Working the plan for new chicks

Martha has been relocated to another home and Clara has been faithfully sitting on wooden eggs for almost a week now.  The feed store is getting new chicks in this week... maybe Tuesday or Wednesday.  I will be calling them to check and see when so we can get a pair of girls for the new mama to be.  I have been studying up on how to introduce them to Clara and my favorite site is NWEdible.  Erica (the site owner and blogger) shared this passage from Scratch and Peck Feed...

the chicken experts at Scratch and Peck Feed how to get a broody hen to adopt chicks – and do it the right way.

Matthew Aamot was kind enough to answer my question:

First, I’d preface this with a blanket disclaimer – all hens are different. Even the best of breeds will sometimes not accept chicks. I had one particularly frustrating Silky hen that never did accept the chicks that I tried to have her foster, and Silkies are one of the best! But – here goes:

• Before you introduce the chicks, get the broody comfortable in a pen that can be enclosed to protect the chicks from other hens and to prevent any chicks from wandering away that first night.
• Timing is important – it’s best to use 5-day old or less chicks for the fostering – the younger the better – and introduce them towards the evening. Evening hours are important because the hen is more relaxed.
• Hold the chick in your hand, cupped up, and reach under the hen like you are going to steal an egg away. Instead, you deposit the little bundle of fun, and repeat. I always place chicks under the hen, never in front of her.
• It’s very important to only do this with a hen who has exhibited a clear desire to hatch her chicks – to be safe, she should be broody for at least a week if not a little longer.

Like I said, success in not guaranteed, but if you follow these steps you have a great chance. Thanks and good luck!

Erica's whole post is excellent!

I will keep you post and there will be pictures.

The Private Life of Chickens

We are mad about chickens.... always learning more about them. This is a great documentary style video on the matter.

Missing Miss Martha...

Today was an emotional day for our youngest.  We posed a question to him a week ago.  Would he be willing to give up one broody chicken to a good home?  One of our cub scout's grandmother has a father who is 90 who wants to breed his rooster and have a hen and baby chicks around the place.  We thought it might be a good fit with one of our broody girls and so we asked Josh what he thought about it.

He chose.  

He chose to give a broody chicken a new home.  

He chose to send her to a home with a rooster.  

He chose to let her have her own babies and be happy.  

We chose Martha... she is feisty and pecks at the other hens a lot.  She will be more calm with a rooster we are thinking.  She won't have other hens to boss around but will have babies to tend to and that will be better for her.

It will be interesting to see how the other birds adjust.  Even just a few hours after she is gone the whole hen houseful feels much more calm.

The choice made him shed a few tears and he will be sad for a few days as he goes out to care for the others that are still here and realizes over and over that she is no longer here.  He will miss her.... we will miss her.  The last words the new owner said to me as they were packing her into the van was that she would call when there were chicks and that he could come and pick one out to bring home.  He can be a grandpa at 10 years old!  LOL

Martha on the left and Clara on the right

In the meantime, we still have a broody girl here.... Clara... and we have called the feed store to ask when new chicks will arrive.  We have placed wooden eggs under her and she took them in and has been sitting on them all day.  We will give her about a week before the new chicks arrive at the feed store and see how she does on those eggs.  If she is serious she will stay on them day and night and then we will get two babies for her and shove them under her in the middle of the night and let her become a mother, too.  

I have spent a great deal of time researching "surrogate hens" and we have made a plan.  Now, we wait... until next week... and then the test.  Will she take the babies readily?  If she takes them under her wing in the middle of the night and loves and nurtures them we are good to go.  

This is an exciting new adventure for our boy... and for the family.  

Stay tuned as it all unfolds.  

Cottage Industry

Cottage industry is a big part of what many homesteaders do.  They sell things they make or raise or bake/cook or grow from their own homes, at a farmer's market stand or even online.  There are so many options for work from home job ideas now.  

I have become more of a work from home kinda girl in recent years.  I bake and sell items from my kitchen as well as recently starting to sell Pampered Chef.  I have spent the last several days finishing up a cooking show/party event and most all the money I make goes to pay for lessons these days.  LOL  We also get the occasional extra item that might surprise us on our budget during the month, too, but mostly music lessons is the target for now.  

