Prudence's True Identity

Just a short and quick update.

A day ago the lady we got Prudence and Agatha from sent us a note, informing us that there had been a mix up with the batch of eggs our two girls came from. There were some Orpington eggs mixed in with the New Hampshires. It was something that was suspected previously, this note simply verified our suspicion. Prudence is very yellow and did not seem like her colors would change anytime soon. Thus, it appears as if we now have a back-up Penelope, as Prudence resembles her greatly.

Two Newbies

The two new babies.

After the loss of Marigold and Eartha, we decided that five chickens were not enough. The flock was too small. We started hunting on Craigslist for new chicks and found someone willing to drive out to us and deliver them. We chose a New Hampshire and Silver Laced Wyandotte named Prudence and Agatha respectively. Their owner was almost reluctant to lose them, but said she was confident they'd enjoy their new home. Both chicks were very friendly from the start. They enjoyed snuggling and were not afraid of us. This was likely due to their previous owner, who appeared to care for them very much.

Prudence next to a strikingly similar Penelope.

As the bigger chickens can not be trusted to handle newcomers warmly, we had to keep the chicks inside for awhile. They lived in a large bin with a wire top until they outgrew the bin and were moved to a kennel designed for large dogs. Just recently we moved them outside. There is an older, small coop and run that came from a store within the run of the big coop we practically built ourselves. They sleep and eat in there, still sectioned off from the larger hens. During the day they have free range of the garden where they enjoy numerous dust baths.

Agatha a little too close for comfort.

They seem to be bigger every week and are growing very quickly. Prudence will hopefully become more red, as she resembles the yellow Penelope now. Agatha's lacing became apparent very quickly and within a molt or two, she should be a beautiful chicken. Both of them had individual personalities that became obvious very fast. Prudence is the nicer and sweeter one- while Agatha is very independent. She wasted no time in staring down Penelope, earning herself a few pecks. Even though she stands up to the big chickens, Prudence always appears to win their play fights. None of the older girls seem to be impressed with the chicks antics and Ester and Ethel will chase them on occasion.

Prudence falling asleep, as chicks often do.

They will be very beautiful birds very soon.

The Loss of Marigold

Only a few short days after Eartha's passing, Marigold followed suit.

I woke up one sad summer morning to a few mournful shouts, as Marigold had already passed overnight. She was found lying on the bottom of the coop, with yolky egg substances leaking from her back side. Very early in the morning, my mother swears she heard thrashing about in the coop, which we believe could have been her death throes, but there was nothing that could have been done.

To lose two chickens in the span of a week is very disheartening and the flock seems very empty with only five members. We believe the losses were both egg related and that the heat may be suspect to blame. Chickens are sensitive to heat and thus as the temperatures warm up rather drastically, they can't get used to it quick enough. It messes with their systems throws them off. 

Marigold was always a great character, with her recognizable sounds and actions. The way she preened, the way she kicked her foot out randomly as if she had a sort of muscle tick. The way she got loud and upset if she didn't feel she was being given treats fairly, yet the way she would run from treats and people in general. She wasn't the friendliest of the chickens, often being very flighty. Yet when she would warm up to you she could sit in your lap for a very long time. Her comb and wattles were very soft, and her feathers were always neat and soft as well. She was best friends with Millicent, the chicken she arrived here with. Now, we worry that Millicent will be lonely or be off-put by the loss of her dearest friend.

We will miss you, Marigold

Eartha's Passing

Today, on Mother's Day, the 14th of May, while playing a board game inside, Millicent started her loud egg song. I went outside to quiet her down and instead found Eartha laying down in the sandy run. I thought the way she was laying down was not normal and fairly awkward. I attempted to stand her up, only to have her stumble and fall back down. Her feathers were puffy and up, and her legs were splayed oddly under her. I knew something wasn't right so I brought her inside. She was quiet, yet her eyes seemed normal and clear. Just by looking at her I would have otherwise assumed she was healthy, had I not gotten closer. 

Her behavior reminded me of some of the behavior other chickens of the flock had exhibited when going through egg troubles. As I cannot prove that Eartha has laid a single egg to date, while Ethel and Ester, both similar in age, have laid hundreds, I thought that egg troubles were easily the culprit. I put her in a warm bath in the sink with some Epsom salt, as that had cleared Betty's egg problems before. 

This time, however, there was no such luck. Eartha stayed in that bath for about an hour, nearly silent, drifting in and out of sleep. Hr eyes were still clear, although she refused to eat blueberries offered to her. After an hour, while I was in another room, I heard her sneeze three times and some shuffling. Five minutes of silence followed, after which she started flapping her wings, struggling in the water. I went to her and tried to calm her, as she had slightly twisted her neck. I recognized this, though, from when Buffy had died. Death throes. She died rather quickly, which is all we could have asked for. We showed the body to the flock, so they/d understand what had befallen their friend, and buried her the same afternoon.  We never performed a necropsy, as she didn't have any parasites and seemed very healthy only yesterday.

Rest in Peace Eartha

An Egg Eater

After the installation of the two nest boxes on top of the smaller coop, we've had worries about the security of those eggs. Since they are only behind one run door and can be reached easily enough if the door is open. One egg was left for a few hours on a table outside and when it was recovered a blue jay was standing over it eyeing it. We got to it before it could act.

However, our fears were realized when another (or the same) blue jay appeared in the run. We shut the door on him- trapping him. His target egg had only a small break in it, but it was far too large for him. I was able to catch him, although he bit me on contact. I held him for awhile in the hopes that he'd be scared enough to not come back.

In the future, we will start leaving the second run door open as it is separated from the top net boxes by a low tunnel. Hopefully the wild birds do not find the way through the tunnel. I had trusted that the chickens would be aggressive enough to drive off marauding birds, but I am no longer sure. I was confident because of how they used to attack our cats that were three times the size of the hens.

Finally Laying Again

After a few months of no laying, Ester finally broke the dry streak. Since she started laying about three weeks ago, nearly everyone has followed suit. Ester, Ethel, Millicent, and Marigold are all laying fairly continously, but Ethel and Ester still lead the flock. Eartha, despite being atleast twice the age to start laying, has laid no eggs to date. Every once in awhile she will sing her egg song and visit the nesting boxes, but leaves them empty.

We have two nesting boxes in the main coop, and encased in the mesh wire of the extended run is another, smaller, more portable coop. It too has two nesting boxes, however, no one will use them. Re3cently we instead added two temporary boxes to the roof of the small coop. This gives a place for the smaller hens, like Ethel, Millicent, and Marigold, to lay in peace. Betty is too large to fly to the top of the coop and disturb them, although she tries.

Just in the past few weeks we've replaced the temporary boxes. They were nailed together out of wood and painted a deep gray. The chickens enjoy them very much, as they are much more peaceful than the coops.