Ever wondered how chickens take a bath? Yesterday we let the ladies out to roam around our place, and a group of them made a beeline for the dry spot beneath the eaves of the house. I figured there must have been something really exciting going on over there to compete with all the bugs and tender little weeds out in the field, so I went over to check it out. They all lined up like they ...
Chickens
Look Ma! It’s a Double-Yolker!
To my utter amazement this past week, one of our hens layed this! Now, I've seen plenty of double-yolkers in my day, but this one was downright HUGE. Note how much larger it is than this other egg, and my son's hand! And it cooked up very nicely too. Nothing like a fried egg to start the day out right. ...
Meet the Peeps!
There are many paths to happiness in this wide world of ours, but right here and now, happiness is holding a baby chick. This week we brought home nine more balls of fluff. One Buff Orpington, two Bantam Frizzles, three Bantam Cochins, and three Bantam Silkies were added to our chicken menagerie on Thursday. One of my favorite things about bantam chicks is how they seem to be even tinier ...
The Peep Show!
Guess who just arrived at the feed store? Our first two chicks of the season! These Americaunas will be joined by more little friends on Wednesday. They are settled in very nicely to the brooder box my husband built this weekend out of salvaged pallets and extra wood scraps we had around our place. I'm looking forward to two more green eggs a day in our basket this fall! ...
Blackbeard the Pirate
Ahoy! This fearsome looking, swashbuckling rooster answers to the name of Blackbeard the Pirate. Don't be fooled by his short stature, he's a scallywag for sure. Arrrrrrrrr! ...
The Natural History of the Chicken
For a family movie night this weekend, we watched a PBS documentary by Mark Lewis called "The Natural History of the Chicken." My son, who is a chicken person through and through, was absolutely thrilled about this, and I was intrigued, expecting a look back at chickens throughout history. What we saw was very different from our expectations, but far more entertaining. The first ...
He Goes By Paul Bunyan
This last spring, we ended up with an enormous mystery chicken. The "Buff Orpington pullet" chick I picked up with all the other assorted breeds quickly began to look very unlike a Buff Orpington. In fact, with it's black and white plumage, this chicken looked more and more like some strange ptarmigan or wild fowl of the tundra. It also grew bigger and bigger than all the other chickens every day. ...
With a Little Help From my Friends
Faced with the daunting task of weeding our vegetable garden and field, we decided to call in the chickens for support! My husband built a mini chicken tractor, just the right size for a bantam or two, that fits in between the garden rows. They get a meal of some nice tender green grass and weeds, and we get weed removal. It's good for everyone!. We put one chicken out there at a time for a ...
Urban Chicken Revolution! A Mountain Hearth Tour De Coops
Have you always wanted chickens? Do you live in town and pine away for country life so you can get a few hens and produce your own farm fresh eggs? It may come as a surprise to some of you to hear that YOU CAN! An urban chicken revolution is sweeping across the nation, and city folks all over the place are gathering farm fresh eggs right in their own backyard. Chicken lovers tend to flock ...
Free Range
A while back, my kids were helping to make signs for carrying in a parade. The theme was based around "I Dream of Jeannie", and we were all making signs that said "I Dream of ......" My son's signs all said "I Dream of Happy Chickens." That says it all right there. Chicken happiness is a big priority in our home. Over the past week, the chicks were really ready to go outside ...