- Jun 28, 2011
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Jennifer, know to the BYC community as Nambroth, has been with us since 2011. She will often be found in the Emergencies / Diseases / Injuries and Cures forum section, doling out advice and sympathy and sharing her experiences. She also wrote a wonderful informative article on Marek's Disease, which bagged her first prize in the 2013 Article Writing Contest. You can join her and her friends sharing the adventures of Derperella, the (weird) Faverolles, & Friends.
Yep, that's me and Chickadee.
1. Tell us a bit more about yourself.
My name is Jennifer, though I answer just as quickly to my screen-name of “Nambroth”. Nambroth does not mean anything in particular; it is simply a screen name I picked for myself in the early days of the internet.
I am currently in my 30s, and live with my husband, five parrots, some fish tanks and of course my chickens. Right now we're settled in the western part of NY state, south of Buffalo in a rural environment. I've been a bird enthusiast since I was old enough to stand upright, and have worked with and studied birds in one fashion or another both professionally and in private since I was old enough to read.
Some of my artwork. Unsurprisingly, it sometimes has chickens.
My current profession is as a full-time artist (freelance). It sounds very romantic as a job, and indeed it is rewarding in its moments, but it is a lot of very hard work for very little money. Still, I enjoy it more than I would any other poorly-paying job so I keep at it! I mostly paint wildlife, fantasy creatures, and sculpt and also do jewelry making.
When I am not painting all day, I enjoy spending time with my chickens (no doubt!!), wandering the woods, and researching things of interest to me. I am an amateur naturalist, and am always very excited to learn more about the natural world around me.
2. Why and when did you start keeping chickens?
I have aspired to keep chickens my whole life, but only recently purchased my first home. I loved birds and studied them, and felt that chickens were the next logical step! My parrots are not domesticated species, and are keenly social and intelligent. These factors meant that keeping parrots vs. keeping chickens would be very different, since as we know chickens have been domesticated for thousands of years! I loved the idea of larger birds that were not as sensitive as my parrots, that were domesticated and reared next to humans, kept as pets. I was wholly unprepared for how much I would come to love chickens!
Previously I had lived with others and rented in more urban environments, and chickens were simply not allowed. After we bought our home I planned and saved for a few years, and then we dove in head-first!! Chickens!!
So to that end, I am actually relatively new to chicken keeping. We got our first box of peeping joy on May 9th, 2011.
The very first peeps.
3. Which aspect(s) of chicken keeping do you enjoy the most?
That is a very tough question! With a few health-related issues, I find that all parts of chicken keeping to be rewarding and enjoyable.
The aspects I enjoy most, surely, are the chickens themselves and their unique and wonderful personalities. I love that some of them will come to me and sit on my lap/arm/(head?) and will enjoy a snuggle, while others are far too busy or independent and will do their own thing all the time.
I enjoy that the chickens “force” me to take breaks in my work and get outside and enjoy the fresh air for them. I no longer feel like I am wasting precious work time when I go outside and just enjoy life for a while. I love that the guilty nagging of “you should be working!” goes away when I am with them.
I enjoy that my chickens help me in my goal of a more sustainable lifestyle, and provide me with not only healthy eggs that I know the origins of, but wonderful, safe compost that helps me grow my vegetables as well.
Kua, "Helping" me weed.
4. Which members of your flock, past and present, stand out for you and why?
An equally tough question! I do not have a very large flock; at its largest I had nine birds. So, each stands out equally as an individual!
Derperella.
I am sure many here are familiar with Derperella. Or, Derp for short. She was wrong from the start, destined to perish, but I am so very stubborn and saved her. Her stories and photos have appeared here on BYC and to my surprise they have been a rather large hit! This strange, unexpected hen has lead me on strange, unexpected adventures and has even brought me unexpected friendships!!
Trousers the Cochin, with Coho the Faverolles snuggling underneath. He was huge!
Then there was Trousers, RIP. The huge cochin rooster that stole my heart with his sweet nature and intelligent gaze. He lead me down the road to researching Marek's and other related diseases, which I always hope has helped others and made it so his early passing was not in vain.
Chickadee riding around with the Fud Guy.
Chickadee, a barred rock, always stands out to me as well. She is clever, clever, clever!! She learned at a young age how to undo latches, and is intensely curious whenever my husband or I do something new or interesting to her. She will hop up onto my arm on command and survey the goings-on around her with a curious gaze. Her voice is also unique in that she “boops”, and her vocalizations seem to have context. You can tell if she is curious, or angry, or frustrated, or sleepy just based on her tone.
Moa Rumplecomb.
