Sunday 20 May 2012

Fox attack!

A few days ago the senior hens were having their usual free roaming session around the garden while Lucky (our cat) was having his afternoon  nap, when I noticed that one of the hens (JD) was missing. I went down to the hen house to check the nest boxes - she was not there. As I walked back up the garden I noticed a few black feathers on the grass, and my heart sank. There were a few more feathers in under the hedge, but no sign of JD.

I can only assume that JD was taken by a fox. At this time of year vixens have many young mouths to feed and venture out during the day in search of prey. I know that it is all part of nature, but it is still upsetting to lose a hen like this. JD was one of the most senior hens - I had her for almost three years and she was probably a year old or more when I bought her. She was a lovely hen, a real character, and I will miss her. It goes without saying that this has put an end to the hens free roaming sessions for now - I don't want to lose another hen to the fox.

Otherwise all the young chicks are doing well. I've been letting Chirpy (now 16 weeks old), Sooty, Sweep and Blondie (all nearly 14 weeks old) out into the pen with the senior hens under strict supervision. At first the senior hens were not impressed and sent Chirpy running for cover! Hopefully they will learn to tolerate each other and sort the pecking order out without too much trouble. I'm pretty sure that Sweep is the only female out of the four younger hens, and I have to say Chirpy has been giving her some unwanted attention lately, which is why I decided to start letting them all mix with the older hens. It should hopefully take the pressure off Sweep and also give Chirpy some other females to chase after (if he is man enough to try)! Chirpy's crowing has also improved dramatically (don't know where he has been getting lessons) but he still seems a bit self conscious about it. There's no sign of Blondie or Sooty starting to crow yet.

Coco, Nano, Pinky and Perky (all now 10 weeks old) are also doing well and have daily access to a large enclosed run. The Quail (now nearly 8 weeks old) are laying two or three eggs every day and seem to be perfectly happy in the greenhouse. At least in there they are safe from the fox, but I'm thinking about making them a movable ark so that they could get out on the grass at least during the day when the weather is good.

Sunday 13 May 2012

First Quail egg!

I can't believe that it's been 6 weeks since my last post! Sorry it has been so long, and even though I have not hatched any more chicks I have been very busy looking after all the chicks and adult hens and have built a brand new hen house and run in the garden to accommodate my growing flock.

Today is a special day. Much to my surprise I found an egg in the Quail's run, and seven weeks ago the Quail that laid it was still an egg herself!


The Quail have now moved into the large indoor run which I built to house the chicks. They are absolutely gorgeous little birds and the range of sounds they make is quite incredible. I think I have two males and four females, but I'm by no means sure about that yet. I was really amazed to find an egg in the run today. Unlike chickens, Quail do not use nest boxes (or perches) - they just lay in their bedding, although I have noticed that they make little hollows in the wood shavings where they sit. I have provided them with a covered area at both ends of the run, one of which is heated, and I have still been putting the heater on at night because the weather has been so cold. The Quail seem to spend most of their time under the covered areas - see the photo below. They are very timid little birds.


Pinky, Perky, Nano and Coco have now moved out into a proper hen house and are doing really well. Coco is a beautiful bird and is very tame. The Rhode Island Red (RIR) chicks seem a bit small for their age but they are only 9 weeks old and have got a good bit of growing left to do yet. Here is a photo of Coco (looking very inquisitive!) and one of the RIR chicks - I'm afraid I can't tell them apart!


Blondie, Sooty and Sweep are now 12 weeks old and have access to the outdoor run that I made for them. I'm still not sure of their gender - I think that Sooty and Blondie (see photo below) are possibly both male.


Sooty has grown some lovely reddish brown feathers on his neck and back and is a really lovely bird and Blondie has incredible yellow eyes. They both have the typical Araucana comb and crest, and Sooty has a definite "beard". I think that Sweep (see following photo) is possibly female. She does not have a crest but has a beard and some brown edging to her neck and chest feathers. The main thing is that they all seem to be getting on with each other very well so far, what ever they are.


And then there's Chirpy who at 15 weeks old is nearly fully grown. He has started to crow (not very well it has to be said!) but I expect he will improve with practice. Chirpy is still very tame and likes to be handled. He really had grown up to be a handsome fellow (see photo below), and before too long I'll be thinking about introducing him to the "senior" hens. Not sure who will get the biggest shock!


Finally, here's a photo of the "senior" hens relaxing in their newly extended pen. The only one not in the photo is JD, but I expect she had egg laying business to attend to.


The hens have been laying really well - on average about 4 eggs every day!. Provided the weather is not really bad, they get out of their pen for a few hours every day to roam free around the garden and farm yard, which they really enjoy.

That's all for now from the hen house!