12 December 2010 - Snow Falls on Chicken Universe

This morning the chickens discovered a strange white powder blanketing One Prairie Outpost. Only Bird-seed Genny was brave enough to confront the snow. She, a Black Australorp so named for her scavenging expeditions first thing each morning to the wild bird feeders hanging behind our house in order to clean up any seeds the cardinals, blue jays, juncos woodpeckers and others have scattered to the ground. However, today’s steady winds and deep drifts halted her journey and I had to perform a rescue mission. Since then, no birds have dared venture out of the coop, leaving the desolate chicken yard shown here.

November 2010 - Choosy Chicken

One of the Blondies, a Buff Orpington, searches unsatisfied for a place to lay her egg. She is letting all of Chicken Universe – particularly the two hens nesting in boxes she has has been eyeing – know just how frustrated she is. Ben and I heard her tantrum ongoing for about 15 minutes as we worked around our property before we finally stopped to grab the video camera.

November 2010 - Fanfare

You may recall reading in my September report about the great fanfare by which the chicken community celebrates the laying of each egg. On days when we're around the house, we hear this happy chorus numerous times. Here, one of the Honeys, the New Hampshire rising from the nesting box, has just laid an egg and is receiving accolades. Regretfully, we did not have the video camera running in time to catch her initial report to the others of her successful labors.

November 2010 - Autumn Chores

On a mid-November weekend, the chickens helped me with one of my autumn chores on the farm. As I raked up leaf piles, they quickly undid my work. Here one of the Blondies, a Buff Orpington, scratches in a pile of maple and red bud leaves.