More chicken pictures!!!

I love to show off my girls. More chicken photos for your viewing pleasure.

Sweetie, looking as sweet as ever.

Honey, looking pretty serious.

The newly named, Bock Choy. Yes the Bok spelled Bock is intentional. My friend's son named her.

Jacoline named this girl Goldie. It fits her well.

Rachel showing off and the rest of the girls hanging out.

And Then They Grew Up

And with the magic of the internet, the baby chickens grew up fast! 

This chicken ended up sick. We had to put her down. She was really sweet though!

This girl is almost buff colored, but not quite. She needs a name!  Isn't she so pretty?

This is Honey. She is a super sweet and is always curious about what I am doing.

More curious chickens! She wanted to be right in the camera!

We finally got ourselves a bearded lady! I think we will call her Iris. I had an Iris before but she turned into a he. This one is for sure a female. She does like to talk though. She can be quite the chatter box!

Chicken Feet!! See those feathers on the legs and toes? We have a couple of feathered footed gals. They are really fun to watch run around!

The old hens. Atta Girl and Daisy still aren't huge fans of the younger folk.  But, they get along for the most part.

Lleulu the large white chicken,  I mean cat.  She doesn't know that she is a cat. I couldn't leave her out.

Chicken Babies!

Ok, I am way behind on keeping you up to date on the chickens. We hatched again this spring. I just found the pictures of them. So, here you go. Cute baby chickens!

I don't know if you remember or not, but Atta Girl, the Mama hatched. She loved her yellow fluffy chicks!

She didn't like the black ones or the red ones! They came to live inside for awhile with us.

 I mean, how can resist that face?

More chicken pictures to come!

The Adventures of a Sick Chick

Caution: this is about a sick chicken. It may contain graphic descriptions that may not be pleasant.

A few days ago I discovered that we had a sick chicken. I could tell that Atta Girl had a yucky poop covered behind, but didn't think much of it. That is until I saw that flies were following her around and seemed to be swarming her. Flies do not normally follow the chickens around. So, I caught her to get a good look at her. I could tell that her backside was not well, but being only me as Dave was at work, I couldn't get a good look at her.

Friday night two of my friends from college came over and I forced Hunter to help me get a good look at her. I caught her, he held her and I hosed her down and saw that her rear side was covered in maggots. My poor girl!!!  Rebecca got a photo of us in this process that is probably somewhere on the internet. I coated her rear in diotemaceous eath- it helps prevent larvae from hatching, but I now know doesn't do much once they are present. I called my friend Laura who is an avian biologist and waited to hear what she had to say. She said that we did well and to keep an eye on her.

Saturday morning came around and we were getting ready to go to Dave's cousin's wedding in Boone NC. When I went out to check on my girl she wouldn't leave the roost and her backside was absolutely covered in maggots. (Note that when I say backside, I don't mean her vent-where she poops from. I mean the area below her vent.) We went into action to try to do something for her. A fellow chicken owner said that flea and tick spray would kill the maggots. He also had a prescription for antibiotics for his chickens that he called a refill in for near me. He figured that she had an infection that drew the flies to her in the first place. Off I went to the store while Dave packed. When I returned, we got to work.

Dave and I hosed her off again then sprayed down her rear side with flea and tick spray. As the maggots fell off we could see just how many there were. My poor baby! Of course, I got no photos of this process, but it is probably for the better. After a couple of dousings she seemed pretty maggot free. I used a hair dryer to get her feathers nice and dry. We didn't want her body temperature to drop. We then poured hydrogen peroxide all over her backside to kill whatever we could. And then I dried her off again. Most of her feathers were missing from her backside. I felt like a really bad mom that should have done something sooner. But, I didn't know!! And I keep thinking if she wasn't a pet she would have been killed. We gave her antibiotics and Dave drove her over to my mom and dad's while I got ready to go out of town.

