Yay #2
☆ July 31, 2010
More chickens!
Mike loves chickens and has had chickens and roosters for as long as I’ve known him. Last year, he added a few more speckled hens to his flock and he was planning on doing the same this Spring. But this spring was crazy and it snowed in May and when we finally made it to the farm supply store, ready to buy,
all their chicks were gone!
I was at the farm supply store last week picking up some feed for Daisy, and as I was leaving, a sign by the door caught my eye: “Free chickens to good home,”
it said. I scribbled the accompanying phone number on my feed bag, called it when I got home, and was happy to learn the chickens were still in need of a good home. Ours! Mike was thrilled with my chicken sleuthing. We drove out the next night, and, with the former owner, plucked the hens and their rooster off their roost, tucked them gently into a few cardboard boxes, drove back to Mike’s house and introduced them to his coop.
They are so sweet and happy! There are seven white leghorn hens and one ridiculous rooster, each a year and a half old. The pecking order between the roosters was established the first morning and the hens began laying that very day ~ oblong proof that they feel comfortable in their new home and are not stressed by the move. They are free to roam and spend the day eating grass and bugs and goofing off en masse and then return to the coop at night. Happy chickens, happy us. Hurrah!
Comments
68 Responses to “Yay #2”
Leave a Reply
MY NEW BOOK!
More, Elsewhere
- No Tweets Available
July 31st, 2010 @ 11:23 am
That rooster made my day, at least I think it’s the rooster! Love his top feathers and angry eyes. Ridiculous indeed!
July 31st, 2010 @ 11:24 am
I love chickens (and eggs) I wish I had enough land to own some!
July 31st, 2010 @ 11:27 am
Love your blog, and your new chickens are adorable!
July 31st, 2010 @ 11:30 am
Michael Pollan wrote about a man that had a wonderful farm cycle – cows roam and eat grass, poop. then move on to another pasture. chickens roam original pasture, eat bugs that are in poop, grass, seeds, etc. keeping pests down, composting the organic matter.
grass regrows.
reintroduce cows, repeat cycle.
Results? few pests, healthy cows and chickens, stellar milk and eggs :) (and meat, if you’re into that kind of thing!)
July 31st, 2010 @ 11:31 am
I. Love. Chickens. My aunt and uncle just got some for eggs and I am kind of obsessed with them. I had no idea how SOFT they are! There’s one that’s content to sit in my lap while I pet her and it’s almost better than petting a cat. They are so funny too – I am so entertained by just watching their antics. Chickens are great!
July 31st, 2010 @ 11:34 am
VERY cute and lovely photos!
July 31st, 2010 @ 11:36 am
… and the farmily grows!!! YEAH!!!
July 31st, 2010 @ 11:39 am
Years ago after I read Diet for a New America I vowed never to buy factory-farmed eggs or meat again. The eggs I buy from local organic farmers are the best! When I eat them I know that not only is my body being nourished, so is my soul.
Happy chickens! We should all support that.
July 31st, 2010 @ 11:50 am
Those are the cutest things I’ve seen. And people think chickens can’t be cute! HA! One day soon, I hope to move where I can have some critters of my own. Just 2 more years til I can leave Houston!
July 31st, 2010 @ 12:28 pm
Gah, I want chickens so badly!
What does Charlie think of the chickens?
July 31st, 2010 @ 12:35 pm
Love the rooster! What a guy with an attitude! Haha! The hens look happy with their new life! Lucky!
July 31st, 2010 @ 12:38 pm
Chickensss! <3
I love chickens. And turkeys. Plus the often-forgotten guineas. I only have two roosters now, after a raccoon killed all of the hens, plus the matriarch of the flock(who was six years old!). We only have Red, the ‘alpha’ rooster, and his son, Slim. Red’s crown was chewed off, and he got a nasty mauling,plus a bad respiratory infection. We thought he would be the first to die, but alas, he held in; he’s as strong and robust as ever!
