One Big Happy Family...NOT!

I thought Jane was going to be "the mean one."  She gets this crazy look in her eye sometimes.  And now that she's got crazy hair it makes her look really mean!  However, I was wrong (this doesn't happen very often).  Big Nose Kate has proven to be the bully.  When she chases Jessie she's out for blood!  SHe'll pin her down and when you break them apart Kate has a mouthful of yellow fuzz.  You would think Jessie would learn to keep her distance, but she doesn't. 

We each have our own way of dealing with the bullying...

I try to keep them seprarate as much as possible until Jessie is old enough to fight back which will be sooner than later.  If Kate starts chasing then I use my trusty yard stick! (see previous blog)

Mom is going to get essential oils to squirt on them so they will be at peace with each other.  Maybe we'll get them headbands and tie dye shirts too. :)

Brian is just gonna yell at them.

see his finger!  he's really gettin after her!

Chicken Duplex

Miss Jessie escapes and I want my bathroom back so that can only mean one thing.  Jessie must go outside.  I walked with the feed store and they said it would be fine.  Since big chickens and little chickens can't get along they must be separated.  My first thought was to build a temporary coop...maybe out of a dog house or something.  Since time was of the essence, I couldn't really go looking around for a cheap/free dog house so I went to Home Depot.  Mom had her idea.  I had my idea.  Brian had his idea.  After at least 30 minutes of looking around at all the options I had an even better idea!  Why not make a partition for the coop I already own??? (brilliant, i know.)  The best part of the idea is that it was CHEEP (misspelling on purpose).  Brian wasn't too excited about the idea.  He thought it was unfair to the Kate and Jane because they would be squashed into a smaller area.  I figured making a new coop was unfair to my pocket book and all of the trees that would have to die in the process.  I WIN!

The partition took about two days to finish (just a few hours really).  I think it adds to the Beverly Hillbilly decor.  It's made out of old fence wood, chicken wire and bailing wire (the bailing wire adds a nice redneck touch).  This is not a very good picture, but I think it gives you an idea.  Miss Jessie is on the left.  Kate and Jane get the 2 story loft.

the claw-like thing is a deer antler for Jessie to use as a roost.

Jessie has only been out for two nights, but I think she is adjusting well.  I can only imagine going from a nice quiet air conditioned home to a dirty noisy hot home.  She's a little skittish still.  Hopefully that will go away.  I don't really want to eat eggs from a chicken that's on Xanax.  At night we put in a small cat carrier so she'll have some protection and during the day we take it out so she can have room to move around.


I really do feel kind of bad that Jessie was "thrown from her nest," but I needed my bathroom back. :^(

Stories From a Former Chicken Farmer

Every so often I email my Uncle Jim an update of our family "goings-ons."  Obviously I added updates on the chickens as they are part of the family now.  haha  Anyway, he sent me back a couple of memories from his childhood.  I thought they were cute and wanted to share them.  Uncle Jim just turned EIGHTY last month (and I'm worried about 30. haha).

Without further ado:

"I had enough of chickens on the farm to want any now, but they would be interesting. I'll tell you a story. When I was a young lad on the farm, we had chickens and a chicken-house...and there were fleas in that chicken-house! I had the task of daily "gathering eggs" and learned the tricks of stealing them, sometimes from under the chicken who was sitting on them. They would peck at me, but I ignored it. One Sunday night we went to the Methodist church with our farm neighbors. I went up and sat on the front pew in front to the preacher, and suddenly I got a terrific itch on the top of my foot! So, like any young kid, I pulled off my boot and proceeded to pick that flea off my foot and stopped the itching. The preacher stopped his sermon, looked down at me, and asked, "Did you get him, Jim?" Mother could have fainted she was so embarrassed. If she could have reached me she probably would have choked me! I still get laughs from that from those that remember!

Dad used to order baby chicks by the big carton, and we would go down to the local post-office and pick them up. Talk about old-fashioned....but those were the good days!"

Renovations

The time has come...either renovate my bathroom to be a permanent coop for Jessie or fix something for her to live in outside.  It's getting to be ridiculous that she gets my bathroom to herself and she doesn't even pay rent...

