Free Ranging Chickens

The hens are out!  What a surprise to come home and see the hens scattered around the backyard.  I have to remember the Buffs are younger than the Barreds by two months.  Apparently Monkey and Jewels, the cats thought the hens were something to go after.  They were over that when I got home, hee!  The Hens managed to take care of themselves and the younger cats have respect now for them. 

The Barreds and the Buffs interact well with one another but they still tend to stick with their own.  Last night after everyone went into the chicken house, all the Barreds were roosting together with the exception of one who was roosting with the majority of the Buffs.  Two Buffs were with the Barreds.  It is funny to see how they arrange themselves.

The egg production is still up, even though the days are getting shorter.  The shortage of light might affect the younger Buffs more than the Barreds who have been laying for three months now.

Frost in the Valley

There was 'frost on the pumpkin' yesterday morning and then again today. The drop in evening temperature has been earlier this year.   The hens have found the hen 'condo' as suitable nesting boxes to lay their prized eggs.  The move hasn't disrupted the hens from laying at all. All of them seem to feel right at home in their new space. The nearby pheasants have been curious about their new neighbors, specially the rooster.

The nipple waterer is slowly catching on.  In a given day these gals go through every bit of 2 gallons of water.  Every day I typically rinse out the fountains with a mixture of bleach and good old water, and then refill them.  That hasn't been too bad since I have been doing it during warm weather over the last five months.  But with the temperatures on the decline that won't work as well.  I'll use the open heated water bowls for the pheasants and doves, like I have done in the past.  But the hens go through so much more water.  Plus open water with chickens isn't the best.  Hopefully everyone catches on to the nipple waterer.  Look for pictures if indeed this works.  It seems like it will and it might take me weening the hens off the water fountains to encourage the results.  From my observations chickens seem to be pretty quick to adapt to change.

Autumn has become my favorite time of the year.  The contrasts in light increase as the angle of the sun is lower in the sky.  The shortening of days seems more noticeable to me, than the lengthening of days in the Spring.  The Autumn air gets crisp and the warm colors bring cheer to the soul before the chill of Winter. 

Early Autumn

Here it is early Autumn.  Where did the Summer go?  The mixed flock of Barred and Buffs are doing well.  Today all 17 hens were moved into the block hen house.  It offers larger accommodations with more protection from the elements.  After they are allowed to identify their new digs as home, they will be allowed to free range.  At least one of the Buffs has started to lay.  The egg being much smaller than what the Barreds are now laying.  It is amazing to see how these hens have grown.  They have such gentle personalities making them even more enjoyable.  I never seem to tire watching them scratch around and how they interact with each other and me.

 Here is one of the Barreds figuring out where she wants to lay her egg.  So many choices . . . what is a girl to do?

The Barreds at six months are laying consistently.  We have been getting anywhere from 5-8 eggs a day.  Some of the people I work with have been buying eggs.  So there are always fresh eggs with good turn over.  Last weekend was the first batch of deviled eggs I made with them.  Yummy!

Full Chicken Coop & Yard

The Barreds and Buffs are getting along just fine.  The Barreds though have the edge.  The Buffs are sweet and laid back about it.  I can now pick up the Buffs without too much fuss.     I'm thankful to have a mixed flock.  Each breed has its own look about it.  The Buffs are just now starting to get some pinkish red in their combs and wattles.  The Buffs at four months will be laying soon.  We are consistently getting upwards of 8 eggs a day now.  There is a difference in egg shape and color between the hens.  There are variations of color also in the egg shell from a creamy light tan to a medium brownish tan. 

Fresh Brown Eggs

It is now official.  Sold our first six dozen organic brown eggs last week.  I have another delivery scheduled for tomorrow. We aren't at full capacity with the hens yet and we can't keep up with consuming the daily output.  Once the word gets out I look for more people to begin approaching me for their fresh eggs delivered to them at work. 



The weather this Summer has been dry with the day temps staying in the mid to high 80's however this Labor Day Weekend has been wet and humid, some of the remnants of Hurricane Isaac..    The hay fields have been baled twice this year however the second cutting wasn't as abundant as the first.  With the drought everyone's hay will be at a premium this Winter.  The angle of the sun is noticeably lower in the sky making for the sharper contrasts in light and color of late Summer and then into the early Autumn with its brilliance.  I look forward to the crispness in the air removing the hot and humid air of the remnants of Summer.