Library bringing the farm to you
A library is no place for a flock of grown chickens, and the young hatchlings will have homes waiting for them.
Watching new life emerge from an eggshell is an experience coming to three branches of the Tuscarawas County Library: Strasburg, Sugarcreek and Tuscarawas.
The chick-hatching event is set for Tuesday, April 11 when Ohio farmer Christa Hein from an organization called Bring the Farm to You will arrive with numerous eggs from common and rare chicken breeds. The shells are expected to start crumbling and cracking around April 26, when the chicks are loosely scheduled to begin to emerge.
Tusky branch manager Tabitha Johnson said she is already excited about the eggs arriving. “I think we will have plenty of visitors to see the eggs and chicks. It is exciting. Who doesn’t want to see new baby chicks hatching into the world?”
Strasburg branch supervisor Emily Crilley said if last year’s inaugural chick hatching is any guide, this year should make a lot of people happy.
“This is the second time we’ve done a chick hatching, and last year was a great success. Christa Hein is a farmer who travels a lot, setting up the eggs and explaining the process of how the eggs hatch and become chickens. She explains what to expect and what to watch out for,” Crilley said.
Crilley said the eggs will go into an incubator at the library, where they will remain snug and warm as the little chickens inside grow and develop, preparing for the day when they will hatch.
“Once our farmer brings the eggs and the incubator, you can come by and see them. She brings some breeds of chicks that are fairly common but also some rare breeds,” Crilley said.
Once the chicks have hatched, they will go into an enclosure where people can visit and even hold them.
“Last year,” Crilley said, ”the chicks started to emerge during a story time, so that was perfect.”
Crilley said her own experience with the chicks last year was a lot of fun. “We actually named them,” she said. “We gave them the names of literary characters. At one point I was alone in the library and let them out, and they followed me everywhere I went.”
A library is no place for a flock of grown chickens, and the young hatchlings will have homes waiting for them. “The chicks are desirable breeds so there are chicken farmers who are ready to take them to a new home,” Crilley said. “Their future is planned out so we won’t have any problems with getting them to new locations.”
In Sugarcreek the eggs will arrive at 3 p.m. Next, the Tusky branch will get its egg delivery at 4:30 p.m., followed by Strasburg at 6 p.m.
The county library’s partner in the chick-hatching vigil, Bring the Farm to You, is a Central Ohio company that brings the farming experience to any location. Founder Hein grew up on a farm with her immigrant parents, eventually managing her own farming operation while working as an educator. According to the company’s website, Bring the Farm to You packs up everything needed to bring live farm animals, hatching eggs, bees and other farm experiences to schools and other groups.
Call the Sugarcreek branch at 330-852-2813, the Tusky branch at 740-922-2748 and Strasburg at 330-878-5711.