• Available in 2022 for Local Pick-up
  • Snapshot

Muddy Valley Farm

~ Life on a tiny west coast hobby farm

Muddy Valley Farm

Monthly Archives: April 2017

A Motherly Chick

29 Saturday Apr 2017

Posted by Jodi in Chickens

≈ Leave a comment

The chicks who stay on the farm eventually join one of three flocks, and last week, five 7 week old hatchmates moved to the Polish flock. All girls this time, three bantam Rhode Island reds from Quebec eggs, a farm bred Polish and a Sumatra X Polish.

I have found that seven or eight weeks is a good age for chicks to join a flock, they’re too young to disrupt the pecking order, but old enough to look after themselves pretty well. Moving is stressful, so I always make sure they have at least one buddy.

I think the Polish chick is going to make an awesome mama some day. Look at her with her wing around the little Rhodey on the end. She does this every night, what a good big sister.

20170427_204900

Me and Chickens

26 Wednesday Apr 2017

Posted by Jodi in Chickens

≈ Leave a comment

Five years ago, when the breeder dropped off six day-old fuzzy butts, and I installed them in a guinea pig cage sitting on a large blue tarp in the basement, I would never have predicted it. I was only in it for the eggs and maybe a chicken dinner.

The tarp was unnecessary as it turned out, but chickens have become a necessary part of my life. Intelligent creatures with diverse personalities and a complex social structure, chickens are quite entertaining to have around.

My wholly-unscientific theory is that chickens are interesting because they are highly evolved beings. Within the limitations of their physical selves, they  have reached an advanced state. After all, they have been around for a very long time. Chickens are the closest living relative to T. Rex.

My husband jokes that it’s a good thing I didn’t get chickens while our kids were little, the kids would have had to raise themselves. Mom would have been out with the chickens.

IMG_5357

 

More New Chicks!

22 Saturday Apr 2017

Posted by Jodi in Chickens

≈ Leave a comment

20170421_134640
20170421_134309
20170421_134258
20170421_134120
20170421_133839

Now that the preorders are filled and next year’s hens started, it’s time to have fun with new breeds and lines.

Cream Legbars, Blue Laced Red Wyandottes and a rainbow of Silkies popped out this week, and some olive eggers are hatching as I write.

Both the olive eggers and the Legbars are sexable at hatch, which is nice for those who can’t have roosters (aka most people). We’ll sell the olive eggers, but keep the four little Legbar pullets, because their eggs will be next year’s olive eggers.

One incubator has been mothballed, and the second will be offline soon. Pullets hatched next month just might wait till spring to lay, and that’s a long time to feed an unproductive bird.

 

 

Alsty Roosts in the Coop

21 Friday Apr 2017

Posted by Jodi in Chickens

≈ Leave a comment

Lots of drama in the coop at dusk today, a chick-cacophony of eighteen confused youngsters yelling and crying. If they had been people, someone would have called Social Services.

Alsty was trying to convince the kids that roosting with the laying flock was better than nesting in the brooder pen. Some of them bought it, others did not.

I left them to sort out their issues, and checked in again at dark. Half of the babies had made it up on the roost with Mama, but the other half had piled into a tearful little lump in the corner of the brooder pen.

That wasn’t going to work. They’d get too chilled in the night, I had to bring Alsty to them. Several trips up and down the step stool later, grabbing babies and carrying them to the pen, I got the last chick and Mama in and locked the door.

I hope I won’t be doing this every night for the next little while; but you know I will be.

20170421_130409

Alsty Gets Her Freedom

19 Wednesday Apr 2017

Posted by Jodi in Chickens

≈ Leave a comment

Yesterday, for the first time since hatch two weeks ago, I opened our Alsterier’s brooding cage door. Alsty and her 18 fast-growing chicks lost no time in exiting into the large roofed run.

I was concerned about hawks and ravens, there have been a few hanging around, and the chicks are small enough to swoop and scoop.

But I didn’t need to worry, Alsty had safety top-of-mind. She let the kids explore, and everyone had a nice dust bath, but she didn’t let them put one toe outside the run.

Today she took them out, leading a 15 minute loop around the field, then it was back to the run for another lazy afternoon. It is fascinating to watch her control her babies with just her voice, they react instantly to her verbal cues.