Oh, and that odd rooster you have is a Polish. They’re pretty rare birds, plus they have an amazing, fun personality, and are one of the easiest chickens to tame like a pet. I had a pair of them a few years ago, and they were so much fun!
http://www.polishchooks.com/
July 31st, 2010 @ 12:41 pm
Monsiuer rooster looks cranky, but I imagine he is just in full strut mode.
July 31st, 2010 @ 12:48 pm
i’m relieved to see it’s not a leghorn rooster.
every one of the leghorn roosters i have known have been pretty nasty, and not just towards the other roosters. of course someone else will probably say that they love them, but i’ve seen them go after other animals, and kids, too. don’t think that kind of attitude would fit in too well with your scene.
July 31st, 2010 @ 12:57 pm
Beautiful birds! You mentioned that a pecking order was established. Pardon my ignorance here- but did that entail a full blown ‘cock-fight’ or, did they manage to work it out by less violent means? :)
July 31st, 2010 @ 1:03 pm
my parents in MO buy eggs from a lady whose chickens lay green eggs. We love the happy green egg laying chickens :)
July 31st, 2010 @ 1:30 pm
Love the attitude of the rooster!
July 31st, 2010 @ 1:35 pm
My grandmother has always kept chickens, as far back as I can remember. She keeps Bantams, so they’re quite small. Most of the time they are skittish creatures, but the last few flocks we’ve had have been more tame, so that they don’t run when you walk by.
We had a rooster once who was hatched without part of his beak. The top part was partially gone, and we didn’t figure he’d last very long. Against the odds, he survived, and we always made sure he had a chance to eat away from the other chickens. He got so used to us that in the mornings, when mom would open the front door to throw out leftover cornbread from the night before, he’d be standing there waiting, and he’d walk right up in the house!
July 31st, 2010 @ 1:55 pm
Why I say, I say “Dog your going about that all wrong”… The White Leghorns makes me thing of Foghorn Leghorn …. They are very pretty and that Rooster! He is a fancy one!
July 31st, 2010 @ 2:04 pm
Monsieur Rooster is positively divine! I travelled to Paris recently and he would definitely fit in!
July 31st, 2010 @ 2:06 pm
I love hens, though we only have two now. The black rock, Inara, comes into the kitchen and has long, philisophical discussions with me. The bantam, Shelly, is potty, cuddly and adorable. I love my girls so much!
July 31st, 2010 @ 2:26 pm
Your rooster is wearing a Napoleon hat. Fabulous chickens!
July 31st, 2010 @ 2:54 pm
Chicken sleuthing!!! Awesome as a possum on a hot summer day!!! :o) How are you going to winterize them birds?
July 31st, 2010 @ 2:55 pm
a man who loves chickens is alright by me! I have hald a dozen old heritage hens( dorkings and the token aurucanas for the pretty blue eggs) Id have more but my chicken tractor is already crowded! love the roo, is he a polish crested?
July 31st, 2010 @ 3:40 pm
I love happy chickens. My neighborhood nursery has chickens. Occasionally Bill has a bowl of eggs out on the counter for customers.
He had chicks for sale this year.
I would love to have chickens. Unfortunately, my dog would also love to have chickens, but not in the same way.
So sadly, for now I am chickenless. Some day, maybe. I’m not sure I have enough open ground for them and not sure where I could put the coop. I’ve seen the moveable coups and that would be great for my parents’ yard, in the area where the garden is. But they have a dog too. And my Mother would kill me if I gave them a coop and chickens. I’m sure my Dad wouldn’t mind but my Mother would be livid.
Fresh eggs are just the best. The yolks are a bright yellow like eggs are supposed to be. You read about it in vintage cookbooks.
And chickens that get to eat grass and bugs and seeds and roam around produce better eggs.
Bill says that as long as you don’t wash them, they can even sit out on the counter for a week or two without refrigeration. They have some sort of natural coating that protects them. But once you wash them they have to be refrigerated.
