Must Have Been A Long Night

By Ethel's actions today, last night was a long night for her.  She turned over her water and food.  She knocked the ladder off the edge so I think she possibly slept on the ground last night.  She was not happy to see me again.  She actually jumped feet first for me when I came to let her out.  All the girls came out early today and stayed in the yard until just before dinner.  That was fun getting them in.  My chicken helper, Luke, from next door helped me get them in.  Inez thought she could sneak in with the Little Girls.  Luke had to climb in the run to catch her.  And as a result of the extra time getting the girls in, dinner was a little over done.

 

Anyhoo...Ethel spent most of the day under the burning bushes with her head tucked in her wing sleeping.  It was so sweet.  I thought at one point she might be dead.

Susie and EffieGrace stayed with her all morning while she slept.  I guess they were on hawk watch for her.

 

I have one question...Can the other girls feel sorry for her having to spend time away from her friends?  Not one of the Big Girls has laid an egg today.  I did remove all the wooden eggs from their nesting boxes.  Maybe that has something to do with it.  Guess I will just have to wait until tomorrow to see what I find.

The Sick House

Cooper loves to let the girls out and feed them once he gets off the bus each evening.  Tonight he actually fed Sunny...and just look at the joy on his face!

The Little Girls

Sunny

Crispy

Dixie

Judy

Dory

RayJeana

 

We still need to figure out this nipple watering thing.  Not to sure about it and neither are the girls.

I got this from my niece when we adopted her bunny.  It makes a perfect 'Sick House' for when we have a girl that needs to be in quarantine.  Right now Ethel has taken up residence because she is wayyyyy broody.  I'm pretty sure she hates it!  I'm thinking that my chocolate egg giver might start holding out on me.

The Big Girls

EffieGrace

Susie

Inez

Esthelle

Keithette Renetta

Our little, happy, NottaLotta Farm

Chicken Catcher

Someone learned how to catch chickens today!  And she is sooooo proud of herself.

Some Pretty Girls

I think she is on guard duty.

EffieGrace gets really thirsty on sunny days.

Ms Broody, AKA Ethel, is so mad at me because I took her off her wooden eggs.

She stayed puffed up all afternoon.  And talked under her breath every time our paths crossed.

Inez gets along great with everyone.  She's my loaner and always the last one to go to he coop.

I love it when Esthelle curls those tail feathers and her feathers go to shimmering green and blue..

She's Broody Again

This is what Ethel looks like when she thinks she has eggs to hatch. 

I've tried to break it to her gently...they are wooden you goof!

She just sits there on them hissing and growling and me.   She even has the audacity to even puff up at me.

You better watch it sister.

For her own sake I have to take her off the nest so she will eat and drink.  In her mind those are her eggs and little baby chicks are going to hatch from them.  Nope.  And I'm telling you that I will not be finding fertilized eggs for her to sit on.  I will just enjoy the hatching on God's Lil' Acre down the street.

I remove her from the nest and have to close the door so she doesn't sneak back in.  And she tells me about it under her breath the entire time she is trying to figure a way to get it.

Susie figured if she jumped up to the open doors where I clean out the coop she can get on the nest.  I am hoping that doesn't mean that I have two that have gone broody at the same time.  Heaven forbid!

Oh my, my sweet Ethel had turned into a wicked chicken.  She figured out how to get in and fluffed up her feathers and made herself look twice as tall and was telling Susie that those were her eggs and that she had better be getting off them ASAP.

 Just look at those neck feathers!

 

I mean she was furious!

Finally all things returned to right in her broody world.  Susie gave up and got off the eggs.

She just moved down two empty nesting boxes and puffed herself up.  One problem Susie...you got no eggs to sit on!

 

I am telling you right now there is always entertainment on NottaLotta.  You all should come and visit!

Abnormal Eggs

I was reading about chickens, eggs, goats and all things farm animal related when I came across this...

Tiny eggs containing no yolk are referred to as fairy eggs, rooster eggs, wind eggs, dwarf eggs, rooster eggs or fart eggs (I don't make this stuff up). These eggs are common in new layers when the reproductive system isn’t quite synchronized yet. They can also occur in older layers when a piece of tissue from the reproductive tract breaks free and tricks the hen’s reproductive system into treating the tissue like a yolk, creating an egg out of it.  (The Chicken Chick)

I call soft-shelled eggs rubber eggs because the membrane is soft and pliable. Commonly produced by new layers, caused by stress, an immature shell gland, a nutritional deficiency or a glitch in the uterus, aka: shell gland. To find them occasionally is no cause for concern, to find them regularly can indicate a calcium, phosphorous or vitamin D deficiency.  (The Chicken Chick)

Shhhh, She's Sleeping

She found her favorite place under the Burning Bushes.  She dug herself a great little nesting bowl and then...

...fell fast asleep.

Side Note....I know this might sounds crazy but Effie Grace is the most compassionate chicken we have.  After Sunny had her horrifying experience, Effie Grace snuggled up right beside her and laid with her while she was trying to calm down.  She just looked as if she were telling her that it would be okay.  That the crazy chicken lady would take really good care of her.  Been there done that, is what I am positive she was relaying to her.

Sunny's Little Mishap

Yesterday evening proved to be very exciting and a whole lot scary.

