The scoop of my chicken poop.

I have found that chickens poop a lot and when they are confined in a run all day it kind of stays there and gets everywhere.  They especially poop a lot when they eat an entire bin of almost spoiled spring mix I forgot I bought at Costco last week.  So, I decided to rake all the dead leaves, and grass, and leftover food, and POOP into the corner of the run where the ground is low anyway.  I've read about creating a compost pile inside of the run, and I'm going to try it.  I figure it can't hurt because Winter is coming and I can always use good compost.  They seemed to like digging in the "new" leaves.  And pecking at the "new" dirt.  The dirt also gives them a place to dust bath.  Double Bonus.   I love saying Double Bonus.  It reminds me of my fun, awkward middle school days.  So, my plan is to rake all the poop and debris into the corner often and see how composty it gets by spring.

I'll keep everyone updated.

Chicken Photobomb

Garden Day

This weekend I actually worked in my garden!  In the dirt!  Well, I also snuck some peeks at my peeps, but only because they're so close.  I harvested some squashes, and cucumbers, and tomatoes, and some pretty flowers got put in vases to enjoy in the kitchen.  I also planted Hairy Vetch, Tricticale, and started a salad bar in a planter I can move to the coop when ready for the chickens to enjoy.  I took down some of my mesh fence and put up a section of more permanent one. 

 

I did do SOME things in the coop.  I hung their waterer, put up the mesh fence I took out of the garden, fed them some bugs, and looked at them a lot. They took some dust baths and were generally pretty cute. 

Happiness is a pile of wet leaves.

We had a huge storm last night, very strong rains and wind.  The coop held up excellently and I feel like the sand around the run has been sufficiently watered down.  There are many piles of old leaves around our yard, and I scooped many shovelfuls into the run for the chicks to dig around in and they were so happy.   They found grubs and crickets and who knows what else.  I found they also really like tomatoes from the garden, but not so much green beans. 

They only took 3 days to figure out how to go into the coop at night, but they spend a good half hour figuring out who's roosting where on the pole.  They all seem to want to be in the middle, or under each other.  Why is that? 

6 week old Barred Rock

Every time I go in the run, the chickens decide the holes in my crocs look delicious. 

 

Moving In

The new chicks moved into the coop last night.  They seemed to not have any problems settling in, and were all roosting on the stick when I went to check on them. The run is so much nicer than hauling them into the garden every morning and night.  This morning I opened the pop door and they all wandered out.  Tomorrow the plan is to finish with the top panels of fence and make the ladder to head in the coop at night.  Instead of closing the nesting boxes off, I just took the dividers out and omitted the shavings from that section.  I hope when I put the dividers in and put the curtains up in the fall they will get the idea of laying eggs in there. 

I also put up my sign I got at Target.   I can put it up now because I have Hens, so it's truthful.  I asked Youngest what she thought it said when I put it up, and she said "NO ROOSTERS ALLOWED." 

Painted Coop and Run

The interior of the coop is finally painted and the chickens spent the day in their new run!  The roof is not completed yet, but they seemed to have plenty of room to roam in the enclosed area.

Squashes. They're Gourd-geous.

I love growing Squashes.  I don't know why, because my family doesn't particularly love them, but I think they're beautiful growing in the garden.  I love the long vines, and the bright yellow flowers, and the tough skin developing all summer.   I really do love eating zucchini, but unfortunately I'm lacking this year.   Not to squash borer like last year, just to poor growth due to weird weather I'm thinking.   I do have two little ones starting, hopefully they can pick up and produce more through the month.   I have really just been able to harvest potatoes and cucumbers this year.  Not much else with the cool spring, the rabbits, and the mild summer. 

The baby chicks have liked digging in the empty boxes.   They are getting too big for their brooder.  As you can see, Coconut will take any chance she can get for escape.  By the end of the week they will be in their new home.  I painted all the white yesterday and the run is framed.   Won't be long now. 

The Chicken Saga; season 2

Last night we said good-bye to Nugget.   A kind (I hope) lady came to pick him up to service her 6 hens.  She stuck him in the back of her truck, I hope he didn't fly away going down the road.  The girls were giving him lots of love before he left, but there were no tears last night.

Oldest and Neighbor saw a skunk in the woods as they were running between our houses yesterday, neighbor said she saw it behind our coop Wednesday when she came over to see if we were home too.  So, I'm thinking that's our culprit for Popcorn's murder.  I can try to trap and relocate it, but who wants to handle a skunk really.

The second batch of chicks were so anxious to get into the garden and play last night they jumped to the top of their brooder box and perched perilously on the edge of the cardboard.   Funny chicks.  I rearranged the wire top to stop them from trying when I'm not home.  

The coop's door is open to air it out, and I plan on completely cleaning it the next couple nights so I can paint it Sunday or Wednesday and get the new chicks in their new home.  They need more room!  

Rooster for Sale!

Thanks to Cedar Creek Hatchery not responding to my kind emails and going back on their word of properly sexing my chicks, I now have a beautiful French Wheaten Marans Rooster to give away.  Nugget has beautifully feathered feet, a good personality, and beautiful coloring.  So far he's very quiet, and the meeker of the two roosters. 

 

Another reason to get rid of Nugget, he's so lonely.  Today when I got home all that was left of Popcorn was two piles of feathers in the driveway. Apparently it happened between 3-5:30, Steve got some good pictures of him with his new camera before he disappeared.  The girls and I were pretty upset.  Nugget was pretty upset too.  We put the little chickens in the fenced in garden and they loved it of course.  I was watching them pretty closely.  I feel so sad for Popcorn.  I think it was a skunk, as Nugget smelled pretty ripe.   I know skunks like chickens, but I didn't know they attacked during the day. 

 

 

 

Poor Popcorn.  He was such a good chicken.   Shouldn't I know not to get attached to these things? 

Blueberry's are the best birthday treat.

The little chicks are celebrating their one-month birthday today, and I let them loose in the garden around the blueberry bushes last night.  They ate every last berry in reach, even jumping for those they couldn't quite reach.  Their necks are still quite scraggly, but they are feathering in nice.   The barred rocks look so different from Nando did they could be a different breed.  Just little specks of white, I now know why the members of BYC could tell Nando was a cockerel so early.  They spent yesterday in the garden and the day before penned in under the girl's slide.  They loved it.