Whew, FInished!

And on to getting ready to put the tree up!

 

Look what I saw a few minutes ago, out in the yard... I heard a sound and looked up!

 

As you can see, it is a glorious day.  This gaggle flew to the east, then looped around and came back.

 

 

I have seen them on our neighbor's pond, across the road from us.  For some reason, geese don't land on the Spehar's ponds.  I have seen a pair down there from time to time, but the bigger gaggles don't land there.

 

In the new henspa, this pair is STILL up on the nest boxes after five days.

 

 

I cannot believe that this rooster, who ruled the roost in the feed room of the big henhouse, is scared to come down and face off with Junior, who is seven months old.  However, the only place he has gone is up onto the rafters, to walk around and sleep.  I figured once everyone started going outside, he would come down.  There are exactly three teeny roosters in there, besides him, and that's how it's staying.  Instead, the big, brave Fancy is a prisoner to the top of the nest boxes, it appears.  At least I haven't been whapped in the back of the legs for a few days.  You notice there is water and feed up there, so yes, I'm an enabler,

 

 

Behold... the As-Clean-As-It's-Going-to-Get-Big Henhouse.

 

Whew.

 

See that nest box sitting on the floor on the right?  An egg is laid in it daily.

 

I lifted it up:

 

 

 

This is why I cleaned all around it and left it there.  See the pinkies?  Butch ate a whole nest of them on the other side.  I couldn't do it again.  See the delicious worms on the left?  The hens didn't.

 

 

Happiness reigned.  (I put an entire bale of straw in there, don't worry)

 

I changed out the waterers on both sides, the feed.... and did all the outside water and feed.

 

Might as well get it all done at once.

 

 

 

Butch, good eye.

 

 

Butch, bad eye side.  This is why he lives in the feed room.

 

No, THIS is why he lives in the feed room:

 

 

Stinker.

 

The partridge rooster, Handsome, lurks at the door between the feed room and the coop just for this reason. 

 

I separated them, but they actually COULD get together to fight, there is a hole in the wire where the hens go back and forth, so no... Butch isn't lonely.

 

Some more little hens are going to disappear from the little henhouse tonight, and move to the henspa.

 

 

While I was trundling the cart over to the compost pile, I decided to water the perennials for a bit.  It is so dry here, and the ground soaked it up.  We're praying for rain daily, I pray morning and evening that we get a day or two of soaking rain.  It's 51 degrees here this afternoon, and was 74 yesterday.  The temps are going to trend downwards until early next week, when they are telling us a chance of rain/snow.

 

Now to the shower, so I can clean up and start the stew!