Showing posts with label chickens. Show all posts
Showing posts with label chickens. Show all posts

Saturday, July 7, 2012

Louis bug and company

I'll never forget the first time I noticed Lula, she was with her sisters running around the box she was so tiny the runt-for sure.  She kept getting knocked over..the girls were so scared and running around, Lula could never gain footing and she just cried and cried.  
I scooped her up, calmed her down, she slept in my hands for hours.
I was suffering from some major allergies around that time, and I just wanted to lay in bed and read.  So, as the days went by, I would put my hand down in their brooder box and Lula would come running and sit in my hand, I would lift her out put her in a towel and to bed we would go.  I read, she slept.  
More days went by, she helped me study on my desk, watched t.v., followed me around the house.

The first day

she slept that way all night long

helping me study

watching t.v.

doing a little homework

demanding attention


human roost







Then she moved outside and she began to stand out from the other girls, her legs were massive, her comb was bigger, her tail feathers were starting to look different.  I was in denial about my baby Lula being Louis, I tried to avoid her, our city doesn't allow roosters.  So I was trying to detach myself, I was really-really upset about it.  But I was hanging onto a meager ounce of hope b/c she hadn't crowed and she's 4months old.
The day I was working on this post, I realized I didn't have any updated photos of Lula, so I let her out to roam around as I took some pictures, then promptly put her back up.  I got 5 steps away and then my heart sank.  She He let out a pitiful crow.

We were as shocked, but I think he was REALLY shocked.  The earth stood still as my brain finally accepted--Louis





Louis still follows me around like a loyal little puppy-dog.


Angie, eating goodies off my leg

 While I was waiting for my cabinets to dry, I went outside and sat underneath a shade tree, and Louis followed, I was watching the bigger girls, when I felt this awkward presents, I turned around, and Louis was breathing down my ear. 


The green spot in the photo is my shoulder, he was pressed up against me, staring me down.  I was afraid he wanted to roost on my shoulder-which is fine when she weighed less than a pound and his talons tickled.






We aren't sure about Louis' fate, but I am pretty attached to the little guy.  He's so cute in the morning, he hops and he's so eager to go outside.  So cute!!

A long time ago, when I was working through college, I worked at a ranch with a lady that lived in the city and she had a rooster, she crate trained that damn bird.  His name was butterball, I had forgotten all about it, until one day last week, I was laying on the couch and the memory shoved its way forward.
I told the husband about it, and he threw his head back and laughed. At first I thought he didn't believe me, but he said, "nah baby, I believe you, but when you think about a rooster, you never associate, crate training with it."
So if the neighbors complain too much we will try crate training him, but our neighbors are pretty cool.  Plus he doesn't exactly have a crowing schedule yet, he can go all day and not crow.  So we are playing it by ear (literally) 
I was painting in the house last night and he and the husband came to see me!!  I never know when a chicken is gonna come inside and tell me about their day!!


This is the best picture I can get of the little girls and Louis.  




As silly as it seems, I love all these silly-silly-perfect chickens!!






Saturday, June 30, 2012

Come on in Ya'll, Let's party!!

I turn my back for 2seconds and the dog that isn't allowed in the house, is inviting the chickens in to party!!  Sigh #outnumbered


We are heading out to the country tomorrow, see you Monday!! 

Sunday, April 15, 2012

chickens, thread, and spring cleaning

So sorry about my nearly 45 day disappearance.  Between work, school, raising chicken's and getting in spring cleaning.  I have been seriously busy.

Here's what you missed.



Lula-bug, one of the runts




March 1st-we welcomed 10baby chickens into our home.  They were seriously cute, and seriously fluffy.  There were 2 that were so little, they other girls/boys kept knocking them over, so they spent a lot of time with me.  I was fighting allergies at that time, so a lot of that time was spent in bed.  Now, those 2 girls are my biggest cuddle bugs-which I love!!

The sea of thread!

Angie and the husband
Mid-March-we welcomed 6more chickens to our brood.  Totally us out at 21 chickens!!!  Okay, so my awesome-bad ass brother who has taken over the family farm (he lives on 40 magical acres-that land is the happiest place on earth) he decided that he wanted chickens too, my husband initially got 5 Rhode island reds, and 5 sex-links (straight run) the more we watched the sex-links, the more we decided that at least 3 were roosters.  So Bo decided he wanted more chickens that he knew were pullets.  So, the husband eagerly went down and got him 6 more, they were barred rocks.  All so very cute!!

End of March-We said goodbye to 11 baby chickens.  We kept 4 of the Rhode Islands and 1 barred rock.  Now the 5 girls are living in their brood box in the guitar room.  I am thinking next weekend they will make the move outside.  When the husband and I get home from work, we load the 5 babies in a box and haul them outside.  We also let the big girls out and we lay on a yard rug and enjoy the soft cooing of the big girls and gentle cheeps of the little girls.  So far, the babes and big girls don't really care for each other-but they have finally accepted that each other are chickens.

