That’s a very good question. Is it just me or did this week seem to simply fly by? When I got home today, Sue said, “I sure didn’t do anything today.” Then she proceeded to tell me all the things she did work on. The biggest of which was research and planning for completing the trailer-cum-chicken tractor. There are a lot of things to think about: needs to be strong enough to withstand the winds and be towed all around the pasturelands, needs to be tall enough for people access, yet not too big or heave so that it can be towed all around the pasturelands, needs a storage place for food and a tank to harvest any water that is collected from the roof, needs to have enough nesting boxes for 30+ chickens as well as indoor roosting space. That’s a lot to take into consideration. Plus figuring out what lumber is needed… there’s math involved in all that stuff! Takes some brain-power; glad she’s doing it!
The other thing she did was set up the mid-sized crate for the little Banty Hen and her beau. We wanted to give her some more room to be exercising and getting better, but still keep her safe. So Sue put up a barrier between the two in the crate and we set them up together. This will also allow the Beau to be able to come and go if he wants as he has a separate access door. If, for some reason, she doesn’t get better – he’ll need to be able to participate in the Banty community. He’s been a good protector to her and stuck around with her, even though he was able to get out of their little enclosure if he wanted to. I think he’ll be a rooster we keep.
Also today, Sue put up a really nice winter wind barrier for the doves. As the days and nights have been getting cooler, we’ve been concerned about keeping them warm. Last night we talked about giving them shelter from the cold wind and I suggested using the remaining heavy duty plastic sheeting that was left over from the cold frame. That would allow them to still have light come in. So – Sue did that today. Leaving some open spaces here and there for circulation. When I checked on their water this evening, you could feel a noticeable difference in the temperature. They’ll do great!
I suppose the final update, then would be that the Little Layers have been unleashed! They’ve been so hot to get out of the brooders they’ve been jumping over the top. So, last night, after everyone was settled down for the evening, we just simply opened the doors for them. They have yet to venture out of the coop and many are staying in the bottom brooder because the Banties are less than welcoming. I keep telling them that they better watch it because those layers are gonna end up twice their size – and we all know about paybacks! We’ll see how many days it takes for the layers to get outside. Integration is always and interesting time.
We’ll keep you posted on all of these exciting happenings and so much more! Until then, as always~
Thanks for reading!
Today’s Weather: was cloudy all day and cooler. My body is telling me that the weather would like to rain. The high was 69°, currently it is 62° at 5:33 p.m. Sunset was sometime in the past ( like around 5:10) and sunrise will be at 7:03 a.m.
Egg Report: Yesterday we had 11 chicken eggs – no duck eggs; they are on hiatus. Today we had 12 chicken eggs.
Wing and a Prayer 