Author Topic: My chickens (Read 9114 times)

barleychown · « **on:** May 25, 2007, 11:01:17 PM »

These are the girls. They free-range in the back yard and give us an average of three eggs a day.

There are two others that must have been camera shy that day. I'll try to get a new picture tomorrow.

Dianna · « **Reply #1 on:** May 25, 2007, 11:11:54 PM »

Chickens certainly aren't run of the mill pets. We do have another member that has fowl as pets...

Do you name yours, Sarah?

barleychown · « **Reply #2 on:** May 25, 2007, 11:22:50 PM »

But of course!

I have Roxy, Moxy, Hettie, Zettie, and Miss(fit)...because she has a cross-beak and no one wanted her. :-\

I have a few favorites out of this years batch of chicks that I may keep...depends on how many I think I can handle.

They make awesome pets...they are quiet, gentle, eat cheap food, give you free fertilizer, and an egg too!

The girls come when they are called, and put themselves to bed every night.

Dianna · « **Reply #3 on:** May 25, 2007, 11:25:10 PM »

Sound like an ideal pet, but wonder if they would "scratch" around in gardening beds and wreak havoc? I would have fried chicken if that happened around here!

barleychown · « **Reply #4 on:** May 25, 2007, 11:34:53 PM »

So far my five have not picked on anything they shouldn't be. If they should happen to start, I have the place for their run all picked out, but as long as they behave I would rather have them cruise the back yard and eat all the slugs and snails that were allowed to multiply here. :-\

I have the strawberry bed, the salad bed, and the two other raised beds with peppers and tomatoes, and I covered them when the plants were tiny, but as soon as I felt they could fend for themselves, I uncovered them and the chickens have left it all alone.

Tina · « **Reply #5 on:** May 25, 2007, 11:56:20 PM »

Trained chickens! Good job Sarah. And very nice to see you too. Do your dogs tolerate the chickens and visa versa?

barleychown · « **Reply #6 on:** May 25, 2007, 11:59:36 PM »

Not so much trained as bribed.

Tina, it's great to see you! How are you?

Patty S · « **Reply #7 on:** May 26, 2007, 12:14:30 AM »

Quote

So far my five have not picked on anything they shouldn't be....
I have the strawberry bed, the salad bed, and the two other raised beds with peppers and tomatoes....

I think you've just been lucky so far! I had chickens when we lived in Montana & I thought they'd prefer the bugs to my veggies, so I let them inside my garden one day. (WRONG!) In the time it took me to hang a load of wash, those buggers had picked holes in nearly every one of my tomatoes & strawberries(they didn't have the decency to finish them off one at a time... they had to sample every one of them), & made short work of my lettuce & other greens! They didn't leave much behind for the bugs to feast on, so their first time in my garden was their last time!

I've always loved your chickens, Sarah!

I remember when they were just peepers, & they really have grown into beautiful birds! I'm amazed that your crossbeak has done so well! I had one once too, but it didn't fair well with the other chickens, cuz they picked on her a lot. Yours aparently doesn't have any trouble eating, either!

barleychown · « **Reply #8 on:** May 26, 2007, 12:22:20 AM »

Patty, I count my blessings every day that they leave the important stuff alone. They eat a LOT of grass, colver, and dandelions, which I have an over-abundance of in the far back of the back yard. I do wonder how it will go when I've finally gotten the back yard fully landscaped. It is my hope that they can co-exist with the plants, but if they can't there is a back-up plan in place.

Dianna · « **Reply #9 on:** May 28, 2007, 12:48:38 PM »

They'll be in the

singing, "Nobody knows the trouble I've seen..."!

I know you wouldn't be

and

them, would you? Sarah?

Penny · « **Reply #10 on:** May 30, 2007, 11:42:28 AM »

Cool picture Sarah!!

barleychown · « **Reply #11 on:** Jul 13, 2007, 10:09:54 AM »

Thought I'd add some of this year's babies pics...

Peggy · « **Reply #12 on:** Jul 13, 2007, 10:25:55 AM »

Wow, been years since I've seen topknot chickens!! My uncle used to raise them. Cool, chickens... I love my chickens, but I'd never trust them enough to ever leave them alone with my garden!! lol.

They do have Iris, and Daylily in their pen, because their pen wasn't theirs before they came. One can see where they have tasted them, but they have not killed them or even stunted them. Last night I threw in pumpkin plant trimmings hoping they might be interested in the leaves.

