tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-87348629392885520152024-02-19T01:54:01.256-08:00Welcome to the World of Hendom!A little girl's love for all things chicken propels a rural Pennsylvania family into the world of hendom!Gaia Garden Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06869040675077315877noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8734862939288552015.post-71820999155266874532012-03-31T09:37:00.002-07:002017-05-01T09:00:31.959-07:00Bird Nest Snack Cups<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: -webkit-left;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">The quintessential reason that I blog is to chronicle our journey as a family with backyard chickens. A close second is being able to inspire others. Teaching is a noble profession and one I highly revere. Each month, from November to April, I lead a program with my fellow Master Gardeners at our local library that reaches "<a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Little-Sprouts/111365985593595" style="color: #666699; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" target="_blank">Little Sprouts</a>" from the ages of 2-7 years old. We read books, sing songs and complete a hands-on activity at each class that has something to do directly or indirectly with horticulture. The theme for the evening not too long ago was all about birds. We read three wonderful books: <i style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Birdsongs</i><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"> by Betsy Franco, </span><i style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Bluebird’s Nest</i> written by Dorothea DePrisco and illustrated by Jo Parry, and </span><i style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Inch by Inch</i><span class="ecxApple-style-span" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"> by Leo Lionni.</span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: -webkit-left;"></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: -webkit-left;">You can find so many great books about birds at the local library. Our library has a book sale twice a year and I </span><i style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: -webkit-left;">always</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: -webkit-left;"> find a book or two for the girls about chickens, chicks, hens or roosters. If you are thinking about raising chickens with your family, consider doing a little research beforehand </span><a href="http://communitychickens.blogspot.com/2011/02/welcome-to-world-of-hendom.html" style="background-color: white; color: #666699; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: -webkit-left;" target="_blank">like we did</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: -webkit-left;">. Read some chicken-themed books together. There is no better way to spark interest and excitement than with a great book!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Since spring has sprung here in north-central Pennsylvania (and is feeling more like summer!), I wanted to share a fun recipe that we used for the evening's snack. </span><span style="line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">It was very tasty! I highly recommend substituting the Kashi brand cereal because it tastes incredible! How much fun would this be to make for a spring birthday celebration or Easter party? It's so easy that it would make a great afternoon snack for your little bird lovers. I adapted this recipe slightly from the blog </span><a href="http://theadventuresofbear.blogspot.com/2010/04/edible-birds-nest.html" style="color: #666699; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" target="_blank">The </a><a href="http://theadventuresofbear.blogspot.com/2010/04/edible-birds-nest.html" style="color: #666699; line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" target="_blank">Adventures of Bear</a><span style="line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN49X1jir0mnZbVFA6Rwe_MkBgNzYxopCDS7TEg_9CN9rfLZN4ZOKU92U_TBQr5QOv4f-qip3ZNwP1wkB7qKInBJ4S33indMtQLmGN0JQ2CLkiahCnZMbTv2OXRYzen4mKDXYWlK3fHh2Q/s1600/DSC01646.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="background-color: white; clear: right; color: #666699; float: right; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN49X1jir0mnZbVFA6Rwe_MkBgNzYxopCDS7TEg_9CN9rfLZN4ZOKU92U_TBQr5QOv4f-qip3ZNwP1wkB7qKInBJ4S33indMtQLmGN0JQ2CLkiahCnZMbTv2OXRYzen4mKDXYWlK3fHh2Q/s1600/DSC01646.JPG" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(192, 192, 192); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-color: initial; border-image: initial; border-left-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: rgb(192, 192, 192); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-top-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1px; border-width: initial; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 