Beloved Heinrich

It's the end of the Chicken Era at Shady Grove. Our dear Heinrich got her neck chomped by roosting too closely to the edge of the enclosure a few weeks ago. We had her for just over eight years. Having chickens was the best! 

We will miss her companionable chirps while tending the garden. She laid giant eggs very regularly. She followed The Farmer around the yard on occasion, and always greedily out-pecked her sister Athena when veggie goodies were thrown into the henhouse. She was beloved by so many children (and adults) who got to hold her in their arms and pet her soft feathers. Heinrich was pretty smart and returned to the henhouse... usually. Ah, the empty coop will harbor her spirit for a while. I mistakenly called out to her a few days ago. Miss you, Chicky-Doodle. Rest over easy. 

Shady Grove Chickens: November 2012 - December 2020. 

A Week of Raccoons with a Possum Chaser

On Tuesday evening of July 14, our darling chicken Athena was broken out of her coop by a band of raccoons. She had many moments of blog glory, but THIS POST was the one she was famous for. Needless to say, the marshmallows in the trap were no longer grabbing the attention of the bandits, so we switched to eggs. Eggs roll around and cannot be stolen through the bars, so we trapped a few trash pandas as a result. It resulted in some longer road trips, as raccoons need to be taken far away from home so they don't find their way home.

Wednesday night, we caught a little one. I took him to a lake. Hopefully he remains, ever happy to wash his food before eating. You really can't complain about a raccoon's table manners. 

 Thursday night we caught a full-sized animal. This one led to a discovery of a delightful state park I had not visited yet. I would have been happy to live in those woods!

Friday night, we had another smaller, but almost full-sized version. This one got to live in a Nature Preserve, but was reluctant to leave the trap at first. Fortunately it did run after sensing freedom, but I really did not want to worry about being bitten by a rabid one...

 Saturday night, I hadn't set the trap until dark, which meant that I saw (a small??) one scuttling away in the beam of the flashlight. While I was gingerly placing the egg in the trap whilst swatting so many insistent mosquitoes, I heard little scratching sounds behind me near the chicken food container. I finally opened the container to have my gaze met by a set of masked eyes. I hastily shut the container, wondering what I should do next. Before deciding to hold it in the container, I looked again, and TWO small raccoons were enjoying the buffet! I loaded the top of the container with as many bricks as I could find, thinking that I would free them in the morning at the Nature Preserve. Alas, they escaped, but we did get a GIANT one instead. That one was rather hyper and off like a flash.

After Sunday night, there was a small one in the trap. I was driving to Ohio to see family on Monday and dropped him in a woods halfway there. As far as I think, there is at least one small raccoon still on the loose, though signs of him have disappeared.

The trap was set but empty for a few days, before this opossum guy showed up on yesterday morning. It probably has a string of siblings and a mom hiding out in the woods. Apparently they like raw eggs as much as their raccoon friends. So the saga continues. I saw a set of twin fawns come out of the woods in front of the house over the weekend as well. Time to think about strategies to keep my ripening tomatoes from becoming wildlife food.

How are your garden pets, I mean, pests?! At least I don't have a ground hog!

Eight Years of Laying

Heinrich does it again! Year 8 of laying eggs started yesterday! Feels good to have a small food source in these uncertain times. Go wash your hands and wipe off the door handles. Till soon. School is out until at least April 13, so I'll be checking in more regularly. 

Stay healthy, positive, patient, and kind. Sending you all love.

Eggs, 7.0

It's early March and right on cue: Ta - DA! Heinrich has laid the first egg for the SEVENTH year in a row! We'll see how productive the chickens will be at this advanced age, but for now I am so excited to eat fresh omelets and sandwiches.

Yum!

Athena with Egg #1

There was snow and ice this week, but Spring is right around the corner! The proof is that Athena laid EGG #1 of the season yesterday, a stunning first for this reluctant layer hen. Our other chicken, Heinrich, is still molting, which she started in January this year: oddly late.

Anyway, my iPhone died a pitiful death on Wednesday, and my replacement iPhone is not completely decked out with all of my apps yet, so I'll post the picture of the egg some other day. Just wanted to document the first egg of the season, as I do every year.

Happy Day to All!

Champion Chicken!

Commence egg-laying, year FIVE! 

We're not sure which chicken laid the egg. The size points toward Heinrich (posing here), but the color is all Athena. Time will tell, but let's celebrate with a fresh egg sammy for now!

Uncle

It will be a few more weeks before I can muster enough time and energy for another Peru post. Instead, I give you Uncle Milty:

Milty was ironically named last June before anyone could guess that he was a rooster!

He presides over his flock, Apollo and Jackie-O. Who knows which one is which...

...Unless you want to wait around to see which one lays which colored egg!

They are champion layers. I appreciate the plethora of cute tiny eggs for winter baking!

Bantam Silkie Field Trip

A few weeks ago, The Farmer brought home three Bantam Silkie chicks; so cute!

They spend a lot of time being alarmist and fearfully hiding behind the hen hydrator.

Until it's time to eat. Then, please excuse us while we chow down in oblivion!

On Tuesday, the weather was nice so we put them on the lawn. The confusion was palpable. What do we do now?!

Lookin' around... Hmmmm...

They figured out pretty quickly that grass is yummy and bugs are tasty.

Tomorrow or Sunday, we will have knitting content! Stay tuned!

