Flocking around

Del has been released back into the general population after a stint in the brig for ungentlemanly conduct toward the ladies. It must have been an adolescent burst of hormones, because he seems to be settling down nicely. Look at the size difference between Del & Toshi!

Here's Toshi showing how a real rooster does his job. He's found some kind of yummy bug and is feeding it to Neil after calling her over with a special 'come & get it' sound. Hopefully Del is taking notes, since he hasn't quite progressed to Toshi's level of excellence yet.

Can you spot the fluffy Red Star hineys as they disappear into the depths of the berry patch? The flock has a regular route through the yard and they really look forward to their afternoons as groundskeepers. Egg production is starting to taper off with the length of daylight, but we plan ahead for that by stockpiling eggs in the fridge.

The American Egg Board says : "The oil coating which seals the shell's pores helps to prevent bacteria from entering the egg and reduces moisture loss from the egg. RAW SHELL EGGS REFRIGERATED IN THEIR CARTONS WILL KEEP FOR ABOUT 4 TO 5 WEEKS BEYOND THE PACK DATE WITHOUT SIGNIFICANT QUALITY LOSS. (The pack date is usually a number from 1 to 365 representing the day of the year starting with January 1 as 1 and ending with December 31 as 365.)"
Imagine how much fresher our gals' eggs are, coming right out from under the hen each day! One reason it's so important to keep the nest boxes clean is that washing the eggs really shortens the keeping time. So the cleaner they come from the coop, the better, since we don't wash them until it's time to use them (if at all). Another thing about extemely fresh eggs is that they don't peel well once they're boiled. There is no air gap between egg white and membrane, so it sticks and peels very messily. So we have to remember to save some back to age a bit if we want decent hard-boiled eggs. And each hen lays different kinds of eggs. Some have thicker shells, some have thicker membranes, smooth shells, spotted shells, and so on. We can pretty much tell which hen laid what egg, with such a small flock.

One of these things is not like the other...

Looks like a Speckled Sussex has figured out that spring is around the corner. Check out the size of this "practice" egg compared to a full-sized Red Star egg!

The Sussexes are just over 5 months old, which is the usual start of laying time. The Red Stars are about 10 months old, and professional layers now.

Tomorrow we're going to roast our first home-raised chicken. We'll post a review...

Hump Day!

Here chick-chick-chickies!!


Can't wait for this pen to be gone! The coop and run for meat birds is supposed to be on the far side of the barn, but other projects and the weather caught up to us. When these guys are in the freezer, and when weather permits, we'll get help moving the coop & then rebuild a pen for next summer. Then we can let a hen set on some eggs the old-fashioned way, and raise a batch of babies. They'll be able to free range in one of the paddocks which is good for them and good for the feed bill and good for the pasture.

Speaking of hens, here are the 2 Red Stars, checking out the catnip patch under the bamboo. Those gals are still laying an egg each, every day! I wonder what their babies would be like if we let one "date" a sussex rooster....



Stormy weather coming today, according to the forecast. We did a batten-down walk last night, so hopefully Seven Trees will weather the weather while we're at work.

Just about ready for Stella now. Load goodies in the car, pick up the trailer Friday and hit the raod waaaaay too early Saturday. But we should have her in the barnyard by mid-day Saturday, with plenty of pics to share.