6px; padding-left: 6px; padding-right: 6px; padding-top: 6px;" /></a><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Recipe for the bird's nest snack:</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">2 cups shredded wheat biscuits (I used Kashi's Island Vanilla cereal instead)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">1 tablespoon brown sugar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">1/4 cup melted butter</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Directions:</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">Crumble the shredded wheat biscuits into a mixing bowl. Use a spoon to stir in the coconut and brown sugar. Pour the melted butter over the shredded wheat mixture and mix together. Line muffin tin with liners. Press the shredded wheat mixture into the lined cups. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10-15 minutes until crisp and golden brown. Let cool. Remove from muffin tin and fill the nests with grapes as eggs. Makes roughly six nests. Enjoy!</span> </span></div>
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Gaia Garden Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06869040675077315877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8734862939288552015.post-48056026879126830582012-02-08T17:02:00.001-08:002012-03-06T10:54:33.406-08:00The Tale of the Very First and Sort of Poopie Egg<div class="post" style="background-color: white; border-bottom-style: none; border-color: initial; border-image: initial; border-left-style: none; border-right-style: none; border-top-style: none; border-width: initial; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: -webkit-left;"><div class="post-body" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">It was another exciting day for us! Our chicken, Sunshine, has just started laying eggs! With the unusually warm weather, she started laying this week. We weren't expecting her to lay until spring, since we opted against supplemental lighting to get her to lay during winter. I was able to get the girls' reaction on video this afternoon and am happy to share it with you. The egg we found today was not in the nesting box. We found it entrenched in a whole lot of poop! When Ara pulled it out, it was covered in some rather large gobs of poo. So it made me wonder: "What the heck do we do with a poop-covered egg?" I found a stellar site from <a href="http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/foodnut/09377.html" style="color: #666699; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Colorado State University Extension</a>that explains in detail what to do. Here is an excerpt from their site that succinctly addresses our questions:</span><br />
<div style="font-style: italic; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Caring for the Eggs</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Collect the eggs often.</span> Eggs that spend more time in the nest have an increased chance of becoming dirty, broken, or lower in quality. Collecting eggs at least twice daily is recommended, preferably before noon. Consider a third collection in late afternoon or early evening, especially in hot or cold weather. Coated wire baskets or plastic egg flats are good containers for collecting eggs. Discard eggs with broken or cracked shells.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Cleaning.</span> Dirty eggs can be a health hazard. Eggs with dirt and debris can be cleaned with fine sandpaper, a brush, or emery cloth. If eggs need to be washed, the temperature of the water should be at least 20F warmer than the egg. This will prevent the egg contents from contracting and producing a vacuum. It will also prevent microscopic bacteria from being pulled by vacuum through the pores of the egg. A mild, non-foaming, unscented detergent approved for washing eggs can be used. A dishwashing liquid that is free of scents and dyes is acceptable. Eggs can be sanitized by dipping in a solution of 1 tablespoon household bleach to 1 gallon of water before storage. Dry eggs before storing because moisture may enter the shell pores as eggs cool on refrigeration.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Storage. </span>Store eggs in the main section of the refrigerator at 35F to 40F; the shelves in the door tend to be warmer than interior shelves. If collected and stored properly, eggs can have a safe shelf life of greater than three weeks. Date the storage carton or container and use older eggs first. If you have more eggs than you can use, you can break them out of their shells and freeze them. Only freeze fresh eggs. Beat until just blended, pour into freezer containers, seal tightly, label with the number of eggs and the date. Add a small amount of salt, sugar, or corn syrup to prevent gelling and improve the keeping quality of the eggs. It’s a good idea to note any additional ingredients on the freezer container. The whites and yolks may also be frozen separately.