Today I'm going to tell you a chicken tale (or two) about my flock. It started out quite innocently with the purchase of four Plymouth Barred Rock pullets (female chicken under the age of one) in the fall of 2005. Shortly after getting these birds, we lost two of them, and the two that survived, did so through the winter, which the kids named them Pip and Flutter. Pip was the more dominant of the two birds and Flutter was gentle as a butterfly. In the spring of 2006 we decided that more birds might be a nice idea, this is when I ordered 4 chicks (one Columiban Rock, two Barred Rocks, and one Black Sex-link) - So I thought. I got 6 in my order.
Turned out one of those baby chicks wasn't female, but a male. Jonathan named them all Eeenie, Meenie, Minie, and Moe. Brick and Brack were the Columbia Rocks. Moe was the Rooster. This is Moe in the spring of 2007, he was the most well mannered, and delightful Rooster I've met. Okay - I didn't know a lot of Roosters, but he was a lovely gentle fella.
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| Moe |
One day in October of 2011 I went out to check on the birds early in the morning to find out Moe had expired. My flock was Moeless... I would be searching for another Roo next spring. The following month an aquaintance told me that the family who had moved out of the area in June had left their entire flock of chickens behind! (about 8 birds) I was flabergasted! Upset and very angry I went over to check these poor creatures out. After talking to the neighbour. It was clear that they all had met bad endings to their life, all except one.
A Rooster
- Yeah.
After trying for about a week to catch this fellow, I finally got him. Kept him away from the other birds for quarantine, and after time was up was allowed to live close to the hen house. I had just started to shut the birds up for the winter, and was a little leary to let him outside since his past he was allowed to fly up into the trees, and wander everywhere he wanted to go. I have a chicken yard, to keep everyone safe, and this boy needed to learn the routine. After about a month and a half (one month quarantine) and two more weeks with the girls but seperated (fencing between them) I finally decided to let him loose with the entire flock. I think he thought he'd died and gone to chicken heaven. I can't imagine how lost he seemed watching each one of his past girls being taken from him one at a time. So, we decided to call him 'Lost'. (which also was a favorite TV Program we happened to be watching at the time) It fit - so it stuck.
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| Lost the Rooster |
This is Lost. He's about 2 years old (best guess) and is a combination of Leghorn, Silkie, and BantamX. He's got a great personality and he certainly looks a lot better now than when I got him, but he's not quite there yet. Isn't he lovely? He's missing some toes due to being left outside all last winter to roost in trees, and his comb is short due to frost bite. Other than that we think he is just gorgreous. Lucky for him his personality is wonderful and he does a great job looking after the girls.
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| Peep eating some lush grass |
This is Peep. In 2009 I was given a Wyndotte bantam hen (now named Mother Hubbard) along with her 13 babies, Peep was one of them and named by our daughter Mary. Mary has Peep trained to leap onto her open arm when she goes into the hen house. This took all of a week to train. Peep has probably the best recall of any of the animals on our property (dogs included) Peep is a fierce mother and will protect her babies if another dog, cat, or chicken even *thinks* about coming near. Often I will get Peep to hatch out standard chicken eggs. She has some large offspring living with her.
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| Gouge |
This is Gouge. She is a Rhode Island Red Hen. I got her in an order of 2009. She and Mother Hubbards chicks were housed close by and Mother Hubbard got angry at this hen for being too close. She almost killed this hen as a chick (through the fencing) but she managed to survive the pecking. To this day Gouge has a gouge on the back of her head. She is the leader of the Red Hen pack and top girl of the yard. She also is liked by Lost.
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| Cheap |
This little black bantam is Cheap, daughter of Peep. She too is a broody one when the time fits her. She is not as tame as Peep is, but will come for corn and will take food confidently from your hand. She has hatched out a few standard birds for us as well. All our Bantams are good mothers and hard workers to keep the flock in numbers.
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| Moldy Goldie |
This Girl is Moldy Goldie. She was the fairest coloured hen of the RIR order, and since the day we got her she just can't seem to hold a full set of feathers. She's quite comical at times, a bit flighty, and a tall girl.
This is Missy. Missy is a leghornXBantam from a batch of eggs from a neighbour. She has to be dumber than any chicken (including ducks) that I have ever met. She is the only hen I know of in our flock that can cackle up a storm. Just ask the kids - they'll tell you about her cackling at all hours of the morning when they are trying to get some sleep in the tent some summer mornings...She's nosy, but not brave, which is why she makes us laugh. She is the door mat of the hen house, everyone is above Missy.
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| Missy |
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| Close up of Gouge |
This is Pharaoh, a little hen a bit brighter than Missy, as she is related to Missy. She's quite a curious little thing, brave enough to check out the barn cats when they cut through the hen yard. She's can be flighty at times, but still a sweetie. She's also Lost's all time favorite girl.
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| Pharaoh |
This girl is Squab. Daughter (or egg hatched) of Peep. She is a barred RockXbantam hen. She is also a hen house door mat (more so than Missy maybe) She's is well liked by Lost, (as you can tell by the head feathers that are missing) She's a nice miniature Standed heavey breed chicken. If that makes any sense. A nice hen, to have in the house, not nasty or anything. A good girl.
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| Squab |
This is Joker, (also known as Funky Chicken) Joker will be a year old April 1st. So that explains her name. She's a pretty flighty girl, I leave her alone as the sight of people make her uptight. She may go broody this sping (I'm hoping) as she's been found hanging around the nesting boxes lately these days. If she does go broody, that would help out, as my bantams aren't getting any younger and I could use a larger bird to hatch out eggs.
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| Joker |
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| Pharaoh checking out Wallace |
This is Raven, she's a leghorn X. When she was a young pullet she looked just like a Raven to the point I thought I had crows hanging around. So the name just stuck. She's a 2010 hatch.
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| Raven |
Here is Meenie, from 2006. She's getting on in years now. Not so mean these days.
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| Meenie |
This is Pip. She's so old I can't believe she makes it up onto the roost every night. She starts out by sleeping in a nesting box but every morning she's up on the roost. Amazing, she was bought in 2005. The oldest chicken in the hen house.
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| Ol Girl |
Another photo of Missy.
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| Missy |
This shows the size difference of my black hens. Stupid was Moe's favorite girl. She's a black Sex-Link. A nice bird to have around, still lays the occassional egg.
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| Stupid, Cheap & Squab |
The chickens just love treat time. Here Gouge is trying to keep a tomato top away from a Red Hen. (we have two named Ren Hen)
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| Gouge and sister |
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| Lost and Gouge treating on grass |
Hope you enjoyed the chicken yard visit. Come back and see us all again sometime.
