Egg on my face.

I know you’re all waiting with bated breath for the update: yesterday I told you that Lily was sitting in the nesting spot Hope created, but I was wrong! A case of mistaken identity: it wasn’t Lily – it was Amelia! I’ve been so convinced that Amelia would be the last to lay an egg that I didn’t see what I saw. In my defense, without being able to see the feathery feet, it’s easy to confuse the two:

Lily

Amelia

I’ve insisted all along that Autumn would be the next to lay, and I do think she’s getting ready. Her comb is so much bigger and redder, and she’s test-driving the nesting spot also:

Autumn's comb is different than the others. It's called a "pea comb"

I think she looks pretty serious about laying here.

But they all proved me wrong yesterday, and it’s a sobering thought to realize you’re not as smart as a chicken.

Chris, our carpenter, came to work on the bench he’s building, and there was a lot of hubbub in the chicken yard. Amelia came out of the coop after laying in the nesting spot for quite awhile, but without leaving a “gift” for us.  A false alarm.

The girls were free-ranging and were startled when Chris turned the power drill on – when I walked over to where they were standing, I saw an egg on the ground. It was still warm. How strange of Hope to lay an egg there, I thought, but we decided it was because the entrance to the coop was blocked in all the construction commotion.

Wrong again, because an hour later, Hope went back in the coop and laid an egg in her usual spot. I realized that the egg I’d found outside wasn’t Hope’s at all. It must have been Amelia’s.

Meanwhile, Autumn is apparently more interested in construction than egg-laying. After her brief visit to the nesting spot, she spent the rest of the morning “helping” the CE put up lights.

Autumn shadowed the CE all morning.

New lights to illuminate the path to the deck

Autumn is proud of her work!

Amelia spent another half hour in the nesting spot this morning, but again emerged without proof that she’s our new layer. Ah, the suspense!

What Chickens Do Best.

First day back in the coop it seemed the chicken chores were taking longer. At first I thought I was just out of coop-cleaning practice after a week away from the girls, but by yesterday I realized the change was not just perceptual, but quantifiable: there is a LOT more chicken poo than there was a few weeks ago.

Christmas has arrived in the chicken yard

Yes, perhaps they are still growing, at least in Amelia’s case I know that’s true. Brahmas are among the slowest-maturing breeds of chickens. What’s really going on, though, I think, is that the drop in temperature – the nights are now in the low 40′s – is causing them to eat more, and, therefore to produce more, um, fertilizer.

A few more chicken yard changes this week: I wanted to soften the contrast between the wall and the fountain, and the CE nixed my idea of a “plant wall”, saying it was too complicated. I think these espalliered camellias are a good substitute:

We were going to plant them in the ground, but I like the height so I think we'll just find pots for them.

And Chris has started building the bench around the tree:

The CE has installed some nice lighting, too, so when summer comes around again, it will be a nice place to be in the evenings.

And – BREAKING NEWS: I just went out to the coop and saw Lily laying in Hope’s nesting spot! Could it be that we’ll get our first Lily egg today?????!!!!

Bedecked.

Lots of progress on the deck yesterday! It’s a little bit bigger than we’d envisioned but it looks great.  You can see where the bench will be around the tree, and there will also be a railing on the near end of the deck. The fountain will go up against that back wall. Pretty nice set-up for the Chicken Kingdom!

The chickens have gotten used to having lots of activity and free-ranging with all the deck-building commotion, so they are NOT happy being closed in their pen this morning. We’ll head over for some free-ranging later this afternoon – the pressure is on to keep the girls happy now that we’re on egg watch.

Some people have lives; I have chickens…

All hands on deck.

Lots of progress on the deck! Today I learned that we will also be getting a nice bench around the big tree in the middle of the deck.

Yesterday they finished digging the foundation

Lots of fun free-ranging for the girls, now 22 weeks old

Some of the boards are starting to go in now

The girls, emboldened by free-ranging, are giving some thought to becoming house chickens. What’s that old saying about a camel under the tent?

Autumn and Hope wonder if the grass is greener where there is none.

Speaking of decks, we’re getting all decked out later today for a big night out. Will try to post some pictures later…

Shuffling the Deck.

