Oh, it's hot outside folks. It's really hot. Me, I'm happy. Most humans I know, not so much. Even though I love the heat, I would trade our current stretch of 90 plus degree days for something cooler - the animals are just plain wilted. I've got the fan going in the goat shed. The cooling heads of cabbage and lettuce are hanging in the chicken run for afternoon snacking. I'm … [Read more...]
Chickens
When my kids were young, if you told me that after they went away to college I'd get some chickens to fill up my empty nest, I'd have said you were crazy. Yeah, look who's crazy now. That's me - crazy, with chickens.
Lucy The Crazy Hen
August 18, 2013 by
So, if you've liked The Chicken Mama on Facebook, you know that I've got a renegade chicken in the flock. It's Lucy, my 6 month old White Leghorn, sister to Ethel. A few nights ago, on my end-of-the-evening check at about 9pm, the head count in the coop revealed a chicken was missing. I knew it was either Lucy or Ethel, but in my rush to search for the missing hen, I didn't spend too much … [Read more...]
What’s In A Name?
July 28, 2013 by
I've been thinking about, and tinkering with, names lately. When I can't sleep at 4am, my mind has lots of time to roam. (My ability to sleep somehow has gotten worse over the past year. That's kinda like a bald guy losing more hair. But I digress.) I listen to the BBC overnight when I can't sleep, so I've gotten more information than I wanted on the new baby prince. That poor kid had no … [Read more...]
Partners in Crime
July 18, 2013 by
Here at Happy Mama Acre, we are tired. We need a nap. Lots of great things going on, but it's all happening at the same time and I'm having a hard time keeping up. I'm working a big job (Competitions Director for the Denver County Fair) that will definitely be the focus of my life for the next month. Posts may drop off, but I swear I'll be back and ready to share in … [Read more...]
She Wants To Be a House Hen
June 26, 2013 by
Ah, the personalities of my chickens. My sweet Sofia (often called Short Beak) definitely, truly, does not want to live in the barnyard. She's usually hanging around the gate, waiting for me to show up. Then, after I'm through the gate, she's follows me everywhere. I give the chickens their morning scratch treat before going to clean the coop and she leaves the other hens and comes to join … [Read more...]
Coop Upgrade = Anxious Hens
June 18, 2013 by
I learn things every day. This weekend, I learned that hens, at least my hens, are not fans of change. I thought I was doing them a favor. They thought differently. I wanted to give them something new, something nice. Since I needed to take out the roost in the goat shed to make room for the new goat lofts, I thought I'd give the ladies a top-of-the-line nesting box in the coop to thank … [Read more...]
A Summer Barnyard Story
June 11, 2013 by
This is mostly a story in pictures. I didn't write my usual post on Sunday because I've been juggling too many balls and dropping a few. I couldn't figure out why. But then it hit me on my tenth trip between my computer (I usually work in the kitchen) and my printer (in a back bedroom). It's summer. It's finally, FINALLY HOT. I just wanted to be outside. So I got all my scanning and … [Read more...]
Oh No, Not Again!
June 7, 2013 by
Sometimes it's like a soap opera around here. A little misbehavin' here, a little inappropriate behavior there. And then there's a murder. Back in the day when I used to watch soap operas with my grandma and grandpa (or "our show" as we called it) someone was always gettin' killed and it was almost always an accident. Accidental murder. Yeah, we had one of those this week. Things … [Read more...]
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