Hello New Feathered Friends!

Mr. Peeper and two of my hens are gone - Carmela Brown and Cheddar.  So is the raccoon that killed them, trapped and turned loose into a wild habitat that is miles from homes or someone else's chickens.  Mr. Peeper was buried in the backyard along with several others that have met with urban predators over the last few years and I know that he would approve of becoming a part of the yard he loved to roam.  

A very unhappy raccoon

The "survivors" Sylvia, Chicky-Licky and Layla have taken it in stride (after all they are hard core chickens) and went on with the usual scratching and poking around. Layla was on the receiving end of the older hens authority and she took to hiding and keeping to herself so of course, I needed to remedy THAT situation by bringing in a couple of new hens. 

Evan loving Layla

Perfect timing.  My oldest grandson Evan, weighing in at 6 years, 11 months, had come to visit from Colorado, so we made a trip to Robin's house in Calimesa after seeing her "chickens for sale" ad in CheapCycle.  Robin has close to an acre for her chicken endeavors so we had many to choose from.  I could not resist when she mentioned the young male that would grow into a huge rooster and how even-tempered and beautiful he would be.  I scooped him up and cradled him in my arm. He comes with the guarantee that if he doesn't work out, I can return him.  Evan had the honor of picking out a couple of pretty girls, an Australorp and Rhode Island Red and will help name them as we get to know them. 

This new young male will be a handsome rooster soon

So home we went with three new, young chickens in the carrier.  Evan already had many names ready but we'll still wait on that.  Here's the surprise though.  Just a few hours later, after we'd situated the young hens in their pen and after a period of loving and holding by Evan, I received a phone call from a friend.  "Nadine?  This is Greg.  Do you still have chickens?  I found a couple down at the park.  They look like they need a home.  They're friendly and they're hungry and thirsty."  (Sigh), they are Rhode Island Reds and I decided immediately that I could figure out how to fit them in. 

Reds are one of my favorite chickens.  They are consistent layers with a sweet disposition.  They seem to have distinct personalities and I just love them.  Within the hour the group of three became the gang of five which is important.  When introducing new chickens to a coop, there is safety in numbers.  After a couple of days, the two newcomers have assimilated with the three and have a much better chance of staying clear of mother hen Chicky-Licky who takes it upon herself to dole out discipline and establish her pecking order at the scratch of foot.  

Why in fact, Ms. Chicky-Licky took no time in filling in Mr. Peeper's role of keeping her compadres in line and pointing out possible food sources with a rooster-type chucking sound.  I don't know, I'm beginning to wonder about her.  As for the other fully grown hens, they tend to bully the young'uns just a bit but now, because they are FIVE, they have less harassment and more scratching time.

Chicky-Licky asserts her authority over the new chickies

As I write, the newbies are roaming the penned in yard area, opening them up to the danger of predators of all sorts.  While this can be devastating to the human owner as well as the chicken - it gives them a quality of life that makes us all happy.  When several chickens are concentrated in a coop, it gets dirty very quickly and the bug population they so love is limited having been exhausted due to the small area.  I take comfort in their ability to run and scratch, take dirt baths and discover new places to turn the soil over and over again.  Their poo makes excellent compost and they eat the fallen fruit from the trees.  They are happy chickens and happy chickens lay beautifully delicious eggs.

So, welcome my new feathered ones.  We'll be asking for name suggestions soon and we'll be looking for YOU to stop by and see us and perhaps become a chicken lover.   I'd love to add YOU to my Chicken Love page so stop by and hold a chicken soon!

In order of appearance:  Buffy, Mr. Peeper and Rojacita.  My Colorado chickies - may they rest in peace in their backyard home free of fear, always well fed and may they never need to cross another road, ever.