I enjoy what I do and I really do have a lot of time with my family.  I am able to keep chickens and garden and cook meals and keep house as well as help my family financially.  It is also a great alternative for me since the Lupus issues have worsened in the last few years.  I can take a day off to recuperate if I need to and I don't miss out on work like I would if I were going to an office or classroom each day.  

I am researching the idea of broadening my income a bit with selling some crocheted or sewn items on Etsy or maybe locally.

I will let you know if I put a shop up.

The Daily...

This week I cleared all the pumpkin and squash vines out of the garden and I will be working to remove weeds and any pests that might be trying to winter over (squash bugs).  We are now letting the chickens out into the yard for part of the day so that they can help us control the bug population and they can stretch their legs and get more sun.  Happy chickens lay more eggs so we are hoping the daily jaunts will be beneficial.  I am also not averse to the multitude of "fertilizer" these little girls are providing.  

I have already had several neighbors tell me that if I get to the point of having extra eggs they would be glad to buy from us.  We have such sweet neighbors!  We are praying for a new family for the house next door that is for sale and would love a chicken friendly family.  Friends would be even better.  At this point we cannot afford to sell any eggs because we are just feeding the family but there might come a day... We shall see.

Chickens in the yard...

We got five little hens on Saturday this past weekend.  There are three little Rhode Island Reds and two little black ones (still trying to figure out their breed).  We got them from another family in our scouting unit.  The girls are about 6 months old and really just starting to lay well.

They are taking to their home quite nicely and I am glad to report they are liking the ants and other little bugs my yard provides.

We had an old dog kennel that we put their coop into and there is plenty of room for them to move around and peck and eat.

The coop came from the family that had them before.  The dad built it himself and it is very sturdy and makes a nice place to roost at night and there are two nice sized brood boxes with easy access to eggs once laid.

They are very well trained.  They head into the coop once it starts to get dark and they are no trouble in that regard.  We open the coop at sun up and close them in at sundown and they are very quiet most of the day with not one peep out of them during the night.

Right now my youngest wants to go out and check on them about every two hours or so and is so excited to watch them and go through the chores with me of caring for them.

The first few days have been curious days.  Youngest and our kitty have been watching and the cat has decided they are no bother so she is moving on.  LOL  They are as big as she is so I don't think she is much threat to them.  They could easily gang up on her and make her life pretty miserable very quickly.

So far... in three days.... we have gotten four eggs and we suspect there will be a few more today.

We are truly enjoying this new adventure!

Saturday Blog Reads...

I have been blog hopping a lot lately so I thought I would share some of my favorites for those of you who love blog reading.  Not sure you guys have noticed the changes but this is still a food blog, I promise.  I am just doing food differently these days.  I am trying to get back to more whole/real food and gardening and chickens are part of that process for us.  In finding my voice I realized I need to share the whole life we live instead of just the food we eat.  Food is such an intricate part of life and I want to share that bigger picture.  

Oh, I did not tell you.... we are getting chickens... TODAY!  

There will be blogging about chickens.  We are getting five 6 month old chickens from a family that cannot care for their chickens anymore.  We will be adding to our little flock come spring and as we need to over the coming years.  I am looking forward to this grand adventure!

Anyway... here are some blogs I love and have been reading as I prepare to write more in October and about life in the garden and with chickens.

The biggest questions on my mind today (besides chicken stuff) is the 31 Days of Blogging coming in October and what I will write and who is joining me?

With that in mind, here is what I am reading lately:

31 Day Reads

Here is the link to The Nester (Nesting Place)... the host for this 31 Day challenge.

Here are a few links regarding the challenge ahead...

13 Reasons Why to Write a 31 Day Series

31 Tips for a Great 31 Days Series

31 Days Categories

Gardening/Farming Reads

You Grow Girl

Mary Jane's Farm

Northwest Edible Life

Chickens in the Road 

(she has a book coming out in October!)

Cold Antler Farm 

by Jenna Woginrich 

(whose books I am devouring right now)

Chickens

The Chicken Chick

Fresh Eggs Daily

Keeping Chickens Newsletter online (this is FREE)

My Pet Chicken

Backyard Chickens

Stay tuned for upcoming chicken news and if you did not know it.... 

TOMORROW IS THE FIRST DAY OF AUTUMN!!!