Moa, another barred rock, also stands out. She is a giant, rotund piece of chicken and is our boss hen. Not unlike a large Victorian lady of Yore, decked out in ruffles and a hat (comb) that is too rumply and large for her head, she is quick to have the “vapors” and will huff and fret if something is not to her liking. On the other side of the coin, she is also very sweet, and will walk up and press her giant bosom against me, and whisper. What is she saying? Why, she wants to be pet, of course, and will happily fall asleep in my arms or in my lap while I stroke her.
I could continue to write about each chicken, but I fear you'd be here reading this forever!
5. What was the funniest (chicken related) thing(s) that happened to you in your years as chicken owner?
The hens crack me up daily with their antics! Anyone that has kept chickens undoubtedly knows about chicken “football”, where one bird gets a piece of THE MOST DESIRED FOOD EVER and the others all chase it in a very serious game of keep-away-until-I-can-eat-the-Thing.
Mildred the Cochin hen. Willow is under there, somewhere....
Then there is the time Mildred, my immensely fluffy cochin hen, was chasing a moth through the yard. Flapping her stubby wings and trying to leap after it with her pantaloons-a-flappin'!
Nearly everything Derperella does makes us both laugh and worry. She's so very not normal.
Oh, Derp!
The relationship between Willow (a Thinkful Easter Egger) and Mildred (a fluffy and slow cochin) is always a riot. Willow loves Mildred dearly, and shows her love by crawling under Mildred and becoming lost in her infinite cochin fluff. Mildred takes this all in stride and just blinks slowly while Willow burrows ever further into feathery wonderland.
Mildred and Willow. Can you find Willow? Look carefully.
6. Beside chickens, what other pets do you keep?
I have several parrots. Khu is a Bronze-Winged Pionus I rescued over 10 years ago. She is very dear to me and acts very human-like as she was imprinted as a chick.
Gorbash, left, and Khu on the right.
Gorbash is a Maximillian's Pionus, also a rescue. He's partially blind and not the sharpest of crayons in the box, but is a nice fellow nonetheless.
I have Zephyr, the very smart cockatiel hen, and then two other cockatiels that were willed to me when a friend passed away. Das, a male cockatiel that loves me with all of his Das heart, and Poppyseed... we call her “Gramma Poppyseed” because she's an ancient crunchy cockatiel with spindly legs... but she still has a lot of spunk!
Das! Let him sing the song of his people to you.
I also keep a small number of fish and freshwater shrimp! I had an equipment failure recently so my tanks do not look this nice any longer, but this is the sort of thing I do with them.
7. Anything you'd like to add?
It seems silly to say, but chickens have taught me so much about life, myself, and what is important to me. It was not always the answers I expected! They have been therapy, grief and joy, and so much more. I only hope other chicken keepers can glean some of these things as well in their adventures with these fantastic and under-rated birds!
https://www.backyardchickens.com/u/85615/nambroth
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
1. Tell us a bit more about yourself.
My name is Jennifer, though I answer just as quickly to my screen-name of “Nambroth”. Nambroth does not mean anything in particular; it is simply a screen name I picked for myself in the early days of the internet.
I am currently in my 30s, and live with my husband, five parrots, some fish tanks and of course my chickens. Right now we're settled in the western part of NY state, south of Buffalo in a rural environment. I've been a bird enthusiast since I was old enough to stand upright, and have worked with and studied birds in one fashion or another both professionally and in private since I was old enough to read.
My current profession is as a full-time artist (freelance). It sounds very romantic as a job, and indeed it is rewarding in its moments, but it is a lot of very hard work for very little money. Still, I enjoy it more than I would any other poorly-paying job so I keep at it! I mostly paint wildlife, fantasy creatures, and sculpt and also do jewelry making.
When I am not painting all day, I enjoy spending time with my chickens (no doubt!!), wandering the woods, and researching things of interest to me. I am an amateur naturalist, and am always very excited to learn more about the natural world around me.
2. Why and when did you start keeping chickens?
I have aspired to keep chickens my whole life, but only recently purchased my first home. I loved birds and studied them, and felt that chickens were the next logical step! My parrots are not domesticated species, and are keenly social and intelligent. These factors meant that keeping parrots vs. keeping chickens would be very different, since as we know chickens have been domesticated for thousands of years! I loved the idea of larger birds that were not as sensitive as my parrots, that were domesticated and reared next to humans, kept as pets. I was wholly unprepared for how much I would come to love chickens!
Previously I had lived with others and rented in more urban environments, and chickens were simply not allowed. After we bought our home I planned and saved for a few years, and then we dove in head-first!! Chickens!!
So to that end, I am actually relatively new to chicken keeping. We got our first box of peeping joy on May 9th, 2011.
