Greeting farm folks! News (or not news) of the day - my darling Maybelline is still holding out but looking more piggy every day. Eleanor - who is very nice but not my most favorite - is also holding outwith her kiddos. We'll keep you posted.
My Marans rooster - such a good guy! - is doing much better and moved back in with his girls today. He crowed all the time I was carrying him from the chicken sick ward to his chicken cottage around the back of the barn. He was totally stoked! He got right back to checking on the girls and having snacks, par for the course.
So pleased he's doing better. Sometimes a sick chicken is a goner chicken - prey animals that they are, they don't have the sturdiest of constitutions.
But Darling here seems like a trooper so here's to many long years of his sweet (loud) voice and jolly disposition.
The most eggs today! Lots of young girls adding on to the grand total. The longer days help too and some sunshine never hurts. 39 egg beauties from the farm chickens. The girls out there are in chicken tractors, smaller mobile coops that we move from place to place to spread the fertilizer wealth around and give the girls new pasture to scratch around in.
Each breed lays a different color. Some of these are from some girls that we hatched from a Marans rooster and Whiting hens so they are called Olive Eggers and lay the brown/green eggs - sometimes with spots.
And last but certainly not least - look at this gorgeous boy! This is Gaston, the biggest of roosters. He's a Blue Laced Red Wyandotte, a beauty for sure. He is super chill and is just growing into his full size. They are a bigger and slower to develop breed. These are my kids - Aaron's not sure of their usefulness but look at this guy! He's incredible - if you're into beefy roosters. We have 3 of the blue laced color and 3 black laced red. The blue color doesn't breed true so 1/2 of the chicks he fathers with the black laced girls will be blue and 1/2 will be splash, a lighter version of the same feather pattern.
I think he's very worthwhile. He thinks the same.
On Friday, I get to work on the farm almost all day. I know it sounds loony but the farm work - hard, muddy, sometime smelly - is the best of work. You can see progress. You get to be outside all day. You create a camaraderie (real or imagined) with the animals. I think it's the the cure for a lot of discontent. One cannot obsess about much when so much work is all yours to complete. Also the recipe for a good night's sleep.