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Preparation. </span>Never eat eggs raw. Undercooked egg whites and yolks have been associated with outbreaks of Salmonella enteritidis infections. To prevent illness from bacteria, cook eggs until yolks are firm and cook foods containing eggs thoroughly to 160F. Use a food thermometer to be sure. Do not keep cooked or raw eggs at room temperature for more than two hours.</span></div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Here's the link to a wonderful two-page fact sheet (in PDF format) that you can print for an excellent reference: <a href="http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/foodnut/09377.pdf" style="color: #666699; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/foodnut/09377.pdf</a></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Here's another interesting blog post that I found with some great information on cleaning eggs:</span><br style="line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /><span style="line-height: 18px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.theprairiehomestead.com/2011/10/eggs-to-wash-or-not-to-wash.html" style="color: #666699; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">http://www.theprairiehomestead.com/2011/10/eggs-to-wash-or-not-to-wash.html</a><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" />I'm not a big fan of bleach, so I'll be skipping that option for cleaning soiled eggs.</span><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" />I hope you find this post helpful in answering questions you may have about cleaning, storage and preparation of eggs.</span></div><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: center;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyLcSeAdIhE_y3dKmNbFSbM7ylT0TXfh9ViweAyxeBM17U52KoaXJ0DujcAyvKK2Op1vEtCyJmQ1mxOS2ea8Q' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></span></div></div></div>Gaia Garden Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06869040675077315877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8734862939288552015.post-58471648825680403432011-10-18T15:02:00.000-07:002011-10-19T18:39:48.877-07:00Our Silkies Hatched and a Spraddle (Splay) Legged Chick<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We only hatched one, lone Delaware chick from our first round of incubation a couple of months ago. Of the 12 eggs, only two fertilized and the one little guy never made it out of the egg. I figured it would be a good time to hunt for some Silkies, so our chick would have some company for the long winter that's approaching quicker than I'd like.</span><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Silkies are referred to as the lap dogs of the chicken breeds and are exceptionally good with kids. Searching on the Internet, I found a lovely lady who runs </span><a href="http://www.cjsilkies.com/" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">CJ's Silkies</a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> and sells eggs about a 45-minute drive from our house. I e-mailed her and we made plans to meet so I could pick up the eggs (rather than have her mail them). She was so sweet and generous. We came home with a dozen Silkie eggs to incubate. I checked the eggs with the OvaScope egg candler after a week and seven of the twelve were fertilized! Three beauties successfully hatched out of this batch.</span><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnWZS-JopGjaZcMGT3V3vgLYdYmhmUNKJzKv6bn9Wjxf0jo4icAkJWeZDucKUqd2_E1kNglB0TGRiQxLgP0nbafkw9JIlTR5F27SLCeIgsE-8xLIHSof0SfCGhsb8UNtrLxG58uXxP_nbU/s1600/DSC01277.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnWZS-JopGjaZcMGT3V3vgLYdYmhmUNKJzKv6bn9Wjxf0jo4icAkJWeZDucKUqd2_E1kNglB0TGRiQxLgP0nbafkw9JIlTR5F27SLCeIgsE-8xLIHSof0SfCGhsb8UNtrLxG58uXxP_nbU/s320/DSC01277.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We have our older Delaware chick named "Sunshine," who has moved out to the new coop that's in our backyard. We really wanted to build a coop from scratch, but I've been pretty sick lately and unable to help Derek out. Instead, we bought a coop kit off eBay for $300. It was pretty pricey, as we had only budgeted for $150 in materials to build our own, but it was out of our control ... so we gave in and bought it.<br />
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Surprisingly, it was simple for Derek to put together and seems to be well-constructed for being an import. It took only a couple hours and the instructions were straightforward. The coop looks nice and should accommodate about three to four full-grown hens. I hope we'll build a larger coop with a bigger run ourselves in the spring. We have our plans for that coop still and some of the supplies ready. It's something we both want to take on when I'm feeling up to it! Derek had a great idea to add handles to the coop and retrofit wheels from our defunct jogging stroller so we can move it around the yard. I hope we'll be able to do this before the snow flies. Otherwise, it will be a springtime to-do!<br />
