Haven't popped into one of these in a long while, life kinda reduced my lemmy time.
So, generally, the birds are birding.
We lost a hen to some kind of raptor ( based on the remains), so we're back down to our original two, with no plans on getting more since I'm already at the limit of the work I can do to take care of them, and they're both behaving in a stable, usually happy, way.
That being said, we got visited by Elsa like most of the south, and holy hell has it been brutal with and for the chickens.
Big boy is spending most of his time in his crate, or the back porch. Partly because it's just that bloody cold, but mostly because his precious feet are too dainty to set down on ice or snow, which still lingers on the ground here. It's only been the last two days I could get him to go outside while I cleaned his crate. Which, damn. What with him being in it more, the poo factor is high.
He is, however, becoming more cuddly the more time he's with me. He's never going to be the cuddle bug the hen is, but when I pick him up and sit down with him, he settles in fast and does his happy tuk-tuk sounds usually reserved for peanuts. Then he melts while I pet him under his neck feathers.
Baby girl has been fully inside even on warmer days because the coop is still iced up enough I can't get the door open.
So she's a mess generator in her own right.
Poo on all the things!
Well, we keep pads down, so it isn't really on things, but when she's inside more, she tends to be less concerned about finding a pad. So there's that.
Since its been winter, and she hald an extra long molt (where they shed and grow new feathers), she hadn't laid an egg since late October (hens lay less, or stop entirely during a molt). Which was fine, she's not a working girl. Her eggs are amazeballs, but far from the best thing about her.
However, two days ago, she laid the worst egg she's ever made. It was barely held together, no proper shell at all. Just a glop with some membrane really. But today! Ah, today, she dropped this lovely, dark brown, perfect large egg. So I suspect she's past the winter egg stoppage. She's also sassier than usual the last couple of days, which was an aspect of laying that I missed more than I realized. She's spunkier when she's laying.
So, they're doing much better than I would have hoped considering the shit storm life had been, and the winter chaos.