I love this succession of pictures.
 Roz, posing for the camera
 Roz decided I didn't capture her face from a good angle and insisted I try again.  (Lula, being curious)
 Ever, the drama queen, she wanted another picture with her head slightly tilted!




 Hen pecked! 
 Human baby chicken roost!

 It's official-My chickens are hams!


 Or camera hogs!

First of April- I had to retrieve the items from my old special ed. classroom (I have been re-assigned after an accident at work left the tendons in my right wrist almost severed) so they got shoved in my den, then the husband's grandmother gave me all the sewing notions from her sewing room, and that went in my den.  I finally cracked under all the clutter and went on a cleaning bender.  The den is finally organized, and though some of the clutter still drives me nuts, I can tolerate it now.  Then, I realized that the carpeted floors are gross-so I steam cleaned the crap out of 3rooms (well still in the process of cleaning-since we farm the crap out of our nearly acre lot, we are in and out of our house a lot.  Tracking in everything.  The floors are gross!!! Can't wait til the day we rip the carpet out and put in wood flooring)

Second week of April- I have decided to dive into the world of making clothes.  I come from the world of upholstery sewing.  So I know all the sewing 101 stuff, but in upholstery, you usually make your own patterns, like pillows, curtains, cushions....you just measure and sew.  Well, clothes making is far from upholstery work.  So, it's been a fun challenge.  I enjoy sewing, it brings me close to my grandmothers who both were phenomenal seamstress' and quilt makers.  


Yesterday-I ran in the Original Mud Run.  It was fun, and I am exhausted.  I also have a test tomorrow in class, and a presentation due.  So I will leave you with some pictures. 

Thursday, March 1, 2012

We are parents, again!!

We are so excited!!  We became parents of 10 beautiful baby chickens.  It's crazy to remember how little they start out.  I will have to post some pictures as soon as I load them onto my computer.  I missed all the cheeeping!!  It is so cute!!  I love baby chickens. 

Thursday, January 19, 2012

A grape fairy delivery


Well, today it was 70 degrees and gorgeous!!  And I was eager to spend the entire day outside with my animals, sometimes we let the girls frolic in the yard, but we have NEVER let them frolic and forage all day……that is-until TODAY!!! 

 







Half way through the day, Betty (Grabel) and Roz had to take an egg laying break.
 I was not well received when I opened the door to snap this picture.  Betty was MAD at me!! Mainly b/c she had grass in her comb and I kept trying to brush it all out, she lays our biggest egg, and she REALLY didn't want to be messed with (I think the picture shows)  

 
  Since Roz was in the house first Betty had to wait patiently as Roz laid her egg, then Betty hoped into the box, after she was done, she nudged both eggs together.  The whole thing was adorable and fascinating to watch.   

 2 perfect eggs, from 2 perfect hens..making it a total of 5 perfect eggs from 5 perfect Chicky-babies!



It was a grand day, I raked, they foraged, and then, I had to rake some more.  I moved my giant mound of Texas Black Clay, and they dug holes in the yard, and then I filled holes.  I trimmed trees, they scratched around the trees.  I relocated worms and they ate all the grub worms I found.  They tried to eat my relocated worms, I chased them away.  They tried to eat my newly relocated lavender, I chased them away.  I filled the compost with grass clippings from their chicken-tractor, they tried to eat the compost-I chased them away. 
Overall we had a Happy-Happy Chicken day and a Happy-Happy Mama day!!!




 
(The grapes were left on the front porch and the Husband left them in the entry way.  I saw them when I went to check the mail.  At first I thought he bought them and just forgot to bring them in with the groceries.)
Also, a grape fairy stopped by our house this morning, and left our piggy girls almost 2 pounds of grapes!!  (I spent almost an hour calling our friends/family to figure out who the fairy was-turns out it was our neighbor).  Our girls should start a fan club; we’d get all kinds of goodies!!  They love grapes, it’s their absolute favorite!!  I mean they like apples, pears, and strawberries, but they go nutty for grapes-it’s so cute to watch!!  Anyways, they got to roam around the yard all day, AND (thanks to the grape-fairy) they got to eat 2 giant handfuls of grapes.  Oh, yeah, Hazzard (our half heeler/half foxhound) got to meet the girls face-to-face for the first time today.  I did this when the husband wasn’t home, he would have been as nervous as a cat, those silly chickens are his babies.  He carefully explained to me the “rules” of Hazzard, “she needs to be IN THE HOUSE before you let the girls out.  I understand his point, he wants to protect the girl’s b/c it only takes a quick second and something terrible can happened.  It’s just the behaviorist in me, knows that we have to train and teach Hazzard the appropriate way to act around the chickens and what better time than when she is still a puppy and while I am still off work.  She really exceeded my expectations, she got in trouble once for charging them, after that…she was awesome, usually she’s jumping around like a damn circus monkey, I was amazed at how soft and gingerly she was around them!!

It was truly a great day!! 



Also, Hazzard likes grapes.