BYC Member Interview - Speckledhen **UPDATE 01-01-21 page 8**

sumi said:

This member needs no introduction. Our beloved Cynthia, known to all as speckledhen has been a BYC member since February 2007. She joined the Staff as a moderator in September 2007 and did a fantastic job working with the community, until she stepped down from her position in August 2012. Cynthia kindly agreed to be the first member interviewed for BYC and she also agreed to give you all the opportunity to follow up on this interview with your own questions. Please be considerate and do not ask any questions of an overly personal or offensive nature. **The interviewee reserves the right to refuse to answer any questions she does not feel comfortable with**

I hope you all enjoy getting to know our "mother hen" a bit better!

1. Cynthia, tell us a bit more about yourself.

I am the wife of a retired Air Force Msgt. We've been married for almost 39 years (yep, I was a teenage bride) and have two grown sons, one married. No grandchildren. The younger son lives in Korea teaching English. Older one is a restaurant manager. We are Georgia natives and came back here after my husband retired, but moved further and further away from the city until we ended up here in the North Georgia mountains almost within a pinky's reach of the North Carolina border. My husband is an online Bible teacher who loves to oil paint and is currently learning to play the violin on a 150 year old family heirloom fiddle. He says the chickens are mine, but they tend to disagree. They all love him. In addition to keeping chickens, I have an internet handmade crafts business, Blue Roo Creations, started with my dear friend I met right here on BYC, Cetawin aka Ladyhawk Smith. The business is named for both our beloved Blue Orpington roosters. We sell crocheted and quilted crafts, handmade soaps and scrubs, braintan deer hides, beaded crafts, etc, even hatching eggs and birds on occasion.

2. Why did you start keeping chickens?

We started keeping chickens for healthier eggs. We wanted rich, unadulterated, fresh free range eggs.

3. Which aspect(s) of chicken keeping do you enjoy the most?

What I enjoy most about keeping chickens is the affection I receive back from them and the nuances of their personalities I get to observe closely every day. They are more intelligent and amazing than most give them credit for. They keep us both active on a daily basis. Eggs are really a bonus.

4. Which members of your flock, past and present, stand out for you and why?

The members of my flock that stand out? Wow, there are so many because they each have their own personalities and voices and quirks. Above all would be Zane, my late crippled Barred Rock rooster. Zane always will be the love of my life, chicken-wise. Zane was the son of another great rooster, my very first one, Hawkeye, a gentleman to the core. Zane was crippled by an injury at about 18 weeks of age and we cared for him until his sudden, unexpected death at the age of 4 1/2. He got around using his one good leg and his wings as crutches. He watched over chicks out and about with their broody mamas, who always trusted him with their chicks. Zane literally crowed his way out of this world and we miss him every day. He never let his infirmity get him down, always a cheerful fellow with warm, kind eyes and a zest for life. He loved me and I adored him. And there is Gypsy, my almost 7 year old Black Ameraucana, who was Zane's favorite hen and best pal. She must be held every day, multiple times a day. I say there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth when I lose her. Then there was my big, sweet as a teddy bear Blue Orpington rooster, Suede, who died of natural causes just before his 6th hatch day. What a tough act to follow! I could go on and on but this would turn into a novel!

5. What was the funniest thing(s) that happened to you in your years as chicken owner?

There are so many weird, strange, surprising and funny things that happen to any chicken owner over a period of years that it's hard to pin down just a couple. I recall one incident that happened with Zane, though, that had me laughing out loud. His daily feed because he ate alone was Knockout Game Bird feed, a 12% protein 11-grain scratch, which contains as two of its grains two types of corn, one yellow whole kernal and one popcorn. He was served in a weighted dog bowl so with him resting his chest on it to eat, he didn't tip it over. Every morning, I'd remove the shavings from his bowl and pour him some fresh on top. He was so excited every day to get his breakfast and he'd thump over to the bowl and chow down. One time, the newly opened bag contained not the usual yellow corn, but ghost white corn. He'd been eating the same mix for his entire life and it rarely changed. That morning, I poured his portion as usual, he rushed over to his bowl, leaned in and literally froze, staring into the bowl. He didn't move until I said, "Zane, trust me, it's corn. C'mon, try it." He cocked his head and looked at me like, "What did you just give me?!" He didn't eat until I put my hand into it and stirred it around. After the first bite, he was fine, but boy, that white corn really freaked him out, LOL!

6. Beside chickens, what other pets do you keep?

Chickens are our only pets at this point. We had two dogs but they've gone on to their final rest now and we probably wont get another due to the expense.

7. Anything you'd like to add?

I cannot imagine my life without chickens now. They are truly amazing creatures. They have and know their names, each and every one. They have a dignity that we've been privileged to witness; for example, we see that dignity when the second in command watches over a head hen as she is fading, or the head hen guards the second in line if she is ailing. It's happening now in my Old Hens' Retirement Home & Hospice. They can be selfless. It is a surprising revelation, but yes, they can. I've seen it more than once, a hen literally stand at a feed bowl and deny herself food when a dying hen was trying to eat. The stories I could tell if I had time to write a book!

https://www.backyardchickens.com/u/348/speckledhen

See here for more about the interview feature and a complete list of member interviews: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/905602/introducing-vip-member-interviews/0_30

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