Late summer thoughts
Now and then, I’m reminded of how much I have to be grateful for in this life I’m living here at the farm. The days remain hot, but the nights have grown cool enough that we must turn on a heat lamp to keep the new...
Read MoreTag: chickens
Babies everywhere I turn
Someone asked me recently how many chickens I have. I could only guess. In winter, I take a nightly headcount of all the birds during evening chores. Now? A headcount is practically impossible with so many free-ranging...
Read MoreNot a Safe Nest
Sometimes the chickens roost on the tall stacks of rabbit cages in the barn. The top of that cage is about six feet off the ground, so it’s not surprising that I didn’t notice that one of the banty hens...
Read MoreNests everywhere
Everywhere I turn, there’s a nesting bird. One of my favorite ducks chose a corner of the duck pen. She gathered hay from the sheep pen next door, added some downy soft feathers, and piled it all high near the spot where...
Read MoreWhen Snow Falls
When the snow covers the ground in a deep blanket of white, my world narrows. The occasional traffic on our narrow gravel road dwindles to none. An entire day passes without a single set of wheel tracks disturbing the snow. I...
Read MoreCatching up
It’s been a while since I posted. Life’s been particularly busy this spring . . . and I’ve not been up to the challenge of keeping up with any but the most critical tasks. Now summer has crept upon me before I’m ready. That’s...
Read MoreSnowy days, Part 1
Even the chickens huddle up close to the fireplace when the temperature drops and the snow flies. Really, there’s a fireplace in this picture with the chickens — the back of one, at least. The wide base of the...
Read MoreWinifred & Number 47
Winifred Goose & her best buddy rooster, out for an afternoon stroll through the woods. The rooster is one of a half-dozen look-alikes that hatched out year before last. He was destined for the soup pot until Winifred picked...
Read MorePerspectives
The view from the hayloft at feeding time. This photo was taken a few weeks ago, while the snow fell outside and the wind whistled around the eaves. I’d just given the cattle half a bale of prairie hay and was spreading a...
Read MoreA dog’s job is never done
Bebe’s chicken management duties interrupted our afternoon walk. We found this young hen huddled in the underbrush near the creek. I suspect she was hiding from those big bully roosters. Or pouting. It’s hard to...
Read MoreTeenage chickens
Anyone who’s kept chickens knows there’s a hierarchy in the henhouse. It’s where the term ‘pecking order’ likely originated. These five young Wyandotte pullets are at the bottom of the pecking...
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