Should I buy eggs or wait it out?

[mortie]

And here I was, so smug that none of my chickens are jerks...non layers, but not jerks.

I was wrong. Been wrong about so much with these birds and wrong again today.

Tonight I went out at dusk to lock the girls up in the coop. Since I am confining them most of the day to prevent that coveted first egg from being laid under the deck, they have to stay in until 6 or so in the evening. At about 8:15 I noticed there were birds on the roost so I went to close the run door. I closed it, then peered in the window.

Not enough birds.

I looked closer....Midge and Shadow were MISSING!

Frantically I scanned the yard. Normally the birds come running up to me when I come outside. They hear the door and come running as fast as their stubby little legs can carry them. No sign of them. Immediately a lump formed in my throat. NO. I couldn't be losing two like that. NO NO NO. I stood there, dumbfounded, and started to think about where they might be. Should I go look in my neighbor's yards? WHAT SHOULD I DO?

I decided to first check the side of the yard they never go on. Maybe they were on the other side of the garage...I took two steps in that direction and heard something. A very soft cluck. It was coming from right next to me in the cedar, which is one of their favorite spots. I was about to bend over to look under it when I heard it again and zeroed in on where it was coming from....


Nice huh? Except they were 7 feet UP IN THE TREE.


The coop is just to the left of the edge of the picture. Those JERKS. They scared the bejeepers out of me. I have no idea how they got up there. Well I mean yes, they flew up there but from the ground I can't figure out how they decided there was a spot for them to sit up there. That cedar doesn't have branches per say, it's more like a bush. I had to reach up and gently pluck them off their little nest and they were almost out of my reach and I'm 5'8.

Those...
BAD!
BIRDS!

Bout gave me a heart attack. I was SO sad when I thought for a moment they were gone.

 

[lularat]

But they look so cute up in the tree....and comfy. Glad they were okay.

 

[cheeka]

aw mortie! that is really the sweetest set of pictures! I love it! mine get up high in a few of the pines, between 6-10'... and way in and up in the lilacs, where I cannot hope to reach them. I'm glad you didn't have a heart attack, I'm glad they are safe, but I am laughing my butt off over here!!

 

[mortie]

I am trying to picture them just flying at it and praying for a landing spot because they couldn't have gone up from the inside. That is a very thick bush/tree thing. I just do not know what they had in their bird brains. A pine tree I could understand.

Going to have to go shut them in earlier from now on so they don't find their own roosting spots again.

 

[tinkershell767]

I declare, mortie is jinxed.

 

[subhanalah]

who...US? 0.0

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

This is the unfinished breezeway/porch. My oldest daughter to princess Diana.. OEGB Red Pyle hen..I may name her Fergie! Or a good rebel english princess name for sure

they have feathered feet, WHAAAAAT? there is a mixed bantam pen for all the littles. My bantam Cochins, games, d'uccle's millies and silkies are all in there. I didn't intend to hatch anymore this year. Found this lil stinker under a large bush with several well developed eggs, and moved her. She was missing almost 2 weeks! The eggs started to hatch tonight! She was very taken by my blue cochin roo, and hated the silkie fella. way too fast for him! The other roos were still too young at the time. The lil cochin roo is blue.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Hi Janet!!!!

Been thinking about you. Glad to hear your dad got the surgery, but sounds like it has been quite a trial. Hope his recovery progresses quickly. Your Chickenfest must have been awesome. Hope your menagerie is doing well. We hatched out 9 Serama chicks this year, but they're so tiny, it's about the equivalent of adding 2 big chickens.
These 5 turned into.....

this!!!

what beauties!! Love the color of your baby far right. Ugh I have added and lost some too.. am buried in Pekin ducks! The stinkers dont brood. They lay in other birds nests!

Good to hear from you JCHNY! Glad Dad's doing better and in recovery. How's ribeye? Is he still around or did he turn into his namesake yet?

W4W - Those little guys are absolutely adorable. What size eggs do they lay?