Today I got the bright idea to make a small temporary coop for Miss Jessie until she's big enough to be with the big girls without them being able to pick/peck on her.  So Brian drove us (Me and Mom) to Home Depot to try to figure this thing out.  I'm a little handy, but not too much.  My "trial and error" is more error than trial.  After walking through Home Depot at least twice and coming up with several ideas...some more complex than others...I had a GREAT, low cost idea.  Why not just make a divider for the coop I already have?  I'm brilliant!  I don't think Mom or Brian thought my idea was nearly as fantastic as I did, but they're going with it.  This evening I cut the pieces for the wood frame with an electric saw (using safety the OSHA would applaud) and screwed it together.  Tomorrow I attach the chicken wire and then place it in the coop.  Duct tape will play a very important role in all of this. :)  Pictures to follow!

My assistant

I guess she thought it was safer to be around the electric drill and screwdriver than be near Kate. :)

The Chickadees

This is the Girls' movie debut!!!  Please ignore the girl with the polka dotted shorts...not sure who owns those pasty white legs OR why she's in my yard. ;)

Thanks Melitha for the cute video!!

How to Discipline a Chicken

So Kate's out for blood!  Now when we let all of the girls out Kate hunts down Jessie and pecks her to death.  It's kind of sad.  Jessie screams and runs as fast as she can with Kate nipping at her heels.  And of course when you yell Kate's name she doesn't respond...typical chicken.  Chickens mind worse than cats.

Big Nose Kate stalking Miss Jessie

Poor unsuspecting chicken

How do you discipline???  With a yard stick! (I know...I know...I'll make a wonderful mother!  Go ahead and get CPS on speed dial. hehe)  It works with Larri when she needs a whoopin and I can't reach her so I figured it work on Kate too.  The goal is not to injure the chicken or inflict pain...it's to get something between the two chickens.  If it happens to sting a little that's not my fault...you shouldn't be chasing your sister/brother.

Respect the ruler!

God Didn't Want Me to Get to Work on Time

The girls were feisty AGAIN this morning.  I opened the door to the "house of vixens" and they flew out.  Then as I'm trying to wrangle them they kept running.  Chicken soup anyone????

When I went to feed Jessie she was chasing something in her coop.  Upon closer inspection I see a baby gecko!  I couldn't let her eat it so I had to fight with yet another chicken.  I won!

Now the gecko is safely outside.

Visitor

How'd the little guy get in my bathroom??  I brought in a plant from outside and they just rode on in...I say "they" because Mom already found one in my bathroom while I was gone. (She cleaned my room for me.  YAY for moms!! hehe)

Anyway, I got to work.

Damn Chicken

Your looks can only get you so far!  Last night I couldn't go to sleep so I decided to start my new blog...about the rest of the Funny Farm.  I worked on it until I got tired and then went to brush my teeth.  When I open the door to my bathroom guess what I see...A CHICKEN....OUT OF HER "COOP."  I guess she all of the sudden got standards and realized the Rubbermaid box she was staying in was not good enough for her...or maybe she got bored and flew out, but couldn't get back in. Either way she was out.  She jumped on top of her water and then right over the side.  Now I was faced with a predicament...I just put her back in her box, refilled her water, and locked her inside the part of the bathroom that's all tile.

This morning she was still in her "coop."  Mom and I are brainstorming new ideas for her.

She Strikes Again...I Mean VISITS Again...

Melissa came over again to check out the chicks plus she hadn't met Miss Jessie.  They guys grow FAST!!!  I've had Miss Jessie for about 2 weeks and she's doubled in size.  At this rate she'll be 6 feet tall by the Fall.  Jane is growing into a hen...we're going to have to go bra shopping pretty soon (if you know what I mean). :)  Kate is finally catching up with Jane. I thnk she's a couple weeks younger than what we were told.

Here's some pictures of the visit... 

Mom and Jane having a Heart-to-Heart...

Feeding the girls...

