A Skunk Visit

Early August has been tough for the girls...they are hardly laying any eggs and at least Eunice and Delores are starting to moult and there are feathers everywhere. Moulting is the yearly ritual of shedding feathers and growing a new set. It normally happens in the fall but the girls are getting a jump start and Eunice is starting to look more scrawny than usual.

And now skunks... Two weeks ago Naomi sighted a couple of skunks in the yard one morning. Following the advice of one of our kids she called the police in case the skunks were rabid as they are not usually out during the day. The police weren't that concerned and after the initial visit the skunks disappeared.

But today we saw a very bushy skunk wandering up the sidewalk about 1 in the afternoon without a care in the world. As soon as it I saw it I ran for the back to put the girls back in the coop but they were already there and screaming away. They really are an early warning system for all kinds of prey but they normally don't head into the coop if I've left them out in the yard. They'll either scatter to the bushes or stand still and scream. Not much of a defense when the hawk is scouting out its next meal. I was very grateful for their protective instincts today.

A couple of neighbors had already called the Animal Control Officer to report the skunk and I did the same as we were all concerned about its behavior. I didn't want him to think this was related to my keeping chickens as the skunk was wandering in several yards and in the street. Basically, since the skunk didn't appear to be rabid (no wandering in circles or menacing behavior) there wasn't much the officer could do as the skunk was more nuisance than anything. Since a neighbor had earlier seen the skunk with its kids we certainly didn't want to separate them. The officer said it wasn't uncommon this time of year for raccoons and skunks to come out during the day to forage for food for their children.

My feeling is that we need to co-exist with this skunk as it's her neighborhood too though I'd prefer she return to her more nocturnal habits. I'll just have to be more careful about letting the girls outside the coop. I'm thankful they alert me to every potential danger in the yard, real or imagined.

Where Have all the Eggs Gone?

It's now early August and we're experiencing a strange phenomena...very few eggs.. from a high of 4 a day in the spring we are now getting 1 every other day. I'm not sure if it's the weather, Eunice's broodiness, or something else.

I consulted my favorite web site, http://www.backyardchickens.com/forum, and it looks like the heat is a big factor. Stress can also be an issue and that probably explains Eunice's problems. Soon the girls will moult, when they lose most of their feathers, and egg production will be low as they use their resources to make new feathers and not eggs.

I'm looking forward to the cooler weather when the eggs come back..I miss them.

Eunice Goes Broody

While on vacation in July we got a call of 'concern' from Andrea, our vacation chicken sitter supervisor (Lauren's mom) that Eunice wouldn't leave the nesting box inside the coop.... I knew right away she'd gone 'broody' - that maternal condition when a hen sets herself on the eggs for hatching. Unfortunately for Eunice, all the setting in the world wasn't going to hatch those eggs as there's no rooster in their lives. We thought about coming home early from vacation but a reassuring call to Sharon, Naomi's daughter, and mother to many chickens, convinced us that Eunice would be fine, she just needed access to food and water until we returned.

So, armed with the gloves and determination, and with the neighbors to watch, I faced off with Eunice in the coop, prepared for her maternal instincts to defend her nest. Instead, all I did was give her a little prod and she fluffed her feathers and squawked and then got up from the nest where 6 eggs (none of them were hers) sat, warm and unhatched. I sadly threw out all the eggs since they probably were no good to eat and closed the coop door to keep Eunice out. She was miserable, Delores was unhappy, and after a few hours I opened the door and they went back in to the nest.

For the next week Eunice was in and out of the nesting box, some days spending most of her time there, but eventually she lost interest and returned to her normal behavior. But she hasn't laid an egg in over two weeks...

The Girls Have Their Healthcheck

One of the requirements of the Board of Health was that the girls be inspected by a representative from the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources within the first year. I never did understand if that was the first year of life or the first year of living with me or of laying eggs but in early May I did contact the inspector and had someone come out to see the girls. There are pictures posted of the inspection here.

Basically, chickens need to be certified that they are free of several diseases in part so that they may be freely transported without fear of disease being spread. This especially applies to folks who want to show chickens (not me) and it ensures that a chicken that is sold is in good health. I found out that the hatchery 3 of the girls came from qualifies them for automatic passing and they did not need to be tested. But since Eunice came from the Topsfield Poultry Auction she needed her blood tested.

So, on a lovely May afternoon the woman from the inspection department came, dressed up in a protective suit and drew blood from the girls for testing. A week later I received their certificate of good health and no sign of Avian Influenza or Pullorum. Each hen has a leg band certifying her good health. The state takes poultry disease prevention very seriously and I am glad I followed through with the exam.