I guess obedience is bred in, a poor listener wouldn’t last very long.

20170418_144441
20170418_143632
20170418_143648(0)
20170418_144415
20170419_135805

Happy Easter!

18 Tuesday Apr 2017

Posted by Jodi in Chickens

≈ Leave a comment

It was a fun family Easter weekend, while in the Hatcharium six Gold Laced Wyandottes and a little Lavender Orpington were busy zipping out of their shells.
I’m pretty sure the Orpington is a boy, he displays all the qualities of a natural leader. Chickens tend to conform to stereotypical gender norms, although we have had one or two hens who bucked the trend. Our rumpless Aurcana Sparkles, while still a pullet, used to kick any rooster who tried any funny business with her hatch mates. We thought she was a boy; when she laid her first egg, we had to drop the “Mr.” from her name. She is a fierce mom too.

20170417_140359
IMG_0123

Liza the LGD

14 Friday Apr 2017

Posted by Jodi in Chickens

≈ Leave a comment

Liza, the border collie husky cross, is fast becoming a great LGD – livestock guardian dog. When we are outside, she is too, and on duty in the winter field. When a winged predator flies over, and the roosters growl, Liza leaps into action, dashing after the hawk or raven, barking “get away from my chickens!” Such a good girl.
Chance? Well, sometimes he copies Liza, but most of the time he just acts like a chicken.

IMG_5798
IMG_4724
IMG_5481
IMG_5025

Late Spring This Year

13 Thursday Apr 2017

Posted by Jodi in Gardening, Weather

≈ Leave a comment

Mid-April, and a six-weeks-late spring is exploding in our muddy valley.
The leaves are popping, the rhubarb unfurling and the tulips lancing out of the ground to surprise the daffodils and muscari instead of arriving late to the party as usual.
I imagine their urgent murmuring; hurry up!get out of our way!you are supposed to be done now!we’re late!get a move on!
I feel the urgency too, like I need to rush around appreciating it all, because this year it will all be over in a flash.

IMG_5617
IMG_5818
IMG_5620
IMG_5815

Spring Tiptoes In

08 Saturday Apr 2017

Posted by Jodi in Gardening, Weather

≈ Leave a comment

Spring tiptoes into our muddy valley, her soft breath rousing wild plum tree to stretch her winter-cramped limbs and open her blossomy eyes.
A bumper mud crop means I walk carefully everywhere, to avoid a fall.
The trees are still leafless, and winter’s jewels still glow in the most unexpected places, like the bird bath’s crimson algae world, complete with ghostly maple leaf ship tacking across a watery sky.
Spring has sprung, and the amble down the hill to summer is just ahead.

IMG_5795
IMG_5803

Hatch Day

01 Saturday Apr 2017

Posted by Jodi in Chickens, Farm Produce

≈ Leave a comment

Friday was hatch day; my homebred Swedish Flowers and Polish, and Gold Laced and Silver Laced Wyandottes all the way from rural Quebec. It was a great hatch.
Most of the Swedes are going to be a young person’s 4H project (just think! I might see them competing at the Saanich Fair in September!), the Polish are for sale and the Wyandottes are my new project bird.
My sister had Wyandottes, they were gorgeous but horrible miserable birds; she must have got a bad line. Lots of people say their Wyandottes are sweet, docile, great layers, so I am giving them a try. Got more eggs in the incubator too, Red Laced Blue this time, from Alberta.
Breeder’s prerogative, I will keep the best ones and sell the rest.

IMG_5714
IMG_5759
IMG_5666

Subscribe

  • Entries (RSS)
  • Comments (RSS)

Archives

  • May 2022
  • February 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • August 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • October 2016
  • August 2016
  • December 2014

Categories

  • Chance
  • Chickens
  • Equines
  • Equipment
  • Farm Improvements
  • Farm Life
  • Farm Produce
  • Feminist farmer
  • Gardening
  • Liza and Arrow
  • Preserving
  • Reduce, reuse, recycle
  • Seasons
  • Uncategorized
  • Weather
  • Wildlfe
  • Wildlife

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in

Blog at WordPress.com.

  • Follow Following
    • Muddy Valley Farm
    • Join 64 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Muddy Valley Farm
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...