 Remember how Kate pecked Jessie??  As you can see it didn't bother her for too long.  This time Jessie bowed up to the other two...some girls just don't learn.

Chickens never get old

Realizing that chickens have sharp claws.  :^)

Helping out with the yard work...

Just hanging out.

Atlanta Chicks

While I was in Atlanta I came across a chicken or two as well.  Crazy since I was at a conference ALL week. 

In the hotel's food court

Peace from Atlanta

One might have seen a chicken on a bike tour of the city...I wouldn't know because I was at a conference.

Stranger Danger!

Tes is a therapy dog...

In chicken this translates to..."We're all gonna need therapy after this dog gets a hold of us!!"

Mom is trying to train Tes to not go out for blood every time she goes out back.  Tes is a pretty good dog, but I think this might be a big task for her.  It would be like telling me not to drink the Diet Coke that setting on my desk...NOT GONNA HAPPEN.

Mom and Tes practicing "Leave it."

She got them in her sights...

So far Tes is okay on a leash.  The other day, however, the dogs were out back and Brian tried to put ice in the coop.  Kate had a near death experience.  She flew over Brian's head.  Tes went in for the kill and Kate had to do some tactical moves to get out of harms way.  Brian would have had some explaining to do had Kate been injured...or dinner.

Chick Fight!!!!!

I don't know if Miss Jessie forgot she's half the size of the other feathered friends in my yard or if she's a rooster with little man syndrome.  Either way it proved to be almost fatalfor her (I'm exaggerating a bit.)

I try to let the girls out for some fresh air in the evenings...Bordellos can be a bit stuffy.  This particular evening Jessie had a stand off with Kate.  One of the chickens was put back in her place and it wasn't Kate. :)

Within seconds Kate lunged at Jessie and Jessie took off screaming.  The blood bath was over as quickly as it started.  I separated them and the rest of the evening was fight free.

This started out being "picture perfect."

I've Been Imprinted!!

Miss Jessie either thinks I'm her mother OR she knows the other chickens won't mess with her when I'm around because she follows me around everywhere.  It's pretty cute!  Mom took a video.

Please ignore the random stuff around the yard AND the dead grass that I bought for $2 a piece...it's dead, but the other grass is doing fine now.

Cop Out

I am WAY behind on updating this thing.  I have a couple of postings that need to go up from before I left for my conference...I'll get to it.  For now, here's a little "teaser."

Willie and Jessie bonding.  She's still tiny.

Jessie has grown a ton!  This picture is from before I left to Atlanta.  Please refer to "Operation Rescue Chick" to compare sizes. I'll post another picture later so you can see ow much she's grown in this past week.  It's crazy!

She/He resembles the chicken that was in a similar box during the rescue mission...just taller.

Almost!!

This was going to be a cute shot...

 Her little leg is so cute!!

Flew the Coop!

Early this morning I woke up to find Larri's nose up to the door of my bathroom.  Moe was in attack mode just behind her and then Tes was behind Moe.  Hmmmm.....  So I threw something at them to make them get away from the door.  (I'll make a wonderful mother!)  That didn't work so I just tried to go back to sleep (I know others that use this method of parenting).  Then I heard a scratch at the door and then Miss Jessie screaming.  Now I am forced to get up.  aaaargghh! It was 5:49am.

Miss Jessie had gotten out of her coop and was roaming around in the bathroom.  Not sure why she picked the only door with danger lurking on the other side as her place to rest, but she did.  Chicken and her furry "friends" are all okay.  (Side note: Last week I noticed Jessie trying to escape and was going to write a blog about it..."How Long Does it Take a Chicken to Learn to Fly"  There's no need for that blog now.  It's about 1 1/2 weeks.)

Brian has since extended the walls of her tub with cardboard.  I have yet to see it.  hehehe  Pics to follow!

Just in case you're wondering...I never got back to sleep and now I'm TIRED!!!!!

Is this inappropriate???

STILL under the weather!

