1st Monday of Summer

My broilers and Rhode Island Reds (kindergarten chickens) got a big heavy pan for a feeder and one of Grandma's coffee cans for water.  Their new feed formula is 1/2 big chicken feed and 1/2 chick feed.

 

 

The broilers are getting bigger and can't jump their little ledge to the outdoors, so I found a board to set up.

 

 

While the broilers were still eating, the Rhode Island Hens enjoyed time outside.

 

 

Bea was brushing Otto while the hens were outside.

 

 

Weed Paradise

 

Where are all the kindergarten chickens?

 

I stood there confused and worried, until I saw some weeds shaking.

  There you are!

 





 

Why are you stepping on him?

 

 The weeds will be their delicious jungle until they eat or squash it all.

 

A June Morning with Grandma

I loaded three buckets on the Big Red and drove to the farm to visit my Grandma.  I was about to go inside the house when I spotted the backyard gate wide open and 2 dogs barking at me.  I walked through the backyard around the pine tree and saw Fred and Grandma putting up cages around her tomatoes.  We all picked strawberries for lunch. She pointed out her row of blue potatoes.  Uncle Darrell read somewhere online that blue potatoes are healthy for you.  They spent a lot of money on these plants and Grandma will be mad if it doesn't produce good potatoes.  Fred and I listened to Grandma tell us her concerns about the bugs eating the rhubarb leaves and the flowers in the flower bed aren't doing well as the ones in the flower pot.  We went inside the house and sat at the kitchen table.  We talked about the weather, my trip to Colorado, the obituaries in the newspaper, her broiler that can't walk because it's so fat, and so on.  I didn't notice the time until Grandma grabbed some chicken out of the frig, started tearing it apart, and threw it in a pan.  I grabbed Fred from the living room while Grandma covered the baskets of strawberries with tin foil. We loaded the strawberries, a bag of chick feed, 3 pails of chicken feed, and Fred in the Big Red.  I drove home, unloaded the strawberries, and went to my chickens.  Fred and I were goofing around with the chickens.  Here's one of the big babies.

 

 

 

 

 

Okay Fred, that is not how you hold a chicken.

Feeding "Monsters"

 Feeding broilers is a very funny task.  They are fat, lazy, and always hungry.

 

First, you pick up the feeder and fill it.

 

 

Second, set the feeder down quick and smooth so that the broilers won't attack the feeder before it reaches the ground.

 

 

Next, watch them tip it over.  Even if you set it back up, their big feet will flip it over again.

 

 

Lastly, you get to watch them eat lazily.  They lay on the ground and eat their mess. 

 

 

 

What goofy chickens!!!

 



Chicken Season Begins for 2014

 

I'm back and eager to start blogging again.  Currently I have three groups of chickens.  I'll explain what and where they are. 

I have two buildings.  The one on the left has two groups of chickens.  The right will be repainted this summer.

 

The coop on the right holds my 15 Rhode Island Red hens.  It was very hot yesterday, so that's why the hen has its mouth open.

 

The building on the left has the kindergarten classroom chickens and my new chicks.  The building is divided into 2 parts.  Up front are the kindergarten chickens.

 

 

 

There are 3 broilers

 

 

and 4 Red Sex-Link chickens.

 

 

 

I enjoy hearing their patting feet run all over the floor, especially the big thumps of the big broilers.

 

In the back are the chicks.

 

 

 

But wait, there's an odd ball in there.

 

 

 

With my 16 Rhode Island Reds are 4 other chicks, counting the black one.  I saved those 4 from being killed, since the hatchery couldn't sell them.  My Grandma brought 4 handfuls of them to her house.  The blessed chicks are meat birds (so I guess they won't be so blessed later this summer).

So here's my special chick.  I don't know if it's a boy or girl and I haven't named it yet.  I had to hold it because it wouldn't stay still.

 

 

Here is a funny video called, "Chick vs. Cell-Phone".

 

 

or Click Here

 

Good evening, folks.

 

 

If you have any questions or name suggestions, please leave a comment to this blog.