From what I have heard from other chicken owners in other towns Beverly is more strict about poultry testing and I am glad for it.

Eunice Arrives!

After Cora left in August I wanted to get another hen to fill out our small family of four. By September both Althea and Beatrice were laying and the eggs were wonderful so I was anxious to contine this steady source of eggs. There was no way to know when Delores would begin laying and that meant only two hens and no more than two eggs a day. Getting another hen seemed a natural solution.

The Topsfield Fair holds a poultry auction the weekend after the fair closes and I'd decided to get a hen there. I had no idea what I was getting into... My daughter and her family wanted chicks so along with chicken sitter friend Martha we all headed to Topsfield. The Essex Aggie FFA sponsers this event and all manner of poultry are offered for sale. It's not like a furniture auction where you view the items before the sale - at the poultry auction each item is brought out and auctioned off so there's no way to know what's behind the barn door. Therefore, the first few single hens came and went before I realized I'd better start bidding if I wanted to be sure of getting one. I bid a couple of times but lost and then panic began to set in - what if there were no more single birds? There were plenty of pairs, dozens of chicks, ducks, and turkeys along with other assorted fowl. I decided to go after the next single hen and so I paid $15 for a Silver Campine - a breed I'd never heard of - but a pretty silver bird with a black tail. I later found out this is an ornamental breed from Belgium. Ornamental! What was I thinking? I needed a good sturdy hen with lots of feathers for the cold winter nights.

I now had a 'pullet' (young hen) to add to the family and I knew only the basics of integrating her with the others. We named our new girl 'Eunice' and in taking the advice of an old timer at the fair, placed her in the coop with the other hens after dark knowing that by morning they'd all be friends. Ha! It might have been quiet all night in the coop but when I opened the coop's sliding door in the morning all hell broke loose. It's like going to bed as a kid and waking up to find your parents have adopted another child! You're going to be mad!

Eunice was attacked by all the hens, especially Althea, who seemed most upset by her prescence. It was really very painful to watch the girls go after Eunice who had nowhere to escape. She flew to the top of the coop where she stayed for days. At least she was safe as the other hens wouldn't fly up there. I literally had to put Eunice inside the coop with the others every night just to have her fly out the next morning to her safe spot. Nights were quiet and the days were tense. I tried everything from letting them all out in the yard together (big mistake, Eunice ran off two houses away and had to be cornered in a soccer goal net where I grabbed her) to keeping them in the run for several days with no yard time (another mistake..they went stir crazy) to spraying them with lemon juice at night so they'd all smell the same. Nothing eased the fighting and the best I got was an uneasy truce. Meanwhile, I gave Eunice her own water and food in her perch and prayed a lot.

But this story does have a happy ending. About 3 weeks after Eunice arrived, just when I was considering giving her up, my son-in-law showed up one Sunday morning to start running electricity out to the coop (my birthday present). I came back from church to find Bill digging a trench and four happy hens playing in the yard. No fighting, no blood, just an occasional squawk from Eunice who now tagged along with the others. The fighting was over and Eunice was part of the group. She never went back to her perch above the coop and she went inside with the others every night. It was an amazing transformation. I won't pretend it was completely peaceful after that as Althea had to assert herself as boss and did so with the occasional nip but Eunice obliged by following her everywhere probably to Althea's annoyance.

Since this rather unpleasant period I have since learned there are better ways to introduce a new bird and many folks agree that new birds should be kept in separate cages for up to a month to prevent the introduction of disease to the existing flock - something I'd never even considered! That gives them time to adjust without getting too close so that when they're allowed to mix it isn't quite so scarey. I do know that mixing new and old can have serious consequences and sometimes the birds can be quite cruel with devestating affects. All in all, I was quite lucky in my ignorance....

We now have our full complement of four hens - everyone's laying, they're happy and healthy, and they've certainly enriched my life!

The Girls Spring Break - 2008

Just to skip ahead a bit, this spring vacation Naomi and I went to South Carolina for 10 days. Our usual chicken sitter, Martha, was unavailable so we engaged some of the neighborhood kids to take care of the girls. As low maintenance as chickens are you just can't leave them without some basic care when you live it town.

Their normal routine is to be let out of the coop every morning. This means sliding the door that opens from the coop into the enclosed run. The water must be changed and food provided. Since I use a 3 gallon metal feeder for food I only have to fill it every couple of weeks. But water is another thing and chickens require access to fresh water, especially in the warm weather. At night it's just the opposite - shut them in the coop to ensure that predators don't break into the run. I don't know that every coop has to be closed but I always shut mine. I am very aware that the local racoons and skunks would love a chicken dinner so it's just part of the girls' normal care that the coop be closed tightly. Once it gets dark chickens will normally go back to their roost which makes the bedtime routine very easy.