Thanks for sharing!!! Peg

barleychown · « **Reply #13 on:** Jul 13, 2007, 10:39:34 AM »

Suprising enough, they are not doing too much damage to my gardens. I think they have enough space and bugs to chase that they are too busy to bother the plants too badly.

I do love the polish (or top knot) chickens...they make me smile when I see them, no matter how bad I'm feeling.

Patty S · « **Reply #14 on:** Jul 13, 2007, 02:35:11 PM »

I'm partial to the Polish chickens, but I cringe every time I see one... remembering what I did to my favorite one.

I'd gotten all my chicks from Murray McMurray (mail order) & we had "Buckwheat" for four years. Since we had acreage in Montana, they free ranged around the property, & like most of our chickens, he'd follow us around like a puppy, & would come running to greet us when we returned home from somewhere.

Our friends always said that they were afraid they'd run over a chicken, coming in or out of our driveway, but I told them that the chickens weren't stupid enough to just stand there when they saw a car coming at them. They'd comment on the "poor things" that have all those feathers over their eyes, but I assured them that the Polish were no different from any of the others, "They CAN see just as well... they just want you to think they can't! If they're too dumb to move, they get run over, PERIOD!"

Well, guess who ran over Buckwheat?

(Keith said, "SLOW DOWN! They can get out of the way if you give them a chance, but you just can't expect a chicken to outrun a car, the way you drive!)"

RIP, Buckwheat!

Dianna · « **Reply #15 on:** Jul 13, 2007, 02:56:39 PM »

Those are some strange looking chickens!

Is it possible to get a close-up shot of one, Sarah? I have never seen a chicken with a topknot like that! What did you name the babies?

Patty, that is terrible!

I would have cried all night long if I ran over my pet. The guineas next door have been very lucky so far. They always come out when we are mowing and I am so scared I will run over one with the tractor...

barleychown · « **Reply #16 on:** Jul 13, 2007, 04:53:09 PM »

Oh, Patty!

That would be horrible.

Hettie, my original Polish hen, is the easiest one to walk up and grab, because the top knot does obstruct her view. She has also the only one that has been attacked by wild animals, I assume because she was the easiest to target.

But, we went above and beyond to make sure they are all safe now, so I feel okay having more polish.

One of the white crested polish will have to find a new home, as he is a rooster, but I will be keeping the other three. Of course, the rooster is the only one I've named so far.

Here ya go Dianna:

sunsoaker · « **Reply #17 on:** Jul 13, 2007, 09:30:36 PM »

Cool chickens. I have never seen anything like them before. If I had room for them, I think I'd get a couple. Alas, no room...

Dianna · « **Reply #18 on:** Jul 13, 2007, 10:39:02 PM »

Wow! Those chickens look like they have the 70's 'fro look going one!

I love it!

Wish I didn't have to worry about getting too attached to more critters. I might would have to have me about a dozen or so!

Bonnie · « **Reply #19 on:** Jul 19, 2007, 02:50:03 PM »

Really cool chickens. I will never eat another drumstick. (at least without thinking about it)

Bonnie

barleychown · « **Reply #20 on:** Aug 06, 2007, 09:56:03 AM »

Here are the 5 new additions for this year...all girls, of course!

Each is a different breed, though you cannot really see their markings well in this picture. The golden one is named Gracie, and the one on the far right is Ginger. The others have yet to name themselves.

Wrennie · « **Reply #21 on:** Aug 06, 2007, 03:15:29 PM »

I thought 70 fro with the polish ones too! lol!
Nice looking birds.
Which are the best egg laying breed?

barleychown · « **Reply #22 on:** Sep 16, 2007, 09:02:40 PM »

Thought I would add a few new pics I took of the girls...

This one is a rhode island red, her name is Lucy. She has a friend she pals around with named Ethel, but Ethel was on the nest today, so no pics of her.

And this is Mike's best buddy, Moxie...

As for the best egg layers, I think it's up to people's opinions. Each lays just as many eggs as the next, so I'm happy with all of them.

Triss · « **Reply #23 on:** Sep 16, 2007, 09:06:48 PM »

Those sure are pretty Sarah, so how many do you have now?

barleychown · « **Reply #24 on:** Sep 16, 2007, 09:10:25 PM »

I have 10 hens, and the three ducks.

I sent the younger set of polish off to a farm, because one was a rooster, and all four turned out to be mini's...didn't want them to be picked on by the big girls. I get "progress reports" from the farmer's wife...she loves them like I do, and really babies them.

Out of the ten hens, today I got 6 eggs. So, they are actually giving more eggs than the average for hens.

They are happy girls.

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Author Topic: My chickens (Read 9114 times)