I think that I worried the whole time that we were gone. My mom assured me that she was resting and even a little bit feisty. We picked her up on Sunday afternoon. She seemed happy to see us. Ok, not happy, but we were familiar to her.

Dave fashioned her a cage in the dining room. She can't go outside for awhile. She needs to be in a clean environment while she is healing. Here she is getting adjusted to her new surroundings.

She has a roost, room for food and water and enough room to walk around a bit. She mostly sleeps on the roost. I know that she misses her sisters. You might also be wondering why put her in your kitchen/dining room? Chickens get lonely if they are isolated. Sure we could put her away in a room, but she wouldn't see us very much. Many times when they are isolated that is when they give up. Not Atta Girl!! She will be seeing a lot of us. And Lleulu.

Lleulu still thinks that it is all about her. Can't you tell? Look at the look that she is giving me! I got out the camera and she wanted her picture to be taken. Silly kitty. She isn't quite sure what to think about a chicken in the house. She knows them from when they were little and looks at them from the back door all of the time. This is a little different though!

What cute sisters!! I'll be keeping you posted on Atta Girls progress. And if you want to see a chicken in the kitchen that isn't in the freezer or a pan come on over!! We love company!

Happy Clucking Birthday!!

Happy Birthday Girls!!

I can hardly believe that my girls are a year old! It seems like yesterday they were just eggs. What an adventure they have taken us on and oh, how we love them! We hatched Atta Girl, Daisy, Edith and Jemima. They are such lovely ladies. Live it up today girls. It's all yours.

 

A Sad Day for Chickens and Roosters in Roswell

You all know that I have chickens. I love my chickens. They are wonderful pets and the only ones that I know of that supply food for their owners when they are happy and content. I have been regularly attending city council meetings in Roswell standing up for people who want to own chickens in their own backyards.

Sadly, last night the Roswell City Council passed an ordinance that severely limits the number the chickens that one can own and banned roosters all together. I know quite a few people that this will affect. They will have to give up their beloved pets, or be ticketed. If this were my community, I would already be out of compliance with 7 chickens. I would not be able to get fertilized eggs from friends to hatch at home or at school because they would no longer have roosters. This is not the end of the battle my friends. People around the world were watching this case and their cities were waiting for this ordinance to be drawn up and passed before they wrote theirs. Here is the article from the AJC.

Roswell approves backyard chicken ordinance

By Ralph Ellis

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The protesters squawked, but the Roswell City Council approved a new backyard chicken ordinance Monday night that bans roosters and uses lot size to determine how many chickens a resident can keep.

The ordinance doesn’t apply to property of two acres or more that’s zoned agricultural or land that’s been annexed from Fulton County, most of which is farmland. And chicken enclosures must be set back at least 50 feet from neighboring property lines.No birds will be allowed at single-family homes on one-third acre or less. Homeowners with one-third to one acre can keep six birds. Homeowners with more than one acre can have 12 birds per acre, up to a maximum of 36. Chickens can also be kept at schools.

The council went back and forth over roosters, which many residents said caused noise problems with crowing.

“Ban the roosters,” said resident Keith Badalamente. “I’m asking for no roosters at all.”

But a last-minute motion by Lori Henry to allow roosters died for lack of a second.

The council spent two-and-a-half hours discussing the ordinance and listened to 20 members of the public who favored and opposed an ordinance. The final vote was 6-2.

Chicken keepers seemed surprised by last minute changes.

Under the most recent version on the table, residents could have kept up to 25 birds in some sort of enclosure at single-family homes, no matter what the lot size. People already keeping more than 25 chickens could have obtained a permit for up to 15 more birds. That version was based largely on Atlanta’s law.

Andrew Wordes, who had led the charge to loosen up the city’s backyard chicken law, seemed stunned after the meeting. He said he has about 150 birds, some miniature sized, and didn't know the proposed ordinance had changed.

