Should I buy eggs or wait it out?

Mortie, I feel more anxious for your eggs to come than my own!

On the other hand, Goldie says a strangled 'sqwaaak'!
700

Maybe this one is getting close to laying though :D
700
 
Hey Lindz, what kind of puppy is Paisley? She looks a lot like my Waffles.

Edited to add: she moved as I was taking the picture.
Paisley is a full blooded parti-colored yorkshire terrier. We have had her almost a month (it will be a month tomorrow). She joined our family to help us heal shortly after our other yorkie Parker was hit by a car. My kids were so upset, and we decided to get another one, after putting them to bed crying every night after the accident. She has definitely helped the grieving process!
 
I don't know if I even want to admit to this.

So I go out to top off the chicken's food and refresh their water, and as I go out the door all of them rush to the front of the run.

Except Penny. Penny is laying on the ground under the ramp, clearly dust bathing. I let the girls out of the run, expecting her to pop up and follow them out the door.

She doesn't. She just lays there in the dirt, looking at me with her beady, reptilian eyes.

I go about my business, expecting her to move any time. I peer into all corners of the run looking for the tiniest, most shell-less egg ever produced....nope. I check the nest box (hahahaha)....nadda. I go back around to the front and Penny is still laying there. Now very still. Wait, is she straining? She looks like she might be straining. I watch her for another minute or two, then decide to pull up a chair and just watch her to see if I can figure out what is going on with her. She can clearly see her buddies frolicking in the grass, but is making no move to follow them.

I sit down in the chair that is right there for convenient chicken watching. I watch her, she watches me, her body sort of tensing up then relaxing. She's not dust bathing anymore. She sort of picks at the ground with her beak.

Then suddenly, she stands up. I'm thinking "here we go. Out comes the egg!" Nope. She jumps up and flies to the end of the run and smacks into the chicken wire SPLAT! Then she picks herself up and runs out the door, over to her little friends.

second chicken fake out of the day.
 
The following, unlike most of my stories, is completely true. This actually happened.

I was puttering around the house this morning, having shuffled the kids off to summer school, and I happened to walk by the back door. We have french doors that open out onto the deck where there should be a sliding door, but nevermind that. They are like one huge window. As I said I was sauntering by and I happened to glance toward the coop.

And I saw a chicken's neck and head sticking out of one of the next boxes.

RED ALERT! RED ALERT! THE MOTHER BIRD IS IN THE NEST. I REPEAT. THE MOTHER BIRD IS IN THE NEST.

I couldn't open the door to get a better look because that would disturb whomever it was that was sitting so nicely in the nest. I went down to the basement to see if I could find some binoculars so I could see who it was. Maybe you guys were right, maybe it was Penny. I couldn't see any birds in the run. Probably all inside cheering her on. No binocs. Hmmmm.....

So I did what any sane person would do. I put the long lens on my camera and took a peek, heart hammering. I twisted the lens to zoom alllll the way in, in hopes of getting a better look...and this is what I saw:



A shadow across the window which, from far away, looked JUST LIKE A CHICKEN NECK.

I am checking myself into a facility. I appear to have gone nuts.
I see it. it would have faked me out too.
gig.gif


I don't know if I even want to admit to this.

So I go out to top off the chicken's food and refresh their water, and as I go out the door all of them rush to the front of the run.

Except Penny. Penny is laying on the ground under the ramp, clearly dust bathing. I let the girls out of the run, expecting her to pop up and follow them out the door.

She doesn't. She just lays there in the dirt, looking at me with her beady, reptilian eyes.

I go about my business, expecting her to move any time. I peer into all corners of the run looking for the tiniest, most shell-less egg ever produced....nope. I check the nest box (hahahaha)....nadda. I go back around to the front and Penny is still laying there. Now very still. Wait, is she straining? She looks like she might be straining. I watch her for another minute or two, then decide to pull up a chair and just watch her to see if I can figure out what is going on with her. She can clearly see her buddies frolicking in the grass, but is making no move to follow them.

I sit down in the chair that is right there for convenient chicken watching. I watch her, she watches me, her body sort of tensing up then relaxing. She's not dust bathing anymore. She sort of picks at the ground with her beak.

Then suddenly, she stands up. I'm thinking "here we go. Out comes the egg!" Nope. She jumps up and flies to the end of the run and smacks into the chicken wire SPLAT! Then she picks herself up and runs out the door, over to her little friends.

second chicken fake out of the day.
all right now. she's close. very close. she knows it. she just doesn't know when. so if it's going to be today, it will be when she now least expects it, and you too... lol, like when she's having a drink of water. but since it's been a few hours, it may be tomorrow... but she's close!



had a scare early this morning with this one! it was still in the kennel, but away from Peach, on it's back, chilled, weak... I warmed it up in my palms, then stuck it in my bra so I could use my hands... the other 2 are fine, and Peach sill wanted to sit on those other eggs, they were a half day behind so I figured I would let her keep them til I got home. then I saw a MITE! and another! and another!!! omg! I've never had mites! so I dash with the chick still in my bra to the shed, grab the food grade DE for starters and gave both broody's a good dusting. then I started to itch. OMG! the chick in my bra! pulled it out, dusted it good, dusted the other 2 and whipped my shirt off in the back yard! I found 5 mites on ME! so I kept itching all day at work - and did find one more mite crawling on my arm! itching and worrying about the little chipmunk... well... when I got home, all three chickies were up and eating, Peach showing them all the tricks about scratching for the good stuff... I checked Peach over thoroughly and didn't see any mites, and I took the other 5 eggs away. I see nothing on candling. all quitters, I guess. I'm not good at candling... but all was dark, and the eggs are heavy, none are sloshy... I hope I didn't toss a chick that would have hatched in another 12 hours. she needs to focus on the 3 she has. then I checked Gossamer over. no mites on her either. then she got all pissy with me when I took the small piece of watermelon rind that she had tucked among the eggs.

anyway, the flock is out, the weather is iffy... so I'm heading out!
 
read quickly about the float test. the eggs had only been out from under Peach about 15 minutes - so I tested them. all sinkers. now I don't feel bad taking them and putting them in the trash.
 

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