Chicken Win, Chicken Loss

Win: one of our little Australorp chickens has started laying eggs!!! They are tiny and cute, and the most amazing purplish-flesh color. Shown here with a Heinrich mammoth egg sample for contrast.

Loss: a fox or coyote ate another one of said Australorp chickens - THROUGH THE BARS of the dog run chicken coop. A second chicken has a broken leg. These chickens are being raised for The Farmer's dinner plate. He was not amused. Dog run is now reinforced with what else, but chicken wire.

Fox also trampled the potato beds. Farmer's wife not thrilled either. Beds now surrounded by screens. Bugger off, ye wilde beastie!

Spring-ing

Spring is here a month early. According to my photo records from last year, daffodils weren't blooming until April 19.

Gooseberries throwing out new leaves.

It wouldn't be Spring without fresh eggs. Both Heinrich and Athena started laying eggs again about 10 days ago.

I'm also knitting a hat and a shawl, because you know, you might need one with all this warm weather we're having!

Happy Spring!

Spring Chicken

While the age of our chickens may not be the youngest any more, they seem to be harbingers of Spring. 

Heinrich laid her first egg today. Bright weather and warmth must be close behind! Cluck, cluck!!

Indignation

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend! The Farmer and I enjoyed our nephews and their parents as they visited for their Spring Break. This picture was a favorite of mine from today. We were dying Easter eggs this afternoon with the eggs that our chicken Athena laid. She was looking on for a while...

Can you just hear her inner dialog?

"My children! What have they done to them?!"

"I could tell they were MY eggs because they WERE white!"

"Darrell! Why did you jump off the cliff!" (To the cracked one.)

"Teen-agers! Why do they need to through the phase where they dye their shells in awkward colors?"

"Let me cuff your ears to straighten you out!" (While aggressively pecking the eggs.)

"The horror! The shock! My heart!"

"Checking the merchandise to make sure they are up to Easter Bunny expectations... YES! They pass! I rule at laying perfection!"

"Whaaaaaaaaa????!!"

"NOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooo.............."

Got Kisses?

Party time at the farm tonight! The graduate students were raising money for a school in Kenya again, by donating money and voting who should kiss one of our chickens. They all brought massive amounts of delicious foods and a lot of fun games to play. 

However, somehow the animals always steal the show:

First, alpaca admiring.

Heinrich gets some love from the students.

Last year's Kiss the Chicken candidate renews his friendship.

The Farmer/Professor himself gets to do the honors this year! One kiss for two chickens... I hope they don't feel cheated.

Ensemble cast of characters

 

More loving... Tenny and Athena are soaking up the attention, regardless of who won the contest to give the winning kisses! Come back tomorrow, will ya?!

Omelet

"Finally..." should be the name of this delightful knit. It took me a long time to knit and finish this lovely lace-y goody:

            Start date: June 15, 2012, during a sleepless night in Innsbruck, Austria

            Finish date: February 23, 2014, snowstorm raging in Indiana

            Posting date: March 31, a beautiful Spring day

The pattern is Omelet from the 2011 Summer issue of knitty.com. Yarn is left over Fiddlesticks Knitting Exuisite from THIS epic project.

I'm not sure why I thought a second lace shawl would be easier than the first. It was definitely just as taxing, especially when I had to tink back 4 rows of 300+ stitches. I should really just knit what the chart says. Some lessons are learned the hard way, over and over again!

Modeled photos will follow in another post.

Lastly, I am delighted to share that one of our chickens has recommenced laying for the season!

Omelets for all! Happy eating, happy Spring, and happy lace shawls to you!

Linking to Ginny for the Yarn Along!

A Peck on a Chicken's Cheek

You may recall this event from a few years ago... 

This evening the grad students were raising money for charity once again. Students paid money to vote on which fellow student would kiss Heinrich the chicken.

A spectacle is developing....

Heinrich is following her long-legged master at warp speed!!!

The grad student is not so sure about this dubious opportunity...
Protective eyewear: CHECK
H7N9 protective mask: MISSING, slight oversight here...

Fastest peck of a kiss in history.
The shutter of my camera was NOT fast enough to capture the moment.
 Great relief floods all parties!

A good time was had by all! Heinrich loved every minute of the attention!

Alpaca Update

It's been a while since the alpacas have been featured, so here are some "candids" from this afternoon. Hanging out: Greta, Moonstar, Tenny and Leven. Leven is now 5.5 months old.  

Leven often has one stray piece of hay hanging from his mouth! Looks like a country lad from days gone.  

Getting ready for show season with a nice pose: I am the best. Please look no further... (Ahem... Don't get ahead of yourself there, big guy!)

   

Cassidy is a Momma's girl, always hiding behind Bella. And acting like a bully already too. More food please, or else.

   

Cassidy is really growing up. She is just over 7 months old and looking very big. 

Cassidy gives great kisses and is always curious and comes right up to investigate. She often has her neck hanging way outside of the fencing sniffing something or someone on the other side!  

Dark Star is still looking regal. Loves a good roll in the hay. And dust baths. In spite of the fact that we nearly eliminated dust in his pen. He finds a way to roll in some no matter what.  

Another "ready to show" shot. I don't think there is much hope for his fiber though. We will probably have to shave him before the show.

   

 This scene greeted me when I opened the nesting box this afternoon. Our chickens are busily laying eggs at the rate of 1-2 a day. Heinrich's (the brown one) are HUGE - between 75-80 grams per egg!! Athena's are small and such a pretty color, slightly pink and creamy. Both are delicious! Which reminds me: it's time for dinner!