“I’ve got .97 acre, so legally I’m allowed six chickens,” Wordes said. “I don’t see how we can have murders happening near city hall and we’re concerned about chickens.”

Roswell code enforcement officers cited Wordes in January for keeping chickens in his backyard. Former Gov. Roy Barnes, a professed chicken lover, took on Wordes’ case. A judge threw out the old ordinance in May because it was vague.

On Monday, several chicken keepers urged the council to take no action, saying various laws on the books already dealt with noise and smell problems that occur with chickens.

Mayor Jere Wood will be affected by the ordinance. He said he keeps two chickens at his law office at Woodstock and Canton streets. Those birds will have to go somewhere else, he said.

The law takes effect right away, but residents were given a 90-day grace period to comply.

Houston, We Have an Egg!

Our first egg! Excuse the fuzziness, I stuck my arm in the coop to take it. I found it Wednesdayafternoon when I let the girls out. I did the usual, " I guess that I should take a look." Surprise! An egg. I did a happy dance all of the way back into the house to get the camera.

Later in the afternoon I decided that I should take a look around to see if there were eggs anywhere else around the yard. Sure enough, I found a clutch of eggs in the claw foot tub. The claw foot tub also happened to be Lydia's new favorite spot.

Here are all five of the her pretty eggs. We are so proud of Lydia. Five eggs means that she had been laying for five days or so. I checked the eggs to make sure that they were good. To test an egg you can put it in a glass of water. If it floats, it is bad. The sinkers win. Every egg sunk. Ya-hoo! Normally I don't know that I will wash the eggs. If you don't wash the eggs they can stay unrefrigerated for 7-10 days. They have a natural coating called a bloom that keeps bacteria out.

I am so excited to have fresh eggs of our own. Did you know that by the time eggs arrive at your local grocery store that they are an average of one month old? Just think about how long we let them sit in our own fridges after we buy them. I am so happy for my fresh eggs.

And look how pretty fresh eggs are. Here is another fuzzy picture. It is hard to take a photo of an egg yolk. I wanted you to see how rich and almost orange it is. That is a free range egg! A deep color is a good sign of good nutrition. Let me tell you, it was yummy! It will still take awhile to get used to getting breakfast from our pets. It's not something that we are used to.

Thank you Lydia for the delicious eggs! She laid anther one today in the nesting box in the hen house! Go Lydia. What a smart girl you are. Thanks to my sister for this amazing photo of Lydia. Isn't she stunning?

And not to be left out ~ Atta Girl sitting on the handrail of our back steps. They like to sit there and look into the house. Atta Girl, will you be our next egg layer?

Egg Anticipation

Saturday night while I was making pizza, I heard and awful loud and long clucking sound coming from the chicken coop. Of course I always expect the worst. I hurriedly washed my hands, put on my shoes and ran out in the rain to see what was the matter. Daisy, the beautiful blue(translate to gray) chicken was standing there clucking her brains out. Pickle came down to see what all of the fuss was about. I mean Daisy was squawking! Everyone within ear shot knew that there was a chicken in the vicinity. Lord, please don't let the neighbors report us!

She quieted down as I drew near. I think that she is going to lay an egg soon. That is my only explanation for her prolonged loudness. I looked around and didn't see an egg. Their first ones can be shellless, yes shellless, double yolked, oblong, tiny or huge. We are going to have to start checking regularly. Hopefully they start laying soon. I just hope that Daisy doesn't scream like that all of the time! I will keep you posted. Here is hoping for our first egg!!

The Babies

Everyone has been wanting to see the new girls. They were babies to us when you put them beside our girls. Here they are. Pickle is on the left and Lemon is on the right.

This is just before we put them into their new home.

Dave really does love the chickens. Can't you see it?

Our girls were not sure what to do with the little ones. They shunned them and pecked them, but not hard. I can't blame the girls. In one day we took away the six boys, who were hard to catch, and added two little ones. They seemed to tolerate each other after a day or so.