The girls got to get out and run the yard when Cooper was here.  Just after he left I decided that the herbs were looking a little like they were dying of thirst.  So I got get the hose like I always do and bring it through the front gate.  The Girls and I were watering and talking our way through watering the herbs and the raised beds.  I shooed them over to the other side of the yard so I could open the gate to turn off the water and wind up the hose.  With hose in hand I pulled the nozzle down to the spigot and out of the corner of my eye I see Scamp from next door wondering around the driveway.  Guess I'm just not a quick as I once way because he got by me in a flash.  I dropped the hose and tied to calmly call him to come to me...offering treats and everything.  No way...he had a bead on The Girls.  They started to scatter all over the yard.  Scamp was running on all directions trying to figure out who he wanted to play with first.  I was running behind him yelling at the top of my lungs and then everything switched to slow motion.  I'm trying to run to catch Scamp...like a crazy woman gone off the deep end.  Mr. John and his buddy figured out what was happening.  Mark and Michael were sitting in the kitchen working on Scout merit badges and never heard a thing.  Scamp chased four of The Little Girls around the backside of the coop.  By the time they made it to the backside of The Big Girls Run I couldn't see Scamp's head.  All I saw was a head of feathers.  I threw my gloves at him and dove.  Thank you Jesus that it was a direct hit.  Poor Sunny just collapsed on the ground...shell shocked I am certain!  I got Scamp. I turned around and there was Mr. John.  His face was as white as a sheet.  He was so worried.  I handed over Scamp and told him not to worry about it.  I know that probably some day the mean old hawk or a dog or cat from the neighborhood will get one of The Girls.  It won't be pretty.  And I will hate it and be sad...but as Michael says...'it's just the circle of life, Mom.'

Sonny now has about 5 tail feathers.  I am sure at some point they will grow back.  I checked her for injuries.  No blood anywhere thank heavens.  She wasn't moving too much.  I seriously think she was in shock.

I put her on my lap and started rubbing her and taking really soft to her.  All the time I am pulling out feathers.  She was panting when we first sat down but then she calmed down after about 30 minutes.  She fell asleep in my arms and would have stayed there all night if I would have let her.

When Ms. Renee came home from work the guy helping Mr. John told her that they almost had chicken for dinner.  She was so worried.  She came over, in tears, to check on Sunny.  We sat with her, feathers still falling out and Sunny still sleeping, and I told her that it was okay,  Not to worry about it,  Just part of having animals.  (One of the kids up the street lost the bunny that she was using for her 4H project the other night.)  Feathers by the compost bins were whipping around.  And then we saw a little bird pick up one of Sunny's feathers and fly towards Ms. Renee's yard, probably to build her nest.  So all in all it was lots better than it could have been.  Thank heavens!

When I got home from my meeting last night I went to the coop praying that she wouldn't be on the ground pecked to death by the other girls.  Or over in the corner not able to move because there were internal injuries.  Nope...she was on the roost with the other girls.  And this morning I found her eating and clucking like nothing had ever happened.  Now I wonder if the whole ordeal scared her enough not to lay eggs for a few days.  Stress will do that to a chicken.  She seems fine.

 

Today while the yahoos and I were out in the yard Mr. John yelled over the fence to tell me that he was putting dirt all along the fence filling in all the gaps.  He's afraid that now that Scamp knows there are chickens he might try to visit again.  We all will keep our fingers crossed.

Cooper Love The Girls

So now everyday after school Cooper wants to fee the girls.

I think the girls might need to adjust their diet just a smidge.  If not they are going to be as big as a barn.

A Little Something

 One of The Little Girls laid me something really, really special last night.  A mini egg.  I actually think it is just a fart in a shell.  ;)

 

A normal size egg comparison.

It is just a smidge bigger than a quarter.

And Ethel is finally getting to the chocolate egg color.

Feed Sack Bag

A new delivery bag for Emmy made for a feed sack.

 

Need one because they are just so cute?  I'll make you one for a minimal fee.

Eggs For Sale

I go up early today so I could accomplish something crafty...I could feel it in my bones.  When we visited Wabash Lumber a few weeks ago I picked up one old white painted board.  I have a vision of an egg hanging on the lamppost.  So here ya go!  Now everyone will know when we have eggs.

Doing A Little Research

I got a message from one of the 'kids' that was in the youth group at Mt Washington Baptist when I was there.  Haven't seen her for years.  We have found each other on Facebook.  She is married now with two boys.  Gosh I am getting so old!  They are thinking seriously about getting a few feathered friends.

 

I'm thinking that they might have a little trouble with this one wanting to play with them all the time.

Josh had lots of questions and Mark and I had lots of answers.  I loved it that Josh had a paper and pencil so he could take notes.

Mark and I made sure that they rabbits had their nails clipped before they were out in the sun.  I finally got around to putting a piece of chicken wire between the two of them.  I do this because I don't think I need any little bunnies right now.

A little carrot treat for everyone.

Sitting pretty.

Does this cage make my butt look big.

Someone is trying to chew through to get to that greener grass on the other side.

Rethinking a plan of attack.

Maybe he can dig under?  Nope I think I fixed that too.

They have found a new dusting spot.  So glad that we made that really nice dusting bowl a few days ago.