I'm sorry Mortie! I didn't mean to rub it in. I'm sure you'll get a beautiful egg today. Wait it's not my day. I think you have to wait until Sat so I can win the contest.

Well Squirt is broody again. I think that stinkin chickin has laid a total of 2 eggs. She just wants to be a mommy. Not sure I want to do the hatching thing again, but as I only have 5 polish frizzle/smooth babies left I could totally try.

Ribeye... I had a very hard learning experience with cows. Don't get any from anyone on craigslist. The scours were hard enough. If you clear bush, dont park the tractor near any animals pens. There is a lot of overgrown brush here, I work on it every day. Someone planted a bush called Japanese yew here. I cut the ugly thing down. Had A load of it in the wagon and parked it in the drive to the burn pile, next to the pasture. My goats and Baby Moo (ribeye) ate it while I ate lunch.The next morning Baby moo was dead. I killed him by my ignorance

. I post this so anyone that raises cows knows to be very cautious.. painful, senseless loss of life. Upset me very much. I also lost a lil pigmy buck, my other goats were ok thankfully. I have since also removed any burning bush, also poison, from this property.

Janet, so good to hear from you! so glad things are holding steady for your Dad, that had to be scary!!

really miss you guys! hope you are well chickie!

Jchny, nice to see you! Hope your dad continues to improve!

So this morning I went out to collect all the eggs the girls left for me. I was oddly cool about it. I knew that I would find an egg and just bring it in all nonchalantly like "Oh hai egg." Eyes stlil a little bleary, I scanned the run....didn't see anything. Good, they at least got their first eggs in the coop. I peered in the coop window and didn't see anything in the nest they made yesterday except POOP since obviously someone slept above it. Well awesome, they got the eggs in the box then! Went around to the box and opened the lid. Just my two golf balls, largely undisturbed.

Awww it will come, and soon! Think positive! they gotta learn where to put em and what they are doing lol!

So after a very long weekend .... I have nothing to report.... Again! They play with the golf balls in there nests and kick everything out of the nests. A couple of the girls look ready but don't squat at all so idk anymore. Maybe I still have a couple weeks to go. One of my ducks keeps acting funny and checking out their nests but they haven't given any other sign either that they are close. So there my report in the chickens and ducks!

How old are they?

Hello again everyone.... Yet another question... I'm not sure if you remember me or not (hopes you do). I'm pretty certain I have a roo now!!! The girls are still not laying yet but the one I guessed was a roo is biting them on the back of their neck and mounting them.... At what point are they fertile? Will this mess us their starting to lay??

What breed are they, some mature earlier? My OEGB matured at like 9 months. it varies a lot!

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

love the Pie! and for sure, Magic for working so quickly!

the "jerk" cockerel may not be fertile yet, but that doesn't mean he doesn't want practice... and like the others said, it's a good sign if they're letting him as it does indicate they are closer... if they are dodging and running away, they still need some time, but his presence won't change when they start.

did I say I was worried that Peach might want to steal all the chicks for herself? cuz sometimes, outdoors, she is a bit hoggish with them, although the 2 chipmunks tend to stay with Sillie...


not rubbing it in mortie - just too pretty to keep to myself - you'll have eggs so soon!!

Bunny flat STOLE 4 chicks from a BA hen, with an accomplice hen that was also broody. The mother BA brooded on a shelf 10 feet off the ground. 4 Chicks hatched, momma hurt her leg and was out of commission! The babies are thriving with 2 moms and even my geese will not challenge Bunny my EE ...thats one mean hen.

Very nice Cheeka...makes my brown eggs look boring. Looks like the hens are doing great sharing the chicks....so cute!

Hens will for sure share brooding, have 2 hens brooding 4 chicks now. I do not have one bird here that will challenge those 2 hens. Pretty awesome.

 

[mortie]

Morning egg count was an egg alright. A GOOSE EGG. Zip. Zilch. Nadda. Penny looks clueless as usual. Maggie and Wilson continue to have the most serious looking dark red faces but show no inclination to lay anything other than a large poo.