The chicks have landed

So cute!, the chicks have hatched.  For reasons I missed as I was away on a girls weekend (!) we have 3 chicks from the original 6 eggs that mother hen started with.  They are as cute as you could imagine.  Fluffy, wobbly on their little legs and chirpy chirping all the time.  Cute.

chick chick chick chick chicken hatch a little egg for me

For the past 3 weeks, a broody hen at the farm has been sitting on 6 eggs, keeping them warm as the miracle of life (I know, cheesy) works it's magic inside. Rather then becoming scrambled eggs, or playing a pivotal role in a cake, these 6 delicate beauties are going to hatch out as little chicks.

These 6 eggs came from our neighbour and are something of a test run, as our own cockerel arrives later today.  Once the new man in town is settled, it could be that we have lots more chicks.  Lots and lots.  All things being well, by this time next year we could be totally overrun by chickens.

But back to the here and now, these 6 little chicks are due to hatch out next weekend.  Which is perfect timing, as lots of family, including Sister in law and the Entrepreneur are due for a visit.  Arriving next weekend as part of the family is our new addition to the clan... Handsome husband's Uncle and his lovely wife have adopted a beautiful 3 year old girl.  Darling boy and Little Brothers new cousin.  We are delighted and can't wait to meet her.  The boys are really excited, so many new lives joining ours.

Going cheap

Look who has joined the gang down at the farm...10 tiny chicks, known as 'table birds', i.e they are destined to be dinner.  Be it roasted with lemon and garlic, or eaten cold dunked in mayonnaise these chicks are brand new and currently enjoying the hot life under a heat lamp before joining the eggers in the great outdoors.

Darling boy wants to call one of them Ginger pig...Who knows why, but I say, why not?

Chasing chickens

Happiness is Darling boy, chasing chickens on a cold winters day.

Fowl play

This was supposed to be a lovely post about how well our rescue battery hens were doing.  They had flourished and had grown all their feathers that boredom and bullying in the cages had plucked out.  Their confidence was back and they had even started laying.  However, it must have been their glossy feathers and happy clucking that attracted Mr Fox...  

Shortly after Little brother arrived, Handsome husband and Marvellous dad had put in a load of fencing and moved the hen house up to the rough land in our garden.  They had a great playground to romp in and were happy roaming around.  We though the fencing might offer our ladies some protection, but sadly not.  One morning, Handsome husband was looking out of the window when he rushed out the house at full speed.  He had seen a fox in with the chickens.  Sadly he didn't get there in time.  Not so fantastic Mr Fox had got the lot...

We have told Darling boy that the chickens are away on holiday- what else do you say to a 2 year old?  We hope to get some more rescue hens, but maybe only after we have invested in some electric fencing, or a dog?...

Bonding with the chickens

Darling boy's new favourite thing to do is feed the chickens- they seem quite keen on it too...

...and then there were two

Our poor chickens have been at the mercy of the local (and for that, read 'hungry') fox population.  Since Christmas we have sadly lost two of our four hens.  Gone in a puff of feathers... they had a happy time whilst they were here.  I only wish it could have been for longer.

But, we do have some more ladies on the way.  Our local representative of the Battery Hen Welfare Trust has got 3 more ladies looking for a new home- and Handsome husband will be picking them up on Saturday.  Electrical fencing is called for, or perhaps a dog?... woof woof

Silly chickens

I promise this photo is not faked for maximum country-living cuteness.  Our hens have found somewhere new to lay...the bale of straw by our front door.  Silly birds.

4 hens, 4 eggs

So exciting! The hens are here.  Handsome husband picked them up on saturday and they are settling in well. They are in much better condition than I thought they might be.  They are fairly fluffy, but just missing a few feathers on their breasts, the poor poppets had plucked them out from boredom.  They should grow back in time, and their beaks, which are a bit of an odd shape should even out too.

They seem to be enjoying the sun on their feathers and the great outdoors.  Darling boy is very excited by them, and the cats seem fairly intrigued too.

We have been debating names and have settled on Diana Ross, Margot and Barbara (in honour of the brilliant 'Good Life') and for the bravest chicken who boldly goes, Valentina Tereshkova- the first woman in space.

Amazingly, they have already laid one egg each...At this rate we will be having 24 eggs a week.  Omletes for dinner then!

Chick-chick-chick-chick-chicken, lay a little egg for me

As soon as the market is over tomorrow, I need to pack up and zoom back up the hill to a teeny village just past our house to a nearby farm because I am picking up our rescue chickens.  

We are collecting 4 'girls' that have lived in a barn all their lives.  I'm not sure what sort of state they are going to be in, not as 'oven ready' as the ex-battery hens, but probably fairly scraggy.  We are looking forward to giving them a better quality of life that's for sure and maybe enjoying an egg or two along the way.  They will have a very cool swiss chalet to live in, fresh air, a great view, yummy chicken food, grass to eat and 2 acres to roam when we are home to check on them.  I have also heard they like to play football, so maybe some balls to kick about too.

The chickens are coming!

Before we moved to Devon, for Handsome husband's birthday, I gave him a egg box, with photos of chickens inside, promising to buy him a hen house and chickens when we were in the countryside. As a surprise for Handsome Husband, I lived up to my promise and recently ordered a hen house from t'internet. A mysterious package arrived last week and Handsome husband was truly surprised and delighted with his present.

He set to with screwdrivers and a set of instructions that even Ikea would have thought baffling. Darling boy was on site to lend a hand and they had the house up in no time. Next up to put together is the run (essential for protecting our birds from the buzzards that soar in air above the valley at the bottom of our garden)

I've got the phone number of the chicken man- a contact from mother in law, and I just need to call him now to see if he has a couple of chickens he wants to sell us, maybe 2 or 3...We have been thinking up good names for chickens and have quite a list, my favourite is either Kiev, or Diana Ross (and the supremes, geddit!?)