I just bought a dozen eggs at the farmers market for $2.40. Imagine how much money I’d save if I had a few chickens. Even if I had to buy them some feed.
Of course, then I’d name them.
And they’d be my pets.
July 31st, 2010 @ 4:13 pm
Because posts are open here, I have to branch off topic to tell you that the photo of Eli, Chloe and Charlie on yesterday’s Daily Coyote (Friday, 7/30) is amazing. They look like a posse of bandits. It is clear that their (probably ruthless) leader is the short guy – Eli!.
July 31st, 2010 @ 4:15 pm
How’d the new rooster do in the pecking order? Once one has been established, does it bother the roosters who are not on top?
July 31st, 2010 @ 5:22 pm
ha, ha :) yay, indeed.
July 31st, 2010 @ 5:39 pm
The chickens (and rooster) are so cute, congratulations!
P.S. nobody tell Dooce or she might drive to Wyoming and chickennap them.
July 31st, 2010 @ 7:02 pm
Glad these chickens went to a good home. What happened to their former owner that he or she had to give them up?
July 31st, 2010 @ 7:19 pm
That rooster has the best haircut ever! What a little beauty!
July 31st, 2010 @ 7:32 pm
Awesome! Chickens are cute, and so handy to have around.
How do you keep them from being predated upon?
July 31st, 2010 @ 9:54 pm
I LOVE your new chickens! What a healthy bunch! AND i LOVE Charlie’s beautiful face on Daily Coyote…wow those eyes with the eyeliner and that sweet look to you, melts my heart! and gorgeous!! Such a perfect capture of the three together, doin’ what they do, checkin’ each other out….your little pack of friends! So precious!
July 31st, 2010 @ 11:06 pm
I also love chickens! I can’t wait until I can move out to the country and have some of my own.
July 31st, 2010 @ 11:18 pm
Shreve … off topic, but I’ve had my eye on an old Ford pickup for quite some time. I think I read somewhere on here that the truck you bought in California before your move is an old Ford. Which year is your truck? Are the older Ford trucks as faithful and sound as everyone tells me they are? Thanks!
August 1st, 2010 @ 8:12 am
my neighbour has hens and I just love sitting and listening to then go about their day, she has one big white one that announces very loudly when she lays an egg, it is like she is the only hen in the world that does, makes me giggle everytime.
August 1st, 2010 @ 9:34 am
awwww!
August 1st, 2010 @ 10:50 am
That rooster is insane ! So Jean Paul Gaultier !
I had a favorite hen as a child, her name was Cosette. Black and white. Later on, I fond out that my favorite hens were not carried away by foxes, but instead “done in ” by my grandma for Sunday lunch.
Fresh eggs everyday, that is grand life !
I LOVE the photos of Charlie and Eli with Chloe, so much quiet power in the pictures. 3 peas in a pod.
August 1st, 2010 @ 11:28 am
That’s a mighty pretty rooster you have there. ;)
August 1st, 2010 @ 12:28 pm
Liana ~ Charlie doesn’t get to meet the chickens. I’ve been able to train him to ignore rabbits but chickens are too tempting for him!
Thanks Camille ~ I was wondering!
Marianne ~ I wasn’t there and I didn’t ask Mike for details but yes, I assume they fought. Just like the bull elk and the tomcats and…. guys in bars :)
Barbara ~ It is what it is. The goal is to be on top but the higher goal is to stay alive. With elk, for example, bulls will fight for females and the most capable bull will win. Sometimes vocals and posturing alone will win the fight; sometimes they bash horns. The loser bull will leave and then next year, he will try again, and fight again. Maybe he’ll lose again but maybe he will win. I’m sure it’s similar with roosters but a more rapid cycle.
Beth ~ Mike’s dogs protect them by keeping skunks and raccoons and wild coyotes at bay. (His dogs don’t harm the foul.)
