BYC Member Interview - chicknmania

[Cynthia12]

Great stories! Love hearing folks memories of their birds. Wow, 9 yrs. is a long time for a chicken. Thank you for sharing!

 

[chicknmania]

Thank you Molly for sharing your adventures with us on BYC. I enjoyed your story. What chickens did your son show in FFA? what breeds of chickens do you have now?
thanks again

The first chickens my son showed were two Brown Leghorn hens he borrowed from one of our neighbors. One of his friends surprised him by giving him a beautiful Brown Leghorn rooster while he was still at the fair. My son entered that rooster, named Lucky, in the rooster crowing contest at the fair, and won.

In the following years I don't remember what all he actually showed in more serious contests, but I do remember that he entered the crowing contest for three years in a row with different roosters, and won every time....one year he won Grand Champion and Grand Champion runner up in the same crowing contest with two of our roosters. It sounds silly, but we had a lot of fun trying to figure out in advance who to take that might win, and obviously we were pretty successful, and the crowing contest trophies are very attractive, lol!

We have a few different breeds currently, although the majority are mixed breed. We have a black Jersey Giant hen, two Golden Comet hens, an Araucauna pullet, a Welsummer pullet, a black Australorp pullet, a Cuckoo Marans pullet, 3 Partridge Wyandot pullets, and among the mixed breeds there are strains of Blue Copper Marans, Blue Orpington, Golden Pencilled Hamburg, Ameraucana, Silkie, White Rock, Delaware, White Leghorn, Silver Laced Wyandot, and a lot of other things, most likely.

.

 

[chicknmania]

With winter coming on, I just have to share this last story, which is one of my most memorable, and something to consider for those who have free range flocks, especially. We had two Golden Pencilled Hamburg hens, who were very sweet natured and among my favorites, and they came up to the house every day to hang out in the yard. One winter we had a very cold, very snowy winter, and as we live in the country with a long driveway, we had a big storm one day and were snowed in with a couple of feet of snow blocking the driveway. We had to wait for our neighbor to come plow us out, and that didn't happen until evening. We needed to get to the store for supplies, and my son and I headed out. As we got in the car and prepared to leave, our headlights illuminated one of our GPH hens, Miss Cluck Cluck. She had made her way alone from the barn almost up to the house, a distance of about fifty yards. That was as far as she got, because she was mired in snow up to her drumsticks.

She could not move at all. We rushed to save her, warmed her up in the house, and put her in an elevated enclosed pen in the barn with deep straw for the night, so she could recover and finish warming up. How in the world she got as far as she did in the deep snow, or why she felt she had to come up to the house alone, I have no idea, but we were so glad we found her! (so was she!!).

Some people think chickens won't venture out into the deep snow, but she was living testimony that yes, they will

 

[PaulaMc]

With winter coming on, I just have to share this last story, which is one of my most memorable, and something to consider for those who have free range flocks, especially. We had two Golden Pencilled Hamburg hens, who were very sweet natured and among my favorites, and they came up to the house every day to hang out in the yard. One winter we had a very cold, very snowy winter, and as we live in the country with a long driveway, we had a big storm one day and were snowed in with a couple of feet of snow blocking the driveway. We had to wait for our neighbor to come plow us out, and that didn't happen until evening. We needed to get to the store for supplies, and my son and I headed out. As we got in the car and prepared to leave, our headlights illuminated one of our GPH hens, Miss Cluck Cluck. She had made her way alone from the barn almost up to the house, a distance of about fifty yards. That was as far as she got, because she was mired in snow up to her drumsticks.

She could not move at all. We rushed to save her, warmed her up in the house, and put her in an elevated enclosed pen in the barn with deep straw for the night, so she could recover and finish warming up. How in the world she got as far as she did in the deep snow, or why she felt she had to come up to the house alone, I have no idea, but we were so glad we found her! (so was she!!).

Some people think chickens won't venture out into the deep snow, but she was living testimony that yes, they will

Aaawww that is such a cute story. I bet she was very pleased to see you

Thanks for sharing your lovely stories - it's fascinating to hear about people's experiences as I have only been keeping hens for 6 months. Love hearing about everyone's lovely birds.

Thanks again

 

[chicknmania]

Thanks, everyone.

I could go on and on with stories...writing this really made me remember a lot of things, it was fun looking back.

I have peafowl stories too but.....

I bet next we on BYC will be writing a book, lol! I know everyone has great stories...or will have, the longer they have their birds.

 

[chicknmania]

Great stories! Love hearing folks memories of their birds. Wow, 9 yrs. is a long time for a chicken. Thank you for sharing!

There was someone on here once from Australia who had a hen that was 17. I know someone who says he has some that are in their teens, but I think the average age for most is around 6 to 7 years old.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Thanks for sharing with us! I adore your peas

!

 

[PaulaMc]

Thanks, everyone.

I could go on and on with stories...writing this really made me remember a lot of things, it was fun looking back.

I have peafowl stories too but.....

I bet next we on BYC will be writing a book, lol! I know everyone has great stories...or will have, the longer they have their birds.

What a fantastic idea

 

[chicknmania]

I love our peas too, jchny2000..

They are our flock guardians and they are smart, curious, personable birds. They will break up fights among the chickens and act as security for our hens with chicks. So cute! They are not afraid of much...not even skunks! It amazes me that our peahens have never been the losers from a skunk encounter, lol! And to hear and see one of our cocks flying down our driveway while making that laughing call they make is truly cool.