I want to share a little story about one of my hens. Her name is Sno, I got her and her sister Mo after one of my Silkies went to the big coop in the sky. I didn't think Jenny would do good alone, so I rushed off to Griff's and got two baby chicks. Both Amerucanas. Sno was the only pure white one and ~ well I had to have that one and then we picked mo, because she had a black patch in her head that looked like a mohawk. That lasted about a month and then it was gone.
Snow and Mo have been raised by my Jenny, they always nestled next to her and roosted with her when they got bigger. They were so much smaller than she was, but being a Batam Silkie Jenny is now dwarfed by Sno and Mo.
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| Jenny and Sno |
That is Jenny and Mo, right when I introduced them. I am sure Jenny was like "what the heck is this thing?". But she quickly started mothering them. Never a peck or a squawk towards them.
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| Jenny and Mo |
They all stayed in the brooder until Mo and Sno had their feathers and then I put them in the little coop. I didn't want to throw them right in with Carrie and Miranda, they were already established and HUGE!!!
So after about another month after it was dark and I put all three into the big coop, I call it the "slip 'em in while they are asleep" tactic. They all wake up and would be like, "Yo who are you?" "Dude I have been here forever, you are losing it"
It worked, they all five get along great. In fact sometimes they all roost side by side. Carrie laid her first egg November 25, 2012, Miranda followed about 3-4 weeks later.
Then on Wednesday January 23, 2013 I came home and gathered eggs, there were THREE! I was sure I collected late the night before so I knew I had a mystery layer. I had a mystery to solve and by golly I grabbed my Nancy Drew hat and I dug right in. I gathered DNA, took finger prints, made mold castings of foot prints. It was on, on like Donkey Kong.
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| Three blue eggs, the brown is a wooden one Apparently I was so excited I could not hold camera still |
Actually I popped out the SIM card of the trail camera I set up in the coop aimed right at box number one, the one Carrie and Miranda use. Ran into the house, and put it in my computer to find the frame that told who dun it!
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| Thanks to technology mystery solved, time date and temperature recorded |
This picture is the exact moment she stood up after laying her very first egg. I am so proud..........tear!
She was hatched sometime at the end of July 2012 or the beginning August 2012, I got her on the 24th, and she had to have been a few weeks old before they sell them. So the wait is on for Mo to start laying. Jenny should be close too. So roughly 5-1/2 - 6 months old when she laid her first egg.
I have since bought two more cameras for outside when they are free ranging. I want to see more of what Rogue does during the day when mine are in their run and he is outside looking in.
This weekend is my first official "Super Duper Coop Clean", I am going to remove all hay, feeders and pressure wash the coop and spritz some bleach, rinse and let dry. Once dry I will sprinkle some DE about and re hay the coop. Chickens do not really smell per say, but the poop is I guess what people complain about being so smelly. I dump and clean off the poop tray weekly and I don't think I ever say "OMG these things stink". I smell their bodies more then the poop actually. But that has that warm animal smell. But then again when you compare three Labradors and one cock-a-poo's poop everything smells good. The big dogs - WOW!!!!! I feel like I am on constant poop patrol, chickens, dogs and cats. POOP POOP POOP!
The pressure wash plan was hatched (pun intended) after my neighbor two doors down pressure washed his sidewalk. NOW I have to do mine, and since I will have it out, may as well do the back patio and end out the day with a coop clean. (I will probably start with the coop so it can dry before dark).
If you are interested in joining a fantastic chicken community group on facebook please type into the search bar ~ Annmarie Fino. Friend request her and you can join this group, we are hoping to form a little community
Here is what the creator has to say about it:
ATTENTION: South Florida areas of Broward, Miami-Dade, Monroe, and Collier County.We are attempting to build a network of chicken friends, breeders, and backyard enthusiasts for production birds, pets, and show in the (very south) South Florida areas of Broward, Miami-Dade, Monroe, and Collier County.Once we have a group of 5 or more, we would like to begin immediately with workshops, backyard tours, and swaps so that we can learn from each other, and share resources and support.Will you please help us find others in our area by promoting our new Facebook group via this search term ...SoFlo Chick N Friends or contact me directly through private message on BYC.I APPRECIATE EVERYONE'S HELP!XOXO ANNMARIE
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