Carla ~ It’s an ’89. I love it. Even if I had a million dollars I wouldn’t replace it.
Hope I got all everyone’s Q’s…
And to the rest ~
Loving your stories!
I will tell the rooster you all love him.
August 1st, 2010 @ 5:32 pm
Hi Shreve!!!
I LOVE seeing your photos and the Rooster is adorable! I also love chickens. Used to have them when I was a kid and living in NJ. That is so wonderful that you saw the sign and the chickens now have a wonderful, comfy home that they feel very comfortable in. :) Bless you sweetie! You are so special and Mike is too!! HUGS :)
August 1st, 2010 @ 6:48 pm
I LOVE CHICKENS!!! LOL My Mike loves ducks and I love chickens, so at some point when we have a little more land, we are going to have chickens and ducks. Have you tried duck eggs btw?? They are bigger than chicken eggs and taste a little richer, and you can use them just like chicken eggs in recipes. I read somewhere that some chicken breeds are suited to the cold, and some adapt easily to heat. I’m guessing y’alls must be good with cold? Are ya’ll gonna just use them for eggs, or did you pick breeds that are good for meat AND eggs? And what do you do with the chickens during the winter? Do they just stay in your coop?
August 1st, 2010 @ 7:14 pm
being a city girl, I’ve only experienced chickens at Easter. a memory from the 60’s… don’t try and raise chicks in an apartment. :-) & a nursery I go to has illegal chickens and roosters in back and it is so much fun to hear all the crowing!
Thanks for sharing , once again, I thoroughly enjoyed the stories and your pics are absolutely gorgeous, like the birds.
August 1st, 2010 @ 8:44 pm
…grew up on a farm with chickens,ducks,turkeys,geese…got very noisy sometimes…later lived in the city, but my children spent every summer vacation on the farm…my daughter had a pet cat,marmalade,and my son had a pet hen,red-hen…happy memories
August 1st, 2010 @ 8:46 pm
That is the MOST GORGEOUS rooster I have ever seen!!!
August 1st, 2010 @ 9:22 pm
Ha! Love their little chicken faces – glad you were able to give them a brilliant new home! :)
August 2nd, 2010 @ 5:14 am
*LOL* Love the Rooster! Warrior in full headdress.
Little H is coming to Grandma’s today. She looks at your Blogs faithfully. Wait until she sees these. Now she’ll want me to buy freakin’ chickens *L*
August 2nd, 2010 @ 9:52 am
“… oblong proof …” Ha ha! Great phrase!
August 2nd, 2010 @ 11:18 am
I have chicken envy… I grew up with chickens, and my parents still raised them up until a couple years ago when the whole flock was wiped out by coyote or fox or hawk or something. Boy, do I miss those chickens! And free eggs too!! BTW- word of caution- those beautiful red combs will get frostbitten in the winter and may fall off!! :-(
August 2nd, 2010 @ 2:29 pm
Haha, that rooster is indeed ridiculous! Love it!
August 2nd, 2010 @ 2:50 pm
I occurs to me that with that many chickens… you are now going to get very good at omelets, soufles, quiches and meringues.
I think coconut macaroons use quite a few egg whites too.
I’ve got a great recipe for pesto deviled eggs.
August 2nd, 2010 @ 2:56 pm
M ~ oooh, do share!
Macaroons are a good idea.
and then I’ll make lemon curd with the yolks…
mmmmmmmmmm!
August 2nd, 2010 @ 3:35 pm
oooh! that second one is a mighty wicked regal chickenrooster!
August 2nd, 2010 @ 3:38 pm
Ohmygoodness, I Love that rooster! What a great looking bird! :D
August 2nd, 2010 @ 6:32 pm
Great post and pictures! I really enjoy these posts. I’ve lived in cities all my life but think I’m a country girl at heart.
And Barbara, loved your comment about Charlie, Eli and Chloe looking like bandits. The Ten Sleep Gang!