Sadly, we lost Lemon last Saturday. I think that she was sick when got her. The stress of the move plus picking up some illness did it for her. We loved you Lemon!!

That day the girls adopted Pickle. Edith literally rounded Pickle up into the group. Atta Girl slept with her for a couple of nights before she started sleeping on the top roost with everyone else. They share their treats with her. They love Pickle and so do we. We are so glad and proud of them.

Pickle has grown in the last two weeks. I treated all of the girls with some medication just in case what Lemon had they all had. The combo of the meds, a good home and some good food seem to be working wonders on her. And apparently I just grow huge chickens. I need to get another picture of all the girls together. They are so fun! once the mosquitoes are gone I will be out there all of the time just watching them. Want to join me?

Coop, Here It Is!

I tried to find my pictures of the progression of the coop and couldn't find them. So, here is a video I took trying to catch the boys crowing. Of course they didn't. And I am not sure how clear the video is. I will take some more pictures soon. Anyway, Coop, Here It Is!

Thanks Dave for building our chickens an awesome home. They love it. And I love you!

Cock-a-doodle-doo?

I woke up this morning and opened the back door as I usually do. I like to feel what cool of the morning there is in The South! Today, as soon as I opened the door I heard a high pitched "cock-a-doodle", followed by a low pitched "cocka#*!". The boys are hitting puberty and they are finding their voices. I got outside far enough to see that Xena has become Zorro and is very proud of it! I tried to capture some audio but of course they stopped their crowing.

This morning I frantically tried to find them homes. Have I mentioned that we aren't lawfully owning chickens? Well, now I have. I'll bribe you with eggs to keep quiet about it. The crowing could draw unwanted attention to us. I have succeeded in finding homes for three of them. Hunca Munca, Hank and Elroy will be traveling tomorrow to meet their new owner, Josh. He has a good deal of land out in Lawrenceville where he breeds and raises chickens. He has 8 Cuckoo Maran hens just waiting for the likes of Hunca Munca and Hank! I am not sure who Elroy will be paired up with, but I am sure that he will find himself some lovely ladies.

Now I have to find homes for Trace, Zorro and Hyacinth. I mean Henry. Hopefully they will find one in Woodstock. Fingers crossed and prayers said.

The good news- Josh is bringing me two pullets! I am so excited. Oh, a pullet is a female chicken who is not quite mature. Once mature she is called a hen. My boys right now would be called cockerels not roosters. I can't wait to meet these new girls and pick out names for them. They are close to the age of my chickens and their breed should make them good layers. Hooray!

Here are a few pictures of everyone together enjoying a treat of leftover rice. They devoured it!

What a nice family portrait. We'll miss you boys! I really will. It will be all that I can do not to bawl my eyes out over them. It will make it a lot easier that they are going to a good home where they can make lots of babies! Maybe one day I will get one of their babies! That would be really neat. It is also easing my pain to get two girls in the trade. The coop won't seem quite so empty. I will post pictures of our adventures and hopefully capture some farewell shots.

The chicken saga continues! Stay tuned...

p.s. Josh is taking all of the boys after viewing these photos of them! I am so glad that they will all go to the same home. What a blessing!

A little entertainment

Today I happened to have my camera outside to catch a little chicken action. Elroy and Xena decided to start a fight. I keep trying to believe that Xena is a girl. Lakenvelder hens can have fairly long tails compared to other breeds. This sort of behavior, however, leads me to lean towards rooster. We'll still have to wait and see.

The quality is a bit low, due to me zooming in.

For your viewing entertainment.... drum roll please!

2 weeks...

My summer is over in two weeks. Where did it go? I haven't accomplished half of the things that I had hoped to this summer. Things that really I can to anytime, summer just seemed like a good time to do them.

