Chick, Chick

And then there were six.  Eggs, that is.  In the last 2 weeks our eggs per day have doubled, then doubled again and again.  It's such a thrill and the thrill isn't lessening with each new day.  Every afternoon I walk out to the coop, open the back and... presents!!!  And I don't just mean bird droppings.  If I had known what a wonder this all was, I would have had chickens in the city a long time ago.

People don't tell you how neat chickens are.  I mean, really tell you.  Sure, I have heard, "I love our chickens, I love watching our chickens, our chickens are funny, they have such personalities", but they are really, really neat!

They are friendly.  I researched before I got the chickens on the best egg layers with the friendliest personalities and came up with Barred Plymouth Rocks.  They are also good for their meat, which I don't plan on finding out.  If it was the end of the world, maybe, but I'll put that on the back burner for now.

I needed friendly birds because I have always been afraid of them.  I remember walking down by the Fox River near my home in Wisconsin and a huge flock of birds were on the telephone wires squawking away. I must have been near their nests because they started dive bombing me and shrieking.  I ran out of there so fast, my heart jumping out of my chest!

I ordered the chicks from a mail order company as close to me in TX as I could get.  I figured I didn't need Alaskan chicks.  The less stress on them the better. They arrived in a little cardboard box which I asked my husband to open in case any of them had died.  But no, six fluffy little chicks, the five I had ordered and the bonus chick they generally include in case you lose one in shipping. They were soooo cute, but I still had quivers down my spine at the thought of touching them.

I had their little home all set up.  A wire dog cage with the top piece zip tied along the back, so I could move it up and down, set on our screened in porch.  Inside I had encircled a big piece of corrugated plastic to keep any breeze off them.  It had a layer of newspaper and then shavings on top of that and then paper towel on top of that, so they wouldn't eat the shavings.  I also had a thermometer and a heat lamp to keep them warm.

I had Gro-gel prepared which is a green powder that you mix with water that becomes gelly. It is full of vitamins.  I also mixed up a batch of water for them with added electrolytes and probiotics to replenish anything they might have lost from their travel to me and there was chick food scattered on the paper towels.

I put the box in the cage, then tipped it to get the chicks out, less touching this way.  But now I had to dip their beaks in water to make sure they all drank.  I took a deep breath and they were so soft, but weird feeling, like I was touching a bird! Ugh.  It wasn't that bad if I didn't look at their feet.  They were so birdlike!

Let's say I got over it, kind of.  I don't sweep down and pick them up now, but I pet them all time and let them come around me without getting freaky.  I HAVE picked them up to put them in the coop when I need to, but that isn't a daily occurrence.

They run up to me anytime I walk outside and are very curious as to what I am doing.  I might have treats.  They let me pet their beautiful, soft feathers, but if they are unsure, they look like they are playing a game of Green Light, Red Light.  Run, Run, Run...OH NO she is coming towards me.  STOP!  Crouch.  Wait.  Green Light.... GO!  It is hilarious!

The chickens are a little shy.  They surround me, cluck at me and follow me, but they rarely touch.  It's like me with Kelly Clarkson.  "Do you see me?  Do you like me?  Will you notice me?  Hey! Hey!  Over here!!!  Wait!  Are you nice? "

Sometimes they hop on the porch and watch us through the windows.  They will talk to us with rolling sounds that turn into a real "cluck" noise.  And if you talk to them, they will always cock their head to the side like they are really listening to you.

Watching them run is my favorite thing to do.  It is like if you tied your hands behind your back and sprinted down the road.  They have soft fluffy rears that wiggle back and forth.  So funny!

I have a horrible time telling them apart.  I should have gotten a mixed batch, but one has a crooked comb, named after my friend, Sheila, and there is another with a crooked right toe who I am thinking of naming Lisa, but to tell you the truth, end up calling her "crooked toe" all the time.  I spend a lot of time with them and will get their names to them soon enough. They will be Sheila, Lisa, Nancy, Flo, Audrey and Debbie, after my friends from League City.

We close them in their coop and run in the evening for their safety, but let them free range all day.  They mostly stick together in groups of 3 or all together, separating only to go to the coop to lay an egg.  They put themselves to bed at night, so we just have to close the door.  The coop and donkeys are also in the same acre pen, so they keep an eye on the chickens for us at night.

So if you ask, I love my chickens,  I love watching our chickens, our chickens are funny, they have such personalities.  One more thing; they give us incredible eggs.  The yolks are a bright orange, the whites clear, the taste, amazing.  It tastes real, not at all processed or watered down, rich.

Get chickens, even if only 2 or 3, you won't regret it. This here is Lisa, aka Crooked Toe.

Chickens in the Road

Anyone who has known me for any length of time knows I am a harsh judge when it comes to the books I read.  They are too detailed, too long, too dull, too wordy.  My biggest pet peeve is when they use fancy vocabulary which requires me to look up every other word.  Write normal for crying out loud!  I am here to happily report I have found a book that I LOVE by Suzanne McMinn called Chickens in the Road.

Suzanne has written a memoir of her experiences starting a small farm in West Virginia with her boyfriend and 3 children.  There is just enough personal information to keep you informed and interested without system overload, the main focus of the book on how she started each new project, how she afforded them and how they turned out.

She has chickens, pigs, goats, sheep, a cow, dogs, cats, etc. and strives for self-sufficiency making her own cheese, bread, butter, meat, eggs and anything else she can get her hands on.  Her descriptions have just the right amount of information to give you a good idea of how she is doing it without being bogged down by too many details.

McMinn, a former romance writer, has an easy going writing style, making you feel as if you have made a new friend who is sharing her experiences with you.  I like her. I like her farm and I like her style.

This is one of the best "back to basics" memoirs I have read in a long time.  I couldn't put it down.  You can follow her on her blog at http://chickensintheroad.com.  Here she has her site separated in different interests for those of you who love recipes, or want to read about her animals, the crafts she has made or the classes she is offering.

I highly recommend this book and site.  I want to be her minus the winter driving escapades.  lol