Chicken palace

The hens are officially moved out of the chicken shack and into their new chicken palace.

The new coop. It is 6 feet tall, 9 feet long, 5 feet deep.

The hens perch and the henhouse

Their new nest box (with 2 nest box roll away inserts).

The nest box inserts

Perch/sleeping roost inside henhouse

The gals checking out their new digs.

Raise the roof

After ~10 hours of work today we have the roof up on the coop and the hen house portion is fully framed.

New coop

We started working on the new coop today. We have the edge piers in the ground. They are 8X8X16 inch cement blocks. We also finished framing one wall. Exciting!

The corner piers are in the ground and the wholes are dug for the other 4 blocks.

The frame for the front wall of the new coop.

Lots of hard work and exciting things to come

For the last few weeks we have had issues with the hens eating their own eggs. It was terrible. We tried many suggestions to get them to stop: adding fake eggs to the nest boxes, covering the fake eggs with mustard, and even filling eggshells with mustard. Nothing worked. We purchased nest box inserts that have a roll away design. The idea is that the hen lays the egg, is rolls down a slight ramp, and is deposited in a place inaccessible to the hen. That worked for us! Yesterday we got one egg but saw the remains of an eaten egg. Today we collected 3 fresh eggs! HOORAY~

Today was also a long and exciting day in the backyard. We moved the coop to a different location in the backyard. We dug out all of the remaining deep litter (a gross and difficult job) and roughly leveled the spot where the coop had been located. This was all done because tomorrow we are getting a huge pile of materials delivered to the house so that we can build a brand new coop for the hens! The gals are going to get a palace. It will be 5 feet wide by 9.5 feet long and 6 feet tall. It will be easier for us to clean but more importantly it will give the hens a lot more room to roam. We are very excited but it will be a big project! Hopefully we will have photos soon.

Winter

It is mid February and the hens have finally gotten used to winter. After the first few snowfalls they were not happy. Willow initially refused to stand on the snow and would perch on the food dish and stick her head into it from the top in order to eat.

Willow standing on the lid/top of the feeder.

The hens have also been molting. While they look fine with their seasonal feather loss it means that I am cleaning out the bedding/molted feather mix every few days.

Willow standing in the bedding/feather mix created after just 2 days. How are they losing so many feathers and still looking relatively normal???

The ladies moving around the henhouse while getting settled for the evening. Merrill is on a perch, Henrietta is looking to the left, Willow is at the front left looking at the camera suspiciously, and Tara is coming in from the cold.

Cluck cluck cluck

I was cleaning out the chicken coop this evening. The hens are molting and they basically explode feathers daily. Every few days I need to completely clean the coop of all the feathers that have now mixed with the bedding to create a fluffy colorful floor to the coop. I got home later than expected so it was getting close to dusk. I am cleaning the coop out and the hens are all clucking at me desperate to get back in their home. "Momma hen, it is late! It is dark! We need safety! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! Move, move MOOOOVE!". I managed to clean it all out and the second I finished I had four excited hens running into the coop and leaping up onto the perch for the night. It was quite the site. I image it all looked ridiculous to the neighbor watching me do the cleanup.

My first video attempt

The hens really like fall!

Photo time from a sunny Sunday afternoon with the hens.

Eggs from Sunday breakfast. 2 are a plain brown and 2 are brown with dark brown speckles.

All 4 hens out in the yard foraging.

Why are the chickens checking out my herb garden? That oregano is not for you Tara and Merrill!

Find the hen! Willow (or possibly Tara) foraging in the herb garden. She was kicked out after this photo was taken.

Merrill (in the foreground) and Henrietta (in the background) scratching in the grass. I know Merrill found at least one worm that afternoon.

A close up of Henrietta with Merrill poking her head in the shot.

Have you hugged a chicken recently? A photo of me holding Willow after she again tried to go into my herb garden. STAY OUT OF THERE GALS or risk being picked up and moved!

Rain rain go away!

This week marked our 12th egg from the chickens. We have now collected over a dozen wonderful eggs and the hens just keep laying more. We are up to 2-3 eggs a day.

This morning I was outside doing the weekend coop clean and getting the hens fresh food and water when it started raining. The hens were scrambling to get out of the run and into the hen house. Meanwhile, I am in the hen house scrubbing and cleaning. Tara came over and pecked me and the brush. Willow started whining at me to get out. It was a frantic dash to finish cleaning out the coop as I was getting more and more soaked by the rain. I hope the chickens know how much I like them ... but I think they are just annoyed at me for keeping them out of their warm enclosure as it was raining.