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A word of caution: Be very careful buying anything online! Do your research and make sure to carefully read the feedback for a seller and know their policy if the item arrives damaged or there are missing/broken pieces. Some sellers only give you a matter of days to let them know if there is a part missing or broken. There are a lot of shysters out there, so exercise caution and do not rush to buy anything. Take your time to carefully consider your purchase and read everything about the product listing very carefully. Simply put, buyer beware!<br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCn6c-qf3M3vx5ByZqMhOkDHfhAezaunPi_HAafXJ_pX5QznunFf_J7t2wZBLsySeYlHUzsrAEyT2mkh00TzbVrgr43v5p3dvaKisCgt4rfGfCe4s3XORK6_lWRt54rgoir5Ep_hWxr_DQ/s1600/DSC01368.JPG" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCn6c-qf3M3vx5ByZqMhOkDHfhAezaunPi_HAafXJ_pX5QznunFf_J7t2wZBLsySeYlHUzsrAEyT2mkh00TzbVrgr43v5p3dvaKisCgt4rfGfCe4s3XORK6_lWRt54rgoir5Ep_hWxr_DQ/s320/DSC01368.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Our third Silkie to hatch had some difficulty with spraddle legs. Luckily, I ran into information online about this when I was reading up for our first chick. The poor little thing could only do splits and just couldn't get its footing to walk around. Scooby-Doo Band-Aids to the rescue! I liked the pictures from <a href="http://www.poultryhelp.com/spraddle.html">this site</a> that illustrate how to fix a chick's spraddle legs.<br />
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It's essential you remedy this problem in the first few days so the chick can get a good start and train its legs to stay together. This process would have gone flawlessly except for the fact that Silkies have hairy legs! Derek held the poor little thing while I attempted to affix the bandage around each leg. We were successful after a few minutes of careful maneuvering. Afterward, the chick took a long and well-deserved nap. Two days later, the bandage started to come loose and he or she is doing well on their legs ... and no more splits! If the problem continues when the bandage starts to fall off, you have to apply another bandage.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I've also noticed that this same chick appears to have a slightly herniated belly button. I am just careful to not bother it while it heals. I had to pay careful attention cleaning its back end when its feces became stuck to its feathers. I didn't want things to get infected, but I also didn't want to get that spot wet when I was loosening the feces. It's really important to check on your chicks every day. They may need cleaning, as their feces can get stuck to their feathers. I just used a warm, wet paper towel and held it to the feces if it was stuck to their feathers. It hasn't happened often, but it's <i>not</i> something you want to let go and hope it resolves itself.</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmHbrz46JXZX6b29eOA8yeN6ROgLjV2_RGkMf6v2Zz5EZ99fsFUeFxeV92lTPnvmwqpf2UBP2-acguDzxRDxI4HnNUg3M-pxsFMv72oa3I71HTmfU0ldtO10OUGq2Ce3NAE1wrY1V3sG62/s1600/DSC01366.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmHbrz46JXZX6b29eOA8yeN6ROgLjV2_RGkMf6v2Zz5EZ99fsFUeFxeV92lTPnvmwqpf2UBP2-acguDzxRDxI4HnNUg3M-pxsFMv72oa3I71HTmfU0ldtO10OUGq2Ce3NAE1wrY1V3sG62/s320/DSC01366.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The temperaments of the Silkie chicks are incredible! Nora was holding one and it nuzzled up under her neck, closed its eyes and started to take a nap. It was one of the moments that simply melt your heart!<br />
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With three chicks in the brooder, we are able to observe the <a href="http://communitychickens.blogspot.com/2011/06/hen-pecked.html">pecking order</a> play out. The two oldest are vying for head honcho. They are like the three stooges trying to poke each other in the eye or nip at each others' legs. The other strange thing that you don't find in the books is the way these crazy chicks sleep. The two darker ones love to sleep on their sides and stick their feet in the air. I glanced at the brooder and it took my breath away. I figured, "Oh no! It's dead!" After closer inspection, I saw it was happily snoozing away and its little legs were twitching in some slumber-induced dream. Phew! They have since stopped napping like this and it's put me at ease.<br />
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Sadly, our white Silkie passed a couple weeks later. I'm not exactly sure what happened, but I tried desperately to do whatever I could to save her. She just all of the sudden ran out of steam and was listless. I called my neighbor friend and the local Agway to see if they could give any advice. There really wasn't much else I could do. I was told it just happens sometimes all of the sudden. Nevertheless, it was a sad day for us all. It's just really hard to accept that I couldn't make the poor girl better.<br />