We did a bit of travel to see family and friends. I enjoyed it very much. It does seem like every time that we go away I am relieved to get back home. I am learning more and more about myself. Most of it that I love to be home. I do want my career to be a homemaker, so I guess that makes sense.

I have raised my chickens successfully so far. We have 10 and are still trying to figure out our rooster situation. I do believe that half are boys. Golly gee! The coop is very close to being finished. Hopefully this weekend's forecasted cooler weather will help us accomplish the last bits and pieces. Then you will see pictures of it. Dave has made me hold off on my photos. He wants you all to be surprised.

I have spent some good time with great friends having tea, painting with them, studying God's word and simply hanging out. I love my friends. They lift me up and encourage me. Most have known me for so long that they are like cool water to my soul. My new friends have been a true blessing too. My friendships are so rich. I am very blessed. I only wish that I had more time to spend with you all this summer.

I applied for my dream job this summer and didn't get it. The drive was far but the job sounded perfect for me. I am trusting God in it all. I am a bit disappointed. It would have melded my plant knowledge, chicken passion and working with kids. I am going to figure out how I can meld them all around here. Some teachers at my school are wanting to hatch chickens this year. I am very excited to help them. And believe it or not, I am looking forward to seeing some of my students. I am ready to get back into the normal routine, get a bit more out of myself and am going to try to truly enjoy every minute of it.

On another note, have I mentioned that my chickens are really smart and really dumb sometimes? One day this week I was watching them out the back door. Trace had managed to get himself on the other side of their temporary run. (I had opened it so that they could get out.) Everyone else was watching him and running from one side to the other trying to figure out how he had gotten over there. The opening was behind them. Then yesterday I thought that I had lost them all. I could not find them anywhere. Where could they be? I called Dave out frantically looking for them. They were all huddled inside of the Mahonia bush. I could not see them or hear them. They came out for him. Whew. They scared me to death. I am very glad that they have a good and safe hiding place from predators. But don't scare your mom like that!

Alright I have to go let the girls out. Thanks for listening to my thoughts today. I know that it was a mishmash of things. I will have more chicken pictures up tomorrow. I am going to enjoy the rest of my summer. Come on over and hang out with me....

Let Them Eat Cake!

The chickens love being outside. They are starting to really explore the yard. Here is Trace followed by Edith, Xena, Hunca Munca, Daisy, Elroy, and Hyacinth.

Jemima and Trace pecking away. This is the good life!

I fought to keep them out of my tomatoes for a long time. One day I decided to let them have their cake and eat it too. They seem to be addicted and strangely attracted to my tomato plants. I have a hard time keeping them away. It is mostly because of these two instigators~ Elroy and Trace. Here they are having almost eaten a whole green tomato.

Here is the view from above. Another fellow has joined them. Mind you, they have to jump up and down to reach this tomato. They don't mind. Bring on the challenge! After devouring this one they have been jumping trying to get one that is even higher up the vine. Oh, my! What have I done?

Most everyone sticks together. These girls and boys are hanging out eating my squash and enjoying the shade from their leaves.

What naughty chickens! I still shoo them away. I try anyway. I can't blame them for liking the good stuff. I might have to fence in my veggies. I don't want to. We'll see how long I can take it.

Stay tuned..... they move into the coop soon!

The Move Begins

The chicky babies aren't babies anymore. They are full blown teenagers! We went to Ohio for a week and came back to chickens with full feathers and personalities to boot! We lost one while we were gone. Gertrude was lost to a snake. The snake didn't make it however. Thanks Sharon for watching my babies!

When we brought them home we moved them into the backyard during the day and indoors by night. This is still our routine.

Here they are exploring the yard.

This is their temporary setup. It seems to be working pretty well. They love to hang out by the tree trunk, my little tree huggers.

Here they are eating.

Down on their level.

And the beginnings of the coop. Dave has brought it a long way. It is going to be a chicken mansion. They will be so happy!

I'll have more to post soon. We are working on the coop all weekend. Stay tuned...