Jasmine is looking forward to spring too, I think.
Yesterday one of the Dominiques failed to return to the roost when it started getting dark.
She's always the last one to go up, and she's also bad to wander off far from the others.
Since it was a gray day yesterday I figured a coyote had gotten her. (They always seem to be worse on dark days.)
I scolded Jasmine and told her that she was spending too much time trying to get out of the fence and not enough time guarding the chickens.
After supper Phil suggested that I go out and look by the coop again to make sure she hadn't come back. I didn't want to. I knew she wouldn't be there, and I was already sad enough.
I think half the reason she stayed away from the other chickens so much is that she was tired of roosters. We have three, and that's too many for 14 hens I think.
She is missing lots of feathers on her head and on her back, due to the roosters.
I kept thinking about the poor little half-bald baby all the way up to the coop. I was almost in tears over a chicken, again.
When I shined the flashlight under the coop, I couldn't believe it... she was there! Huddled up and looking all scrunched over and pitiful, about halfway back.
I eventually coaxed her out, and she even let me pick her up to put her back in the coop.
Whew!
3 comments:
She's a pretty girl isn't she?! I might be a little biased tho. :)
I just missed the deadline to get an ad in the farmer's bulletin. We're too busy right now to try to figure out how to butcher, so I just need to sell them I guess.
The other 2 are Buff Orpingtons and they are nice to me, but are a lot more interested in the girls than they used to be... yesterday I even caught them being interested in one of the muscovies!
The mean rooster is an Americauna mutt and I'd rather keep him for the blue egg gene (in case anybody gets broody)... but like I said he's mean!
Sometimes I think I'd be better off getting rid of all of them.
Beautiful photos on your blog. Once Jack and I visited a client who had a rooster that had wandered away from its home and found the client's small farm--but the farm only had ducks and the rooster acted like the ducks were its hens--at least that's what Jack's client told us.
Thanks! I wish a few of these roosters would wander up the road to my neighbors' place. I wonder if he would notice a few extra roosters hanging around? Hmm.
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