Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Critters

Continued from:  Becoming a Chicken

This post is dedicated to the memory of our little Cobbie,
 
who lived his entire life with this expression on his face.

He was six years old when he died  -- a little old man.
We'll miss your little pink lips, Cobbie, your loving personality, and your chubby little obesity.

So again I wipe away a tear and move on... to the circus in my backyard.

.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 




News alert!
Fern and Daisy are definitely girls. I just know they are. Look at these little figures --- how they hold their little tails high.  No doubt.  They're girls. Girls.


Fern and Daisy are inseparable.  They're like one four-legged chicken. 


 They come when I call, because I often have treats.  So now they consider me the most amazing human of all time, which is of course my plan.


Lil'White continues to terrorize the young'uns, 



but in the brutal heat of recent weeks, she has been just too hot to viciously pursue Fern and Daisy. 
She pants. She swoons. She drags her wings and carries on.
So Fern and Daisy get a break.

.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  


Here's the current setup:  




With a 14 foot play-yard between the hens' coop and the babies' coop, there's a good amount of free space for them to be together during the day. Hawks circle overhead and foxes lurk in the woods, but as long as Marky's around, the girls are safe behind the flimsy fencing and bird netting.

Marky's been spending a lot of time milling about the coop lately, 



as he's discovered a dense city of mice and voles just beneath the surface.   Spilled chicken-feed has lured the little vermin... I can only imagine the size of their stash.   Their sounds and smells are driving Marky Mad.

To prevent spillage, you're supposed to raise the feed bin up to the level of the chickens' backs, 

which I did.


But shoveling food onto the ground is Pigeon's favorite thing to do, and raising the feeder was no deterrent.

So Mouse City continues to grow, well-nourished. 



And Marky continues to spend his summer days standing in the coop, staring at the ground.


.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 

Okay. 
  
After three years and 1,800 eggs, here's a first:



Somebody laid an egg the size of a grape.

And I think I know who did it.

.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  . 

Next post:   






18 comments:

  1. What a beautiful little piggie! I'm so sorry that you've lost your wee friend. We have a chipmunk here that lurves chicken feed and can often be seen dangling from the elevated feed dish. Sigh.

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  2. Another great story! Cobbie sure looked like a cutie! I am glad Marky is still with you - was not so sure when I saw the 'imitation' road kill photo on Facebook. Your stories, photos and drawings are a delight to view.

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  3. Yay, you made my day! So, so sorry about Cobbie. Did Pidge lay the mini egg?

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  4. Love it! My favorite picture is Pigeon shoveling all of the food onto the ground. When they were smaller, our girls were very messy eaters. With the larger feeder that hangs off the ground things have improved. Can't wait to hear more about the teeny eggs :)

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  5. I keep the 'fart' eggs that I get. I don't get them very often, but I keep them all. I think I have 9. I just leave them laying for a few weeks and they dry up. That way you don't even have the hole that folks make to blow eggs out.

    ~~Matt~~

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  6. What a delightful post! (well, except the part about poor Cobby)

    I didn't know that eggs would dry out if you let them sit, Matt!

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  7. Try a hanging feeder - it's harder for them to make a mess - but no guarantees with Pigeon :)

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  8. My sympathies on the loss of your dear Cobbie. Isn't it amazing how all our little critter friends manage to crawl into our hearts.

    I've got two little girls myself who are inseparable these days. The 6 big girls are constantly bossing them around, so I think they've formed their own club. It's a blast to watch them all. I'm not getting anything done here in RI. Have a great day!

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  9. Lauren--This is not what I need to look at during my work day, but I so love reading and seeing your blog. A pure pleasure... and your story-telling style and art... Thanks for letting me share. ~ Ingrid

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  10. I just love your art work. What a fun post. :)
    tm

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  11. Sorry to read about Cobbies demise, but delighted to read yet another joyful instalment about your soulful flock.

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  12. I used to have a guinea pig, 2 actually. I loved them so much. They were sisters and when one got sick and passed the other died a couple days later of loneliness. It was heartbreaking, but it was sweet that they crossed the rainbow bridge together.
    I love you blog, it makes my day when I read it.

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  13. So sorry about Cobbie. He was a cute critter!
    You've got me on the edge of my seat with the grape-sized egg!!

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  14. Neat blog! Sorry to hear about Cobbie :~(
    Check out our blog at thechickenkeepers.blogspot.com
    We get a tiny egg every once in a while then again we also get double yolked eggs often too.
    I will add your blog to my blog roll and become a follower! Have a great day and hope you blog soon.

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  15. Absolutely adorable! Fun to find someone else that is enthralled with the society of the coop! Great job on the blog - love everything about it!

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