An Early Post

Big Day for your blogger. 

I have lunch with my first cousins at 12:30, then back here to do chores... because... Keith and I have a date tonight!  At Christmas, daughter Andrea and son in law Nick gifted us with a certificate for a show at the New Theater Restaurant in Overland Park.  Tonight, we go to have dinner and see "The Buddy Holly Story".  My friend Marcia has seen it and said it was fabulous (she's going back with her sister!) so we are really looking forward to our big date.  The food there is very good, and we have always had a good time when we have gone in the past. 

This is Nugget, whom, you might remember, is the "mother" of the three not-so-little chicks I showed you several days ago. 

About six weeks ago, Nugget went broody again.  She plopped herself into one of the exposed nest boxes in the big henhouse, and rarely came down. 

She is no longer laying... but Buffy the Polish girl would hop up there, and lay in the box where Nugget rested, so I checked under her daily. 

Here she is on the 3rd, totally exposed but doggedly setting. 

See all the mouse holes?  We will never build a henhouse with insulation... this already had it... the mice and snakes made good use of it. 

Back to the point.  Last night, while I was doing the pool water, Nugget jumped down and came outside.  Boots and Speedy were so happy, as she was "their" hen.  She ate and drank and ran around a little.  I talked to her, because I was so glad to see her up and out of the warm house. 

Last night, when I posted the blog... I wrote that we had not suffered any losses in this heat. 

This morning, I found Nugget dead under that box.  

She was our last cochin, and only three. 

My guess is the stress of going without regular food and water (only steps from her in the above picture, just out of camera range) in the heat did it. 

She did not have the "long stare" that a chicken gets before it's natural demise. 

Could also have been a snake, but her head did not have that slimy look where a snake (sorry about this) has tried to swallow them and then backed off, unable to. 

We have seen snakes do that to ducklings and chicks, never a full grown bantam. 

There are now only two small hens in this henhouse, both black and whites... and six large hens, only three of whom are laying. 

Pretty soon it's going to be batchelor's quarters if this keeps up, since there are ten roosters there. 

Once there were almost fifty birds. 

Here's Speedy, the Old English Gamebird rooster, with one of the hens that is still laying, this morning.  

We are expecting the hottest day of the week today.  I did frozen bottles twice yesterday, and the fans were blowing all day and night.  Keith always asks me which is worse when I am dithering... and tonight, I think the popholes stay open.  I have not seen any sign of possums in a long while. 

The heat stress could be worse than the predators tonight. 

We expect calmer, cooler temps for the weekend, and this blogger will be glad to see it! 

Now, off to the garden to do some watering after reading a few blogs. 

Everyone have a great weekend!