The Day After

Things were rather uneasy here today, and despite the heat and blowing wind, quite a few birds hung out inside during the day.  I did water a second time at 1, and then again this evening... it was so hot.

 

As I sat in the pasture filling the bin of water.... everyone hung close to me...

 

 

You can really see Annabelle's new feathers coming in in this picture, especially on her sides, rear, and her chest.

 

 

I was on the phone with Keith when I saw this guy come down out of the maple tree, and come across to the side deck, where he proceeded to go under, to get out of the heat, I'm sure.

 

 

Then, as I checked the big henhouse one last time at dusk... this fella was in there looking around for mice (I hope) because gosh knows I am not getting ANY eggs.  I'll be lucky to have three dozen between the owl attacks, the snakes, the heat... the moult.

 

The owl appears to be a great horned.... I'm hoping to get it on the game camera.  Last night we forcibly put the turkeys in the big henhouse... Jackson will go in willingly, he wanders in and out during the day... the Turkettes had to be lifted in.  Tonight, Jackson flew up to the top of the gate to the big henyard before Keith got here... and we could not get him down.  I'm praying the owl will not visit him tonight.. nothing would convince him or Clara to go into the little henyard, (where they normally sleep) though Annabelle went right in and up onto her doghouse - roost.  Keith, however, lifted her down, and she and Clara are in the four x four pen tonight with the pullets, locked up where the owl can't find them.

 

I did a little research, and Great Horned owls will attack full-grown turkeys.  I would absolutely hate to lose Jackson, I just went out there at 10:30 and he was still awake and looking around on his gate. 

 

I'm hoping we can get a small shed to put in the pasture, where I can lock them up by themselves nightly, away from the chickens and away from predators, the four legged AND the winged kind.

 

Several people commented a few days ago about burying the wire for the new henyard.  The wire IS buried for the old henyards, but this chain link is in the garden, within our yard.  Lilly, who would kill every chicken she could get to.... is also the best protection the chickens have.  She will prevent any critters from getting near them, but just to be sure, Keith and I are going to wrap the inside of the chain link with poultry wire as a second defense, and we will hang netting from the top... we'll show pictures soon of the ingenious way that Keith has created to do it.  We'll also put four x fours at the bottom of the wire, clear around it, if we need to.

 

 

 

Gratuitous picture of pug cuteness, Gertie Lou.

 

 

The First Day of the Rest of my Life

I spent today trying to do too much...  Laundry, vacuuming, cleaning the kitchen, cutting weeds on the mower (the only things growing!) and just generally TOO much in the heat, and yes, it got hot again.

One more day predicted of possible triple digits, and then a plunge to the lower and middle 80's, and some possibilities of rain.... yayyy!

This picture shows the three little older hens, Whitey, Suzi and Fluffy.  Whitey and Fluffy were born here, and Suzi is an old English Gamebird bought several years ago.  The white rooster on the right is either One or Two, one of the three little old roosters out every day with the flock. 

Keith and I talked last night... my original plan was to move all layers to the new henhouse.  It will not have as big a yard or access to the pasture as this one in the big henhouse... but if we can move everyone for a while, he can get into the big henhouse, rip out the sheetrock and expose all the mouse nests... repair the walls and wire off all the access holes at the bottom.. have the electrician re-wire... and make the big henhouse as good as new for as long as we live here.  We are also going to have the electrician run a line to the little henhouse, and put a light fixture and a plug in there so that the roosters who will be batching it in the future in that yard will be good during the winter.

So we will disrupt everyone's lives for a period of about two weeks, and then move all the older birds back, including any non-layers I discern. The Ameracauna hen in the above picture, the buff Chatterbox, is the only green egg layer I have left, but she only lays about 3 times a week.

The standard size juniors are moving into the new henhouse and will stay there, and then Butch, Fancy, and their two hens will move over when the other roosters move back.  My goal is to be able to get clean eggs, and not have to hunt high and low to find them. The four in the feed room, Butch, et al, will move into the outdoor pen as soon as the juniors move out.

We have way too many roosters right now. 

Here is one:

This is the chick born in the pasture pen that survived three months ago, purebred Mille Fleur D'Uccle.

Here are his little siblings born last week:

One is a purebred Mille, on the left, and the other, a Mille/silkie/Brahma (I think) cross.

I'm praying they are both girls!

The females in this pen will also move, I'll leave one with Cocky, the adult Mille Fleur in it, to keep him company, but the others will move with the other layers, including this mama you can barely see in the picture, Fleura.

Gratuitous Pug Cuteness.. Gertie Lou was sound asleep and snoring after getting the toys she wanted!

This little girl is so very dear to our hearts, and we continue to marvel that not one but two families cast her out as a young girl.

We continue to be so grateful she came into our lives.