I live in a great neighborhood with lots of kids and I've had many offers of help in the past year. It was nice to be able to have some of the older kids take care of the chickens while we were gone. Between Darcy, Jake, and Lauren we worked out a schedule for morning and evening coverage and the kids did a great job. Darcy has had previous sitting experience with the girls so she was able to let them out in the yard for some evening foraging before dark which they really love.

I think gathering the eggs was one of the high points for the kids. It really is wonderful getting fresh eggs every day and nothing in the supermarket compares to them for taste. I'm amazed by the daily miracle of the egg and since each girl has a distinctive style I can pretty much tell who is laying when. We get up to 4 eggs a day..

It was a big relief knowing the chickens were well cared for - we had a great vacation and I think they did too.

So if you're considering getting chickens and concerned about leaving them don't hesitate to involve the local kids. It's great for them and great for the chickens. It's not too much work and there are always parents to help out in an emergency, like a loose chicken! My girls see me coming and pace inside the run, hoping to be let out.

I really think that having chickens has been very positive for this neighborhood. If nothing else, heads turn when the girls are out front or in the driveway, and we're now a regular stop for some of the local moms pushing carriages. I would love to see a few more families start raising hens! It's a very manageable activity and something everyone in the family can participate in. The chickens are no more work than any other pet once the coop is built. Coops can be as elaborate or simple as you want - built from recycled materials, expanded dog houses, more complex buildings, or purchased ready made. Here's a great design that requires no building skills - the Eglu is already assembled - http://www.omlet.us/products_services/products_services.php?view=Chickens.

Haven't conviced you yet? How about fresh eggs higher in omega-3 and lower in cholesterol than typical storebrand eggs? How about getting rid of bugs in your yard? How about a free source of garden compost (once it's aged)? And best of all, chicken TV...they are just plain fun to watch! I also know that I'm raising hens in a humane way and that they have a very good life. I'm also a lot closer to my food source, just like when I grow my own vegetables. I am surprised how much I've enjoyed having chickens in the past year - it's really had a huge influence on my life. Just ask Naomi! But I promised her no goats! (-:

Cora grows up

It didn't take too long before we realized Cora might not be Cora, but could actually be Carl or Corey... There was a suspicious red mass growing on her head and in late June, at about 6-7 weeks of age, I heard a stange sound coming from the backyard as I stumbled into the bathroom before the sun was up. It was actually very upsetting to think that one of my girls might not be... For one thing, roosters are definitely not allowed in Beverly and I certainly wanted to stay in my neighbors' good graces. But most of all, I'd grown attached to all my chickens and did not like the thought of parting with any one of them.

As the summer went on and the chickens grew, Cora became more assertive and clearly was the leader of the pack. My fears grew and by the time we went to northern Maine for a week's vacation in late July I was terrified that Cora would become the official alarm clock of Prospect Hill. I left our young chicken sitter, Darcy, with instructions on how to reach us if any problems arose and off we went. Two days later she left us a message on our cell phone....there was a definite crowing one morning when she went to open the coop sliding door as Cora announced herself to the world. I spent the rest of the vacation fretting about the animal control officer stopping by with a warrant for Cora's arrest and deportation. But alas, my fears were mostly unfounded, and we returned from vacation knowing we needed to deal with Cora's blossoming adolescence.

The wonderful thing about having our oldest daughter living on a farm is that she was only too happy to help us put Cora in the Chicken Witness Protection Program. After all, she got us into this predicament when she shared her chicks with us so it was up to her to now bail us out! (Or so I hoped...) In all fairness, I did try to find a home locally for Cora but it's just not that easy to place a rooster in a foster home and not worry about which Sunday she's going to show up on the menu. And let's face it, how many people do you know raise chickens and can accomodate a pet rooster? I figured that if I could find Cora a home then I couldn't be too fussy about her future and this might just be her, or his, mission in life...

I was very happy when Sharon offered to take Cora on their summer visit east in late August and I counted the days until she left, apologizing to our neighbors and hoping no one turned us in. When the actual day came for Cora to leave I felt both relief and sadness as she began her new life as head rooster of Gleanings Farm. I knew she'd have a good life and I'd get to see her, or now him, on my visits to the kids.

Cora's departure left one spot open in our coop...