Well, I promised I’d try to report the bad as well as the good. So, here is the news… this morning we lost two more of the Delawares (the white, sometimes brown chickens that are in their teens as this point). We’re not sure why, but they stuffed themselves behind the Kennel that the Specks are in, then they suffocated. One of the reasons may have been that they were trying to get warm. We’re just not sure… there were three back there, one atop the other – only the one on top survived. So, that leaves us with 13 Delawares- we’re not sure if one was the rooster we ordered or not – still coming into their own and it’s difficult to tell at this stage. 

Another odd thing that happened is that we missed a total of 3 putting them away last night.  Sue couldn’t remember if she had turned on the heat lamp or not, so she went out to check and there were 3 little Delawares, waiting to get into the coop.  Luckily it really wasn’t that late, nor that cold at the time.  No idea if these were the three that ended up behind the Specks’ cage or not. Needless to say, we’re now counting to make sure that no one is left behind.
That’s it for the bad news.

In other news today… let’s talk about the density of the Rangers vs. Specks or other egg layers. Since we put out the Rangers in the chicken tractor for the first time yesterday (didn’t really get a good photo of this, maybe next time), we handled them much more than we had earlier. We found out that these little guys are HEAVY! They are bred to mature much faster and to have a greater amount of meat on them, and boy do they.  They are built like little rocks. They seem to be twice the weight of the Specks,who are only about a week behind them in age, and even heavier than the Delawares who are at least a month older. They have also grown really quickly. Will you look at the legs on those guys! I just can’t describe what they feel like when you pick them up, kinda like a baseball – yes, that compact.  They also seem to be much warmer than the other birds.  Here is a comparison photo for you: the Specks (Speckled Sussex), on the left, if you’re viewing on a PC. They are really a much daintier bird overall: smaller head, smaller breast, legs and feet. Quite cute little buggers still.

Another interesting tidbit…. When our friends Barb and Greg were visiting last week, they mentioned that what we needed were some swallows to help keep the bugs down. We had never seen any before, so were kinda saying “yeah – that’s not gonna happen.” Then just this morning we watched a pair fly in and out of the covered porch area.  It was like they heard our call and decided to check it out! They were beautiful in color and fun to watch flit this way and that.  Kinda cool.  this is what the male looked like; female was just as pretty, but a duller color – as is most often the case. If they stay around, we’ll be sure to let you know here.  Until then, as always~ Thanks for reading!

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Today’s Weather: It was one of the hottest days we’ve had so far this year.  My phone says that it was 89°, but it felt more like 95 in the sun.  No wind today – thankfully! Tomorrow it’ll be a little cooler.  Low tonight around 56°.

Egg Report: We had a total of 9 today; however, an early morning find was set on the dining table right quick so it wouldn’t break during the rest of the chore process, but Katie Kitty rolled it onto the floor and watched it break. Dogs enjoyed licking it up. So, total net eggs: 8.  Took two dozen (in half dozen packages) to the church today for the monthly food give away.  That means we had around 240 eggs over the last four weeks. Not to shabby for 11 little layers (with one out of commission because she’s trying to hatch a couple)!