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In the coming weeks, Derek will have a blog about dressing chicken. We had the awesome opportunity to learn to safely and humanely butcher a chicken (thanks to our friends at <a href="http://springmeadowsfarm.wordpress.com/">Spring Meadows Farms</a>, who hosted a recent field day). </div>Gaia Garden Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06869040675077315877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8734862939288552015.post-7776268724781315252011-08-22T14:50:00.000-07:002011-08-23T12:15:14.563-07:00Our New Feathered Friend<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><div><span style="font-size: small;">Early Saturday morning was a special day for our family. One of our chicks hatched out of its egg!</span></div><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<div><span style="font-size: small;">The night before, I could see the egg moving and hear little peeps. We also noticed a small crack in the side of the egg. Bleary-eyed, the girls crowded around and peered into the incubator's observation windows.</span></div><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<div><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJPqzs-BUb4QGybXepz6A9uRZEEmnB_qY6hUFFKFmGKd7iJcKtuhvr8hlFBVGkq8FUd5YWbNrmDn4yKxy7g0I47_60naMShQeYUcKMv1YTkHgo-pQ08ZgFK8XoslklFeK2UumOhFJbhPyC/s1600/DSC00866.JPG" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJPqzs-BUb4QGybXepz6A9uRZEEmnB_qY6hUFFKFmGKd7iJcKtuhvr8hlFBVGkq8FUd5YWbNrmDn4yKxy7g0I47_60naMShQeYUcKMv1YTkHgo-pQ08ZgFK8XoslklFeK2UumOhFJbhPyC/s320/DSC00866.JPG" width="320" /></a>There was so much excitement and lots of, "I cannot see, move over, let me loooook!" The chick was in the egg still, but well on its way to getting out. The chick would peep and they would go bonkers! "Did you hear that mama? The chick is peeping!" The girls' eyes were like saucers, taking it all in. They would clap their hands and giggle. Good times! We let the chick stay in the incubator most of the day while it dried, and we were hoping it would encourage the other one to come out. Sadly, our second chick never hatched, so we have one chick from our first incubation.</span></div><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<div><span style="font-size: small;">We were certain that the second chick didn't make it, because the next day the egg smelled really bad and there was no movement. Unfortunately, the rest of our eggs didn't get fertilized, or maybe something else happened in the incubation process. As we're newbies at this, I hoped maybe I was wrong when we candled. It was clear that there was nothing but a yolk, but I kept them in there just in case I was wrong.</span></div><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFrNAvkuv1ZeN3FSLeBdA-qQesDdNiWdL14Evuj6o5Rgk6QsSTHLe1xXhkQEYC4di2CVNwR7Ix2PkZx8g9M2bpf3ZPalJHOVmBgqHGZIkk7GOYjbyUvQyGy7mlH4upXB2asJ25eUzfk9Z-/s1600/DSC00879.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFrNAvkuv1ZeN3FSLeBdA-qQesDdNiWdL14Evuj6o5Rgk6QsSTHLe1xXhkQEYC4di2CVNwR7Ix2PkZx8g9M2bpf3ZPalJHOVmBgqHGZIkk7GOYjbyUvQyGy7mlH4upXB2asJ25eUzfk9Z-/s320/DSC00879.JPG" width="320" /></a>The evening before, Derek and I set up the brooder for the chick. We had a cardboard container from the starter kit for chicks from Tractor Supply, but I had seen a better way to house them. I had a large plastic storage container used to store clothes for the kids in the closet. I've been downsizing, and a bin worth of clothes went off to charity. I lined it with paper towels. The towels are necessary so the chick can get good footing. I also read it's a better choice than wood shavings to start because the chicks cannot differentiate between food and wood shavings and may accidentally eat some of the shavings. I'll replace the towels with wood shavings in a couple of weeks.</span></div><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<div><span style="font-size: small;">The <a href="http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/livestocksystems/di0631.html">University of Minnesota</a> has good information about the hatching and brooding process for small batches of chicks. We filled the feeder with the supplied chick starter (again from the Tractor Supply kit) and I used distilled water for the water feeder. I'm worried about our well water and just want to give the little gal (or guy) the best start. I sprinkled a little of the feed on the paper towels near the feeder, to make it easy for the chick to find.