Breakfast

Our total egg collection count is now up to 3. Yesterday evening I went out to the herb garden to grab some things for dinner and Tara was in the process of laying an egg. Willow and Tara are ahead of the curve in our mini flock. I gave Tara some sage and basil as a reward for her yummy present. She loves sage and pecked at my hand trying to get more.

Our first egg breakfast. A lightly buttered slice of bread, one egg cooked over medium with the yolk cracked (oozey goodness!), and a cup of coffee. The yolk was very orange and it tasted wonderful! It wasn't much food once it was shared between 2 people but it was still very tasty.

So far we have only eaten one of the eggs. The very first egg was shared as part of a teeny tiny breakfast on Sunday morning. For scale reasons I included the fork in the photo.

A witness for egg #2

In the mornings, as we give the hens their food and water, they hint rather strongly that they want to go out into the yard. Willow literally pushes up against us to go outside. Nudging her back into the coop is a morning ritual. We let them out in the afternoons/evenings but never in the morning. The chickens disagree with our executive decision and every day they stage a mini-protest and ask to go out. Sorry ladies, but you have to wait until we get home from work and can watch over as you forage. Rules are important (though they can and do get broken on weekends when we are home). Also, if they seriously want to protest I need to see some better signs or at least an awesome drum circle. Have they not learned anything from living in Wisconsin?

This morning I was greeted by 3 out of our 4 hens as I gave them food. When I poured a new pile of grit it was still only 3 hens. After I had taken the water dish out, cleaned it, added fresh water, walked back to the coop, AND put it into the run there were still only 3 hens. Then I heard it: a squawking, a clucking, a flapping of wings, and one loud final squawk. After the ruckus Willow came wandering down the ramp into the run. I opened up the nest box and found a freshly laid still warm egg waiting for me. At least now I know why she wasn't pushing to get outside this morning... she is the first of our hens to start laying eggs!

A first....

I was finishing the coop cleaning tonight and when I opened the nest box lid I got a wonderful surprise: our first egg!!!

Our very first egg from our backyard hens. It is small, fits neatly into my palm, and is a very pale brown. (pre-rinse)

A close up of the egg once it was washed/rinsed. It is a gorgeous brown color with small brown spots all over the shell.

Hug a chicken

We were cleaning out the chicken coop today and let the chickens out to wander the backyard. Willow was being especially friendly so she got picked up and hugged. Have you hugged a chicken today?

Willow is now friendly enough that she can be easily handled. Here she is being held up at chest height with no resistance or complaint.

Tara (black and white) and Henrietta (black and orange) wandering around the backyard.

Weed eaters

This weekend we had some gorgeous weather so we let the chickens out of their coop while we sat outside reading. They very kindly went after the creeping charlie (weeds) in the backyard for me.

Come out, come out, wherever you are! The door is wide open. A photo of the chickens coming out of their coop.

Merrill hanging out on the grass and weeds enjoying the beautiful weather.

Henrietta and Merrill (the two golden laced wyandottes) out on the lawn.

All 4 hens hanging out together searching for worms and bugs.

Snack time!

An orange daylily from the daylily bed behind the chicken coop.

It is a 3 day weekend here for us due to the 4th of July. We had intended to spend part of today building a portable 10 foot by 10 foot enclosure for the hens so that they could wander around more of the yard. Sadly, we found out today that we had bought the wrong kind of 3 way PVC connectors and after looking around town we can't find the correct version. So, the portable coop will have to wait until the online order gets shipped unless we find them in a specialty store in town. *shakes fist in the air* Darn you different types of 3 way connectors, darn you!

So instead of building a coop we ended up relaxed with the chickens for awhile this morning. They got to snack on some tasty weeds and they will get their own salad at dinner time tonight. The chickens have recently been getting mini salads when we have our own larger versions of salads at meals. They are spoiled!

Willow and Tara in the hen house, with the door open, being hand fed some weeds. Yes, these gals are in training to become my personal organic weed control.

The gals have been growing up quickly. I no longer have peeping baby chicks and instead have 4 hungry pullets (a chicken less than ~1 year old is called a pullet).

One of the golden laced wyandottes (left) and a barred plymouth rock (right). The gold feather with black edging coloration is finally emerging on the chests of the golden laced wyandottes.

All 4 of the chickens scrambling to get into the hen house. They are standing on the ramp with Willow half blocking the doorway as the other 3 chickens attempt to scurry inside. I suppose they decided their photo shoot was over for the morning.

