Monday, August 10, 2009
Cockerels have joined us,
One of my Black Jersey Giants, they are around 4 months old now, don't lay any eggs yet, but they are already bigger than the mature hens, so they will be quite large when they grow up. So far they have nice dispositions, a bit flighty, but otherwise they are rather calm and quiet birds, they spend a large time of their day just hanging out in a safe place.
Enya loves to hang out with the chickens, today when I let the chickens out to forage outside their chicken yard, Enya found herself an interesting spot, she stayed close to the fence in the back of the property, this is in my opinion the place where a predator such as a stray dog or coyote would most likely try to enter the property as we are backed by desert and nobody lives directly behind us or next to us. From her spot she could see the rest of her side of the property. She has a way to move amongst the chickens that does not cause much of a disturbance at all. When she sees a chicken gets worried, she waits and yields to them until she can move on without disturbing anybody.
this is her happy face, I am hoping that this fall she and Nanuk and Teddy can live with the chickens full-time, that will allow the chickens to have more freedom and rid the property of bugs and weeds.
another picture of Enya
Enya watching over her flock, she is 20 months old this week, she is the best chicken guardian of the pups, even when the others are great too, but Enya has been a natural and has always looked so happy to be with them.
This is the youngest of our new cockerels, he will be another Goldie, he is a Golden Seabright, he is a bantam breed, which means he will be very small, fully grown he should be just a little over a pound. He started crowing yesterday, so cute.
Goldie standing
I haven't decided on a name for this one yet, he is a Silver Seabright, so same breed as Goldie, just a different color. Seabrights are the only breed of chicken (as far as I know), where the roosters have the same kind of feathers as the hens, so they are called "hen-feathered".
That's another picture of him, the light colored legs are so pretty, and they have a very distinct comb.
And here is Sir Oliver, at least I think that's what I will call him. He is the largest of the boys at this point, he is a Mille Fleur, he is just starting to grow feathers on his feet and growing his beard, so it will be a little while until he has his mature look. He definetely crows a lot and he likes to flirt with the girls. He is also a bantam, my guess is he will be under 2 lbs when he grows up.
the silver boy
Here are all three in one picture
One of my Black Jersey Giants, they are around 4 months old now, don't lay any eggs yet, but they are already bigger than the mature hens, so they will be quite large when they grow up. So far they have nice dispositions, a bit flighty, but otherwise they are rather calm and quiet birds, they spend a large time of their day just hanging out in a safe place.
Enya loves to hang out with the chickens, today when I let the chickens out to forage outside their chicken yard, Enya found herself an interesting spot, she stayed close to the fence in the back of the property, this is in my opinion the place where a predator such as a stray dog or coyote would most likely try to enter the property as we are backed by desert and nobody lives directly behind us or next to us. From her spot she could see the rest of her side of the property. She has a way to move amongst the chickens that does not cause much of a disturbance at all. When she sees a chicken gets worried, she waits and yields to them until she can move on without disturbing anybody.
this is her happy face, I am hoping that this fall she and Nanuk and Teddy can live with the chickens full-time, that will allow the chickens to have more freedom and rid the property of bugs and weeds.
another picture of Enya
Enya watching over her flock, she is 20 months old this week, she is the best chicken guardian of the pups, even when the others are great too, but Enya has been a natural and has always looked so happy to be with them.
This is the youngest of our new cockerels, he will be another Goldie, he is a Golden Seabright, he is a bantam breed, which means he will be very small, fully grown he should be just a little over a pound. He started crowing yesterday, so cute.
Goldie standing
I haven't decided on a name for this one yet, he is a Silver Seabright, so same breed as Goldie, just a different color. Seabrights are the only breed of chicken (as far as I know), where the roosters have the same kind of feathers as the hens, so they are called "hen-feathered".
That's another picture of him, the light colored legs are so pretty, and they have a very distinct comb.
And here is Sir Oliver, at least I think that's what I will call him. He is the largest of the boys at this point, he is a Mille Fleur, he is just starting to grow feathers on his feet and growing his beard, so it will be a little while until he has his mature look. He definetely crows a lot and he likes to flirt with the girls. He is also a bantam, my guess is he will be under 2 lbs when he grows up.
the silver boy
Here are all three in one picture
