Hi there, I live in a fairly urban area in Florida and keep a few chickens plus other pets. I'm focused on keeping a small flock of hardy egglayers. Here's a little bit about everyone:
Frankenchicken, a Rhode Island Red, posing here with her very first egg! Her name comes from when she was attacked by a possum who put a big, deep gash in the back of her head. Fortunately she made a full recovery with some TLC, and now has a big scar like Frankenstein's monster. She is my most vocal chicken.
Goldie is a red sex-link. She is a champion egglayer, laying big brown eggs nearly every day. She is the most docile of the flock.
Update Jan 2022: I have 5 new flock members! These are from a batch of feed store chicks I purchased back in October. I started with 16, but sold some and gave others to friends until I ended up with the number I wanted. They are around 3 months old in these photos.
Cher, a black Australorp, named for her beautiful shiny black plumage that reminds me of her namesake's hair. She is very curious!
Banshee, a silver-laced wyandotte. Named for Siouxsie and the Banshees and their striking white-on-black post-punk pre-goth aesthetic. Hopefully she doesn't wail like a banshee! No signs of that yet.
Turu, an EE. The most outgoing of that batch of chicks, so I initially thought she might be a cockerel when she was a tiny chick. Between that and how floofy her muff is, she was a shoe-in to stay.
Leca, another EE. I fell in love with her coloring and had to keep her! She and my other EE are named after the Spanish kids' song "La Gallina Turuleca" If you're curious, "turuleca" means something sort of like "crazy" or "silly", which I think is a good fit for most chickens.
Betty White, a golden-laced wyandotte, named for another Golden Girl! Being the animal lover she was, I don't think she would mind the tribute.
Non-chicken flock members:
The rest of my crew, Oka (calico kitty), Mango (orange kitty), and Lantana (brindle hound mix). Both cats were found as stray kittens, Mango in New Mexico and Oka in Miami. Lantana is a rescue from rural North Florida. All are shockingly tolerant of the chickens!
Not pictured: my husband and the mealworm farm!
Past flock members:
Buff, the buff orpington (I know, creative). She was the top hen, and would chase squirrels or cats away from the flock. Despite this breed's reputation for being friendly, Buff was super flighty. She died suddenly for reasons we couldn't determine in May 2022. No apparent injuries or illness, hopefully it was a one-off!
Blue the wonky chicken, a production blue or maybe a sapphire gem. She had some kind of misalignment in her pelvis, one hip was higher than the other, making her look crooked and walk with a swagger. That plus her huge floppy comb made her look a bit ridiculous, but she held her own! Unfortunately lost to a predator (likely a possum) in September 2021 when we were away and she decided not to go sleep inside the coop, which has an automatic door.
Flappy the barred rock. The most adventurous of the flock who would peck at my freckles! Her flappiness eventually did her in when she escaped the run and wandered away through a gate accidentally left ajar. Surely a predator found her, but we never found any evidence of her after she left the yard.
Scratchy the cockerel. I live in city limits, so he couldn't stay. He was, however, delicious, and I canned some of the broth so he lives on!
Frankenchicken, a Rhode Island Red, posing here with her very first egg! Her name comes from when she was attacked by a possum who put a big, deep gash in the back of her head. Fortunately she made a full recovery with some TLC, and now has a big scar like Frankenstein's monster. She is my most vocal chicken.
Goldie is a red sex-link. She is a champion egglayer, laying big brown eggs nearly every day. She is the most docile of the flock.
Update Jan 2022: I have 5 new flock members! These are from a batch of feed store chicks I purchased back in October. I started with 16, but sold some and gave others to friends until I ended up with the number I wanted. They are around 3 months old in these photos.
Cher, a black Australorp, named for her beautiful shiny black plumage that reminds me of her namesake's hair. She is very curious!
Banshee, a silver-laced wyandotte. Named for Siouxsie and the Banshees and their striking white-on-black post-punk pre-goth aesthetic. Hopefully she doesn't wail like a banshee! No signs of that yet.
Turu, an EE. The most outgoing of that batch of chicks, so I initially thought she might be a cockerel when she was a tiny chick. Between that and how floofy her muff is, she was a shoe-in to stay.
Leca, another EE. I fell in love with her coloring and had to keep her! She and my other EE are named after the Spanish kids' song "La Gallina Turuleca" If you're curious, "turuleca" means something sort of like "crazy" or "silly", which I think is a good fit for most chickens.
Betty White, a golden-laced wyandotte, named for another Golden Girl! Being the animal lover she was, I don't think she would mind the tribute.
Non-chicken flock members:
The rest of my crew, Oka (calico kitty), Mango (orange kitty), and Lantana (brindle hound mix). Both cats were found as stray kittens, Mango in New Mexico and Oka in Miami. Lantana is a rescue from rural North Florida. All are shockingly tolerant of the chickens!
Not pictured: my husband and the mealworm farm!
Past flock members:
Buff, the buff orpington (I know, creative). She was the top hen, and would chase squirrels or cats away from the flock. Despite this breed's reputation for being friendly, Buff was super flighty. She died suddenly for reasons we couldn't determine in May 2022. No apparent injuries or illness, hopefully it was a one-off!
Blue the wonky chicken, a production blue or maybe a sapphire gem. She had some kind of misalignment in her pelvis, one hip was higher than the other, making her look crooked and walk with a swagger. That plus her huge floppy comb made her look a bit ridiculous, but she held her own! Unfortunately lost to a predator (likely a possum) in September 2021 when we were away and she decided not to go sleep inside the coop, which has an automatic door.
Flappy the barred rock. The most adventurous of the flock who would peck at my freckles! Her flappiness eventually did her in when she escaped the run and wandered away through a gate accidentally left ajar. Surely a predator found her, but we never found any evidence of her after she left the yard.
Scratchy the cockerel. I live in city limits, so he couldn't stay. He was, however, delicious, and I canned some of the broth so he lives on!