I’ve been telling the CE how great it would be to have a deck out in the chicken yard. At first he said, “too much trouble” and “too much expense”.  That was that. And then, right around the next day, he picked up pencil and paper and started designing it. A lot of things start at “no” around here…

NO, we’re not getting another cat (we now have four)

The Shoooooooo Bear

NO, we’re not getting another dog (could you imagine our life without Chloe?!)

Chloe at 3 months

So today work started on the new deck.

The lumber arrived this morning

Nice to have Taylor at home

Chris, who built our chicken coop, is back to work on the deck.

He said NO to the fountain also. We started looking at them yesterday…

Merry Little Kingdom of Odd.

We’re spending a lot of time over in ChickenLand. After fifteen years of neglect, this little corner of our property has suddenly come to life, thanks to the Ladies of the Comb and Wattle. Yesterday I came home from doing errands to find the CE had set up a wine and cheese spread for us in the area where our new deck will go:

Table for Two

Soho was checked out on loan to Granny, but Chloe and Birdie joined us for late afternoon food and free-ranging, partly in honor of the latest improvements in the Chicken Kingdom.

This caged bird is most definitely NOT singing!

The CE is quite proud of this new addition

Along with the new drain system, the CE installed a hose bib and this pretty verdigris holder. The hose itself is of some newfangled high-tech material that makes it especially lightweight – easier for me to manage!

It was a lovely fall afternoon, although things did quickly devolve with the hens getting into mischief. All I can say is that Chloe puts up with a lot!

"Hmmm-she tastes like chicken!"

"You wanna do something about it?"

It’s pretty clear who rules the roost around here…

"What - no pate?"

Coop de Coeur

There was a nice surprise awaiting me when I arrived home yesterday. Taylor and Victoria painted the door to the chicken coop while I was gone. Doesn’t it look great?

What’s more, the CE is moving forward on plans to build  a small deck in the chicken yard.  Here is an outline:

The CE took very good care of the chickens while I was gone. They have now come to believe that daily free-ranging is an entitlement, and they complain mightily if we don’t open the gate to the pen on their command.

Lily free-ranges in the fuchsia

I stopped by the feed store on my way home yesterday to pick up a bag of laying feed for the girls. When I commented that they haven’t yet started to lay, the employees told me that it’s possible that we won’t get eggs until spring. SPRING!!!??? Actually, I knew this was a possibility from the beginning. When we had to postpone getting the chicks from April to June, I realized we would be right up against the edge of the seasons. Chickens go through a molt in early fall, which for our young pullets amounted only to a mild mess of feathers. After a molt, as the feed store employees put it, “they take a break from laying”. A break? How can they need a break if they haven’t laid anything yet?

An example of a mature hen during a molt

The dual factors of a molt and the change of seasons – shorter, colder days of fall – some, perhaps even many, chickens stop thinking about egg-laying until spring. We still think that Hope is getting ready to lay – she has been spending an inordinate amount of time trying to make a “nest” of the paper towels that line the coop counters. Today I’m going to set up the nesting box counter with the same layering of newspapers, paper towels and pine shavings as we have on the other counters, and hope that makes the nesting boxes more attractive to her and her three eggless counterparts. Spring is a long, long ways away and far too long to wait for our first, fresh, organic, free-ranged eggs!

Home Is Where The Hens Are

In Las Vegas, the day begins with a piping hot pot of capuccino delivered to the room and a review of the days’ “tasks”: where to have lunch? Where to have dinner? Which corner of the pool has the best shade? Back home, it’s a bit different: make your own darned coffee and get over to that chicken coop because the girls want out!

Early morning free-ranging

The hens are busy today because the soil is filled with yummy surprises since the landscapers dug the trenches last week. We love the way it looks:

New drainage "moat" around the coop

The chicken yard now has its own water supply!

All in all, it’s good to be back. Look who was waiting to welcome us:

Boo!

Rainy Day Women

You’ve no doubt heard the phrase “mad as a wet hen”? Multiply that times four and you can imagine what I heard when I stepped into the coop this morning. Then add in the coinkidink that the CE decided to start work on a drainage system for the coop yesterday and you’ve got mad and muddy wet hens. Is that the same as a mudhen?

Autumn shakes off the raindrops

Under construction...again

Where is the doorman with our umbrella?

Oh well, we need the rain, right?