August 3rd, 2010 @ 9:11 am
Camille, thanks for identifying the rooster. I fell in love with him immediately and want one just like him but I didn’t know what kind to look for. I adore chickens, too, and they make wonderful pets. I had one when I was a kid who liked nothing better than for me to tuck her under one arm and carry her around all day, and she was THE boss. The dogs were afraid to get anywhere near her, and if the cats got too bold, she’d peck them on top of their heads and adjust their attitude for them. We have four black hens who live with a friend’s chickens because we don’t have a house for them, and one of them likes to perch on the friend’s daughter’s shoulder like a parrot.
August 3rd, 2010 @ 11:29 am
That is a Polish rooster you’ve got there, and he thinks he is just it as all roosters do ,and of course he is correct!
PS: I see you have a computer that does not have breaking windows,mine is the same. … I am curious about your camera.
August 3rd, 2010 @ 1:12 pm
Pesto deviled eggs are the easiest thing. I always do them for potlucks. Simple, yet impressive.
Grow a lot of basil and make your own pesto. I always have my Dad plant plenty in his garden. He has more space than I do.
There are many recipes. And remember. You can freeze pesto and have it all year round. So make plenty. You can have it on pasta instead of sauce, you can use it for lasagne.
To hard boil an egg: bring eggs to a boil. Take off stove and let sit for 20 min. Then rinse in cold water and put in refrigerator. Let cool completely.
http://www.laiuppa.com/mary/recipes/pestoeggs.html
August 3rd, 2010 @ 2:57 pm
Love the new chickens – grown up with them and have always wanted some more as an adult, who knows maybe someday.
August 3rd, 2010 @ 8:12 pm
today hasn’t been the best day and that rooster made me laugh! i can see him in his human form, like a crotchety old neighbor or a 1700’s french dandy…
August 4th, 2010 @ 5:23 am
Siobhan,
It’s the small wonders that make every day special. How I would LOVE to drive by and see a chicken perched on a shoulder! *grin*
August 4th, 2010 @ 6:58 am
scotty’s macaroons…. egg whites, almond paste, powdered sugar, vanilla gook. bunches and bunches of the above. bake on foil cuz they stick. chewy and so sweet you will be in a coma for a week.
August 4th, 2010 @ 12:04 pm
I love that you called your rooster “Ridiculous”. He looks like a true flashy Pimp to his harem of hens.
I have always wanted my own chickens for fresh eggs and such. Alas, I am a city dweller, and our city recently outlawed the keeping of chickens within city limits. I know that many municipalities are starting to allow it though. So I’ll be harassing my city counsellors until they see reason. Wish me luck!
August 4th, 2010 @ 3:43 pm
oo – chickens! i really like ’em – tho i like ducks even better! i used to have both, but can’t any more where i live… shall have to settle for your sweet brood & that adorable rooster! thanks for posting abt them!
August 4th, 2010 @ 6:04 pm
I have chicken friends of my own and they are the best backyard lawn ornament ever!
August 5th, 2010 @ 11:41 am
Long time lurker coming out of hiding to say I love chickens!
Used to have a flock of my own, and since you have ample amounts of cream & milk at your disposal, you really owe it to yourself to make creme brulee with fresh eggs and dairy. It is a revelation.
Luckily, egg whites freeze quite well. But I never had a problem using up all the eggs I had. Bon appetit!
August 5th, 2010 @ 2:32 pm
Just an FYI…..you don’t have to live in the country to have chickens!! I live in Ft. Myers Fl, houses couldn’t be any closer, as long as your “City” or Town is ok with it you can have chickens….just make sure you get your proper licenses etc. I live in a gated stuck up community so no chickens for me :-( but my girlfriend’s neighbor has some Rhode Island reds!!
January 4th, 2011 @ 4:22 pm
[…] Yay #2 : HONEY ROCK DAWN […]