3. Which aspect(s) of chicken keeping do you enjoy the most?
That is a very tough question! With a few health-related issues, I find that all parts of chicken keeping to be rewarding and enjoyable.
The aspects I enjoy most, surely, are the chickens themselves and their unique and wonderful personalities. I love that some of them will come to me and sit on my lap/arm/(head?) and will enjoy a snuggle, while others are far too busy or independent and will do their own thing all the time.
I enjoy that the chickens “force” me to take breaks in my work and get outside and enjoy the fresh air for them. I no longer feel like I am wasting precious work time when I go outside and just enjoy life for a while. I love that the guilty nagging of “you should be working!” goes away when I am with them.
I enjoy that my chickens help me in my goal of a more sustainable lifestyle, and provide me with not only healthy eggs that I know the origins of, but wonderful, safe compost that helps me grow my vegetables as well.
4. Which members of your flock, past and present, stand out for you and why?
An equally tough question! I do not have a very large flock; at its largest I had nine birds. So, each stands out equally as an individual!
I am sure many here are familiar with Derperella. Or, Derp for short. She was wrong from the start, destined to perish, but I am so very stubborn and saved her. Her stories and photos have appeared here on BYC and to my surprise they have been a rather large hit! This strange, unexpected hen has lead me on strange, unexpected adventures and has even brought me unexpected friendships!!
Then there was Trousers, RIP. The huge cochin rooster that stole my heart with his sweet nature and intelligent gaze. He lead me down the road to researching Marek's and other related diseases, which I always hope has helped others and made it so his early passing was not in vain.
Chickadee, a barred rock, always stands out to me as well. She is clever, clever, clever!! She learned at a young age how to undo latches, and is intensely curious whenever my husband or I do something new or interesting to her. She will hop up onto my arm on command and survey the goings-on around her with a curious gaze. Her voice is also unique in that she “boops”, and her vocalizations seem to have context. You can tell if she is curious, or angry, or frustrated, or sleepy just based on her tone.
Moa, another barred rock, also stands out. She is a giant, rotund piece of chicken and is our boss hen. Not unlike a large Victorian lady of Yore, decked out in ruffles and a hat (comb) that is too rumply and large for her head, she is quick to have the “vapors” and will huff and fret if something is not to her liking. On the other side of the coin, she is also very sweet, and will walk up and press her giant bosom against me, and whisper. What is she saying? Why, she wants to be pet, of course, and will happily fall asleep in my arms or in my lap while I stroke her.
I could continue to write about each chicken, but I fear you'd be here reading this forever!
5. What was the funniest (chicken related) thing(s) that happened to you in your years as chicken owner?
The hens crack me up daily with their antics! Anyone that has kept chickens undoubtedly knows about chicken “football”, where one bird gets a piece of THE MOST DESIRED FOOD EVER and the others all chase it in a very serious game of keep-away-until-I-can-eat-the-Thing.
Then there is the time Mildred, my immensely fluffy cochin hen, was chasing a moth through the yard. Flapping her stubby wings and trying to leap after it with her pantaloons-a-flappin'!
Nearly everything Derperella does makes us both laugh and worry. She's so very not normal.
The relationship between Willow (a Thinkful Easter Egger) and Mildred (a fluffy and slow cochin) is always a riot. Willow loves Mildred dearly, and shows her love by crawling under Mildred and becoming lost in her infinite cochin fluff. Mildred takes this all in stride and just blinks slowly while Willow burrows ever further into feathery wonderland.
6. Beside chickens, what other pets do you keep?
I have several parrots. Khu is a Bronze-Winged Pionus I rescued over 10 years ago. She is very dear to me and acts very human-like as she was imprinted as a chick.
Gorbash is a Maximillian's Pionus, also a rescue. He's partially blind and not the sharpest of crayons in the box, but is a nice fellow nonetheless.
I have Zephyr, the very smart cockatiel hen, and then two other cockatiels that were willed to me when a friend passed away. Das, a male cockatiel that loves me with all of his Das heart, and Poppyseed... we call her “Gramma Poppyseed” because she's an ancient crunchy cockatiel with spindly legs... but she still has a lot of spunk!
I also keep a small number of fish and freshwater shrimp! I had an equipment failure recently so my tanks do not look this nice any longer, but this is the sort of thing I do with them.
7. Anything you'd like to add?
It seems silly to say, but chickens have taught me so much about life, myself, and what is important to me. It was not always the answers I expected! They have been therapy, grief and joy, and so much more. I only hope other chicken keepers can glean some of these things as well in their adventures with these fantastic and under-rated birds!
https://www.backyardchickens.com/u/85615/nambroth
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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