I’ve always liked animals, and fancied the idea of having a farm but ... life had other plans. We bought a house in the village where I live in North Wales about 2007, and the owners gave us their 30+ hens and a cock and some guinea fowl. We soon moved to another property and the chucks came too. They were very tame, some perched up in a Wichelm tree and others roosted in some old cupboards etc. We had far too many eggs and gave a lot away. One winter afternoon we went for a walk and when we got back, there were feathers and hens, dead and alive, everywhere. A fox had got in and we lost about 16 chucks. of course, vixens have their Cubs in mid winter so I guess she’d got hungry babies to feed. And worst of all, my lovely friendly silver cockerel was nowhere to be seen. But a couple of days later I was woken about 6 am by a cock crowing. i rushed out into the garden. and to my joy and disbelief, my lovely chap was strutting along the walll crowing for all to hear. Although it was sad to lose the hens, it was a relief to have a lot fewer hens to feed and tend. He eventually died a peaceful death in the coop when he was about 12. Since then, I’ve raised some chicks, with a fierce little bantam i acquired, as their ‘mum’, and they were delightful. At first I had to take a dustbin lid in with me as the mother just attacked my shins mercilessly. But eventually she got used to me. The trouble was, I got so many male chicks and nowhere to keep adult roosters. It was distressing having them put down.
The guinea fowl were wonderful watch dogs kicking up such a row that even Lucifer would have woken up! But they were mean. Their carcass is very solid bone and they’d lower their heads and charge the hens, on one occasion breaking a hen‘s wing. So in the end, we ate them with40 cloves of garlic. And I don’t keep a cock any more as I’ve been attacked 3 times by them and it’s very scary. I’m sure they don’t do it, if they can run free, but mine are in an enclosed ‘fox fortress’. Today I’ve moved them to another enclosure for 3 weeks so any parasite eggs will have died on The ground. I’ve just wormed them so I’m hoping they’ll stay well after the wettest February on record.
I love listening to them chirp and chat amongst themselves when I’m working in my veg garden. They all have very different personalities and the top hen died recently so there’s a power struggle to see which one will be top girl! I’ve put them in a wooden coop I ordered in the web, which said it would take 12-14 hens. I’ll be lucky if my 8 hens fit in for the next three weeks. Then they’ll go back into their 100 year plus stone coop and I’ll get some rehoused hens to boost the numbers. After 6-8 weeks quarantine. I have Warrens crossed with Welsomers, and a Maran. At the moment, with lighter evenings I’m getting 4-5 eggs every other day but some of them are 5+6 years old so I need some younger ones. I find them very relaxing, and they make me laugh the way they half run half fly across the run when they hear me come in to the garden. Food is always on their mind. I give them treats like fish, mealy worms and other bits of animal protein as I think theyre omnivores, and too much grain isn’t good for them, or us! They are forest birds after all! I also give them herbs and greens and fresh weeds from my garden which they love. Even after all these years, I still get a thrill when I see an egg or two lying in the laying baskets. What an amazing creation! Sir David Attenborough has recently made a great documentary about ’ the world of eggs’. Beautifully presented as expected with the Maestro, and really fascinating. I’m glad we don’t use telegrams any more, it’d cost me a king’s ransom! Happy hen keeping to all
The guinea fowl were wonderful watch dogs kicking up such a row that even Lucifer would have woken up! But they were mean. Their carcass is very solid bone and they’d lower their heads and charge the hens, on one occasion breaking a hen‘s wing. So in the end, we ate them with40 cloves of garlic. And I don’t keep a cock any more as I’ve been attacked 3 times by them and it’s very scary. I’m sure they don’t do it, if they can run free, but mine are in an enclosed ‘fox fortress’. Today I’ve moved them to another enclosure for 3 weeks so any parasite eggs will have died on The ground. I’ve just wormed them so I’m hoping they’ll stay well after the wettest February on record.
I love listening to them chirp and chat amongst themselves when I’m working in my veg garden. They all have very different personalities and the top hen died recently so there’s a power struggle to see which one will be top girl! I’ve put them in a wooden coop I ordered in the web, which said it would take 12-14 hens. I’ll be lucky if my 8 hens fit in for the next three weeks. Then they’ll go back into their 100 year plus stone coop and I’ll get some rehoused hens to boost the numbers. After 6-8 weeks quarantine. I have Warrens crossed with Welsomers, and a Maran. At the moment, with lighter evenings I’m getting 4-5 eggs every other day but some of them are 5+6 years old so I need some younger ones. I find them very relaxing, and they make me laugh the way they half run half fly across the run when they hear me come in to the garden. Food is always on their mind. I give them treats like fish, mealy worms and other bits of animal protein as I think theyre omnivores, and too much grain isn’t good for them, or us! They are forest birds after all! I also give them herbs and greens and fresh weeds from my garden which they love. Even after all these years, I still get a thrill when I see an egg or two lying in the laying baskets. What an amazing creation! Sir David Attenborough has recently made a great documentary about ’ the world of eggs’. Beautifully presented as expected with the Maestro, and really fascinating. I’m glad we don’t use telegrams any more, it’d cost me a king’s ransom! Happy hen keeping to all
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