Butter my beloved BO has been acting like maybe she might go broody, so I put a pile of golf balls in her favorite nest and today I am pretty sure it is a go.
So being the responsible, experienced poultier that I am, I decide 8 eggs, I could use 4 young hens in the fall, and one has to expect half will be roosters. Well, ok, I will start with 10 beccaus it is unreasonable to expect a 100% hatch rate.
I actually go down to the coop with 10 eggs carefully chosen and marked. I decide to give the coop a good cleaning, and we will start with fresh clean nests. So with a towel I pull Butter off the nest, so I can clean it and replace the balls with eggs. For some reason, I decide to drop the balls ontop of the eggs, and one egg breaks.
No problem I have a counterfull of eggs, I will just got and replace it. On the way back to the house, I begin to think that an even dozen will just make everything better, and bring back 3 marked eggs.
Butter is stomping around, groweling, pecking and dust bathing... all good signs, and I get the new nest set up, and continue to muck things out. Here comes muff, in dire straights, walks in takes a look, and gets into the nest.
No biggy, I will continue my chores, and remove the egg.... but, I decide to make a summer waterer, spend a little time in the garage, and when I come down, Butter is on the right nest, hunkered down. Muff's egg is not in the other nest, and she is gone, so I am pretty sure it is under Butter with the other 12.
And that is chicken math explained the crazy chicken lady... I just don't want to upset Butter again when she is just getting started on the longest 21 days ever!
Mrs K
So being the responsible, experienced poultier that I am, I decide 8 eggs, I could use 4 young hens in the fall, and one has to expect half will be roosters. Well, ok, I will start with 10 beccaus it is unreasonable to expect a 100% hatch rate.
I actually go down to the coop with 10 eggs carefully chosen and marked. I decide to give the coop a good cleaning, and we will start with fresh clean nests. So with a towel I pull Butter off the nest, so I can clean it and replace the balls with eggs. For some reason, I decide to drop the balls ontop of the eggs, and one egg breaks.
No problem I have a counterfull of eggs, I will just got and replace it. On the way back to the house, I begin to think that an even dozen will just make everything better, and bring back 3 marked eggs.
Butter is stomping around, groweling, pecking and dust bathing... all good signs, and I get the new nest set up, and continue to muck things out. Here comes muff, in dire straights, walks in takes a look, and gets into the nest.
No biggy, I will continue my chores, and remove the egg.... but, I decide to make a summer waterer, spend a little time in the garage, and when I come down, Butter is on the right nest, hunkered down. Muff's egg is not in the other nest, and she is gone, so I am pretty sure it is under Butter with the other 12.
And that is chicken math explained the crazy chicken lady... I just don't want to upset Butter again when she is just getting started on the longest 21 days ever!
Mrs K
