Campus pecking order

The chickens are taking over at CSUS!

Well, not yet. But Rock the rooster and Jewel the hen have certainly had a busy summer.

And, with no natural predators on campus except for dogs on the weekends, the chickens might give the campus a real lesson in overpopulation.

Or, as biology professor Marda West put it, "We could be up to our asses in chickens."

Last July, Jewel emerged from the ivy surrounding the education building followed by five new chicks. West couldn't be more pleased.

"I like to say that they have their dad's good looks and their mom's long legs," she said.

History professor Peggy Goodart has been feeding them grapes and chicken feed since this spring.

"I think that there are quite a few people on campus who feed them," she said.

Rock is a direct descendent of Ranger and Ruby, the first chickens who were abandoned at CSUS in 1996. Jewel, the hen, may actually be Rock's half sister.

State laws against such relationships aside, Rock and Jewel's new family have caused some concern.

"Once they begin to multiply, they're not so cute," said Goodart.

"I'd like to find them a home on a farm somewhere," she said.

The campus chickens are generally considered to be under the wing of West and Jana Shober, a technician in the biology department. West and Shober recently took one of the chicks to Laguna Creek Veterinary Clinic to be treated for wounds inflicted by the other chicks.

The chick, dubbed "Chickie" by West, is recovering in the biology department and is expected to be released within the week.

Veterinarian Jugtar Purewal, a CSUS graduate, provides free medical care at the clinic. Medicine is paid for out of the "Critter Fund," which is maintained by the biology department to cover expenses for the care of campus animals.

According to clinic staffer Joanne Watson, Rock and Jewel are thought to be a semi-wild species of chicken native to Mexico and South America.

West thinks they were once bred for cock fighting, but, as anyone who has ever seen Rock knows, he's a lover, not a fighter.

Anyone interested in providing a good home for the chickens should call West at 278-6244 and be ready to hustle.

"Those chickens are very fast," said Watson.