Long time no post

It has been a long time since I posted. I apologize for the lack of chicken photos and stories. Real life got in the way of internet fun for me recently. I got sick (the flu and pneumonia) so I have not had the energy to update. But I am finally starting to feel better again so there will be more posts soon.

Quick update

By nightfall on their first day outside the chickens were all  tucked into bed cozy in their hen house. They went in by themselves and went to sleep in a big pile.  Adorable!

Outdoor adventure

Today was a special day for the flock. It was their first day outside!!!

Last night we set up their luxurious outdoor palace (the cute coop I mentioned a few months ago coop photo). We put out a new feeder and a new big water dish in their run. We poured out an area of grit for the hens and created a pile of sand for dust baths (chicken spa in a bag!). This morning we took the old smaller food and water dishes out of the brooder box. We removed the bricks that were acting as stands for those dishes. We apologized to the hens as we lifted the chickens' home to carried it down the stairs and into the wild unknown lands of the big and scary backyard. The gals were all chirping and moving around the brooder box frantically as we made the journey. Their chirps were understandable since their home was literally being lifted and moved around through the house. We set the box down on the ground and moved the chickens one by one into their new home. We placed them into the hen house so they could see that cozy location and we hoped they would also check out their new roost.

A close up of Tara eating at their new food dish with Willow getting in a few bites of food herself in the background.

Of course, the very first thing every chicken did upon being put into the hen house was take a slide down the ramp into the run (the outdoor area that touches the ground). They ran straight to their new food and water dishes and never looked back. We have such hungry and thirsty gals! At four weeks old they are still growing and they eat as much as they can gulp.

The chickens checking out their new spa treatment (an area of sand for dust baths). Henrietta and Merrill are hanging out in the dust. Tara is in the foreground and Willow's tail feathers are visible on the left of the picture.

This morning they were still having trouble using the ramp. They would go up two steps and slide back down. That afternoon when I got home from work Willow and Tara were standing 3/4 of the way up the ramp just relaxing. Unfortunately, I have yet to see any of them in the hen house. I have seen then take shelter under the ramp, which is not exactly the same comfort level as a warm protected hen house.  If they do not go into the house by dusk we will move them into there ourselves and close the little hatch door behind them. Hopefully they will go in of their own choosing since we don't stress them out too much by forcing them into the hen house. Silly chickens, don't you know what is good for you!

Willow and Tara standing toward the top of the ramp leading into the hen house.

Anxious momma hen

Today is the first day for the chickens in their outdoor coop. I am at work right now and all I can think about is going home at the end of the day and running to go check on them. I am one anxious momma hen.

It was raining today. Did the little flock figure out how to use their ramp and hid in the warm and dry hen house during the storm? Or were they still unsteady on the new surface and ended up taking shelter under the ramp? Did they find their new sand pile and take a few sand baths? I am curious as to how their first day outside treated them. Now I really wish I had an outdoor chicken camera set up.

Say hello to Henrietta

It is time to introduce Henrietta, the official hen of www.gamecouch.com. She is named by our friend Terry who runs that website (which you should all go check out now). Ok, are you back from checking out his site? I'll wait....  OK, welcome back!

Nostalgic photo of all four chickens back when they were little fluff balls. Henrietta is the furthest back, standing at the food dish. She is looking up and forward at the camera.

Henrietta is one of our two golden laced Wyandottes. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wyandotte_%28chicken%29 She will grow up to have pretty golden feathers that have a black rim/edge. She and her sister Merrill (the other Wyandotte) are the shy set in our mini flock. They don't like to be handled as much as Willow or Tara.

Henrietta just over a week ago (photo taken May 4th). The golden spots on her head are clearly visible and her wing feathers were really starting to form. At the time she was still a mix of fluff and feathers and her tail feather were just starting to emerge.

A few things make Henrietta special. Clearly, she has the most unique name of the four chickens. In terms of looks, she has the golden head patterns/color splotches. She is a very pretty chicken. For personality, I think of her as the one true chicken in the bunch. I am betting she will be the first to lay an egg. She has the most clear instincts of the group. When she was first put into the brooder box she instinctively looked for a mother hen. She would push her head under the chests/wings of the other chicks. Clearly this strategy never worked for her since she was the same size as the other mini chirping fluff balls, but she remained determined to find a mamma hen. She is also the digger/scratcher of the group. Henrietta digs down to the bottom of the box and pecks at the ground. I assume she is looking for worms and bugs. Sadly, she won't find them there but I imagine that she will be the first to find one outside and show the other chickens how to hunt for treats.