Poor Bog Nose Kate still has the sniffles.  (Maybe I jinxed her with her name...Should have named her Big EGG Kate instead.)  Mom and I have been taking turns medicating her.  She's on antibiotics again and we are giving her "Vicks for Chicks" several times a day.  Chickens look soooo pathetic when they are sick.

poor thing!

Vicks for Chicks on the head...

Vicks for Chicks up the nose...

Every Dr needs a work station...

Hopefully this double dose will work.  The next option is a vet...Do people really take chickens to the vet??

First Meeting

It's become a pain to let the big girls out first, let them roam, put them up and then let Miss Jessie out soooo I decided to try them all out at the same time.  It went surprisingly well.  Calamity Jane and Big Nose Kate aren't as rough around the feathers as I thought they would be.  Miss Jessie stayed VERY close to me and Jane and Kate just did their usual thing. 

So I did it again last night.  This time Jane might have taken a lunge or two at Miss Jessie, but I can't prove it without a shadow of a doubt.  Maybe she just got a sudden burst of energy.  And I don't know if it's just ehr natural look, but Jane did have a crazed look in her eyes...could have been allergies.

Let's hope no one gets brave and things stay as they are...

Such a sweet face...hahaha

:^)

Don't worry, she's been vaccinated!

Update from the Chicken Meme

The chicken's Meme watches them while I'm away.  Sometimes she sends updates like this one...

"I was letting Jessie eat out of my hand when she jumped in my hand and started scratching! 

That was so cute. She really scratches hard!"

I wonder if she'll be as willing to help with her future grandkids as much as she does her grandchicks...

POSSIBLE (future) TEXT MESSAGES:

"I was trying to put your "Mini Me" down for a nap and she just wouldn't go to sleep.

That's not so cute!"

"I put some food out for your daughter and some ice in case she gets hot.  Hope she can find it."

"Your children the best grandchildren ever...way better than your brothers' kids."

Follow the Leader

When we let the girls out to walk around they always venture out a little more.  Today they went up on the porch which was a first and then they were looking around the rain barrel.  This is a good thing because that might get kind of "buggy" once it sets outside for too long.  Keep up the good work, ladies!

Where one goes the other will follow.

Picture Perfect

I'll be taking orders if any of you would like to have this blown up to poster size. :)

No matter how big they get their thighs will never touch...jealous much??

Flippin' the Bird

If you thought I was immature before...

Teenagers have NO respect these days!

Sunday Funday

In between the Rangers game, running, watering the lawn and bicicleta riding we found time to hang out with the girls.  Jane is STILL not 100% so I was going to giver her a dose of Vicks for Chicks.  My plan was to lure her to me with food and then grab her while she wasn't looking.

Everything was going according to plan...

About to go in for the grab...right after I snap a picture

Then Jane decided she needed to get in on the action and flipped the food into the chick's vicks.  So now I have what looks like chicken grits.  I thought the whole thing would have to go to waste, but it was a HIT!  They loved it!!

Do I have something in my teeth??

Trying to figure out how to jump on Brian for some food.

Brian made a human bridge with his leg.

Success!  Chickens have CLAWS!

Can't be angry when you have chickens.

Bloopers

Like I've said before, "Chickens make HORRIBLE models."  Here's just a few attempts at cute pictures.

Take me to your leader!!

Peek-a-boo gone bad

Close up of chicken breast...that was not my intention

Grass looks nice at least

stood there the whole time it took me to grab my phone, unlock it, find the camera and then POOF she's gone

"All that I'm assssking, is give peace a chaaaance"

Growing Like a Weed!

too cute for words...

Look out  Jordyn...she's smart too!  Already doing what the big kids do; eating bugs.  Can Jordyn cook dinner yet????

I feel sorry for Miss Jessie having to stay in her "condo" all day so I take her out for a bit.  The eggsperts say wait 2-3 weeks, but what do they know?  Chickens in the wild don't stay in bathrooms with heat lamps...

She's getting so BIG.  At only a week old she is taller, more coordinated and she's getting wing feathers.  She or he (remember we don't know if it's a he or she) is precious!

You can see her feathers...

Is that a weed??  Oh wait, nope...just a fast growing chicken.