesting stories to write about throughout the school year. Khan joined Newspaper during second semester to pursue her dreams of becoming a writer. “It felt welcoming as soon as I joined because the staff was so friendly and cooperative,” Khan said. “They helped me out and taught me everything I needed to know about writing stories.”

During her spare time, Khan likes to read, write, and help out in the community. She is also involved in a club on campus, KIWIN’S, which is purely devoted to community service. She also loves listening to music; her favorite band is Vampire Weekend and her favorite solo artist is Ed Sheeran. Although she is unsure about what she would like to major in, after high school she plans to attend UC Davis and travel the world. Once she narrows in on a certain goal, she will do whatever it takes to accomplish it.

Dayna Sanchez, Photographer

A part of The Downey Legend staff, sophomore Dayna Sanchez is a photographer. She enjoys taking photos and wants to capture the sports events around school. Sanchez enjoys taking photos to show off her skills. Being a photographer requires a creative eye and patience, which Sanchez has.

In her leisure time, Sanchez enjoys watching Netflix and taking photos of her three-shitzu mix digs named Esme, Darcy, and Charlie. “I need my daily dose of Netflix right before bed!” Sanchez stated. In five years, Sanchez sees herself in college becoming a pastry chef. Her goals for this school year are to participate more in the school events around campus. “This year I plan to be more involved in school”, Sanchez said. “I would possibly join the volleyball team, because my dad got me involved in the sport”. Sanchez still has years of high school ahead of her, but she hopes to become more positive and to stop looking at the negative side of situations that come her way.