</span></div><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<div><span style="font-size: small;">I attached the heat lamp to a cast iron plant stand I have. The literature I read said to get the light about 18" above the brooder. I was shooting for a temperature of 95 degrees F. I checked the temperature with the thermometer from the incubator and laid it on the floor of the brooder. It was right around 100 degrees. I adjusted the lamp up a few more inches until I was around 95 degrees F. Other ways to tell if your temperature is off is to watch the chick. If it stays away from the light, it might be too hot, so adjust the lamp further way. If the chick constantly stays under the light, it might be too cold, and you will want to move the lamp closer. Make sure your brooder is away from cold drafts and protect the chicks from your pets. We are laying a window screen over top of the brooder for added protection.</span></div><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<div><span style="font-size: small;">It would have been nice to have a friend or two for the little chick, but we are giving him or her lots of attention. The girls talk sweetly to the chick and sing it songs. Ara loves to tell it, "I'm your mama and I'm going to take good care of you." It took a while for the chick to dry out, but it seems to be doing really well and really bonding with the girls. As you can see from the pictures, the little chick is dearly loved and off to a great start.</span></div><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<div><span style="font-size: small;">We want to raise our chicks organically, but decided to start with medicated feed to give our chick a good start. We'll switch over to organic feed next month. I also took the time to disinfect the incubator, so I hope we can start one more small batch. That way, our little chick will have a friend for the long winter months ahead.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixuQvIbDfMA91ejwKK79vobgn03i26BGVjTcAkMvFgM0tcTv62KLcFFCdmeG9VCmYeDOW48WbYccSi4hb7tZno2f-Or-qt1StoGbJEG4ksKc9az0Z9g8R95CftlpAobdiJ-bOTQKCE7fM/s1600/DSC00866.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></span></div></div></div><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzqNvNE_18Wrh_vKUou_hHceB2whFU9m1pvGWSUplfr7xL446vLVBd9quEBuoptjjRRXYaUtoiJvLtdBkmM-LU6V7w61rd8LY8mcmQYwIdGRvg4YWDKt0Wl7TkR5Fy2MS0eH1X5vSQSz6T/s1600/DSC00921.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dx9dgo-E5qeTekWIlDoJO49Sto2CGMJDHyTzH9CrBMSXRdxorVrxKEK2xiPnXkNBlEEyVbiLWyOWdt6lZHkIw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></a></span></div><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzqNvNE_18Wrh_vKUou_hHceB2whFU9m1pvGWSUplfr7xL446vLVBd9quEBuoptjjRRXYaUtoiJvLtdBkmM-LU6V7w61rd8LY8mcmQYwIdGRvg4YWDKt0Wl7TkR5Fy2MS0eH1X5vSQSz6T/s1600/DSC00921.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
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</a></span></div>Gaia Garden Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06869040675077315877noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8734862939288552015.post-29639629556211871332011-08-22T14:42:00.000-07:002011-08-23T12:18:03.087-07:00Candling with an Ova Scope<div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; text-align: center;"></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzbGcnFuLFzj5bncTivXXswT9Qv06atm0GcOHlMbYpWL99yhyQJjF3baum7WseExyGsVih87s2yrMr7cWJjsDJyl-lapZ8hNqS9CVIbPLVMsQ0_4-2aEjhFCAwgxjf5bqAFlX1pc8A5ptR/s1600/DSC00780.JPG" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzbGcnFuLFzj5bncTivXXswT9Qv06atm0GcOHlMbYpWL99yhyQJjF3baum7WseExyGsVih87s2yrMr7cWJjsDJyl-lapZ8hNqS9CVIbPLVMsQ0_4-2aEjhFCAwgxjf5bqAFlX1pc8A5ptR/s200/DSC00780.JPG" width="113" /></a></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The <a href="http://www.brinsea.com/products/egglume.html">Brinsea Ova Scope</a> came a couple of weeks ago! We opened it up, followed the supplied directions and checked out our eggs that very day.</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">I'm a little worried now. Out of our 12 eggs, I can definitely see two chicks moving around ... but nothing in the others. They have been incubating for 11 days. Could it really be that only two out of the 12 made it?</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The good news is I can see the air sacs in almost all of them. Maybe I'm wrong about the eggs, so I will persevere by keeping them in the incubator. I may have a mess on my hands if one or two explode, but I hope that won't happen and we'll get more than two chicks.</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYFYFWmCE0VnBqTqyK_kNhrtUlX0-CaeHeqoXnYYZ7GgH-vAuUmbRCfCkW92YZyOsa-e17O-RFfNeUhzZu6QHxLUFLA7layV75YuhcCSR17-73aL_XUqBdgIL4ID30Tnw5B-yHDFbVP9ex/s1600/DSC00781.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYFYFWmCE0VnBqTqyK_kNhrtUlX0-CaeHeqoXnYYZ7GgH-vAuUmbRCfCkW92YZyOsa-e17O-RFfNeUhzZu6QHxLUFLA7layV75YuhcCSR17-73aL_XUqBdgIL4ID30Tnw5B-yHDFbVP9ex/s200/DSC00781.JPG" width="150" /></a>I found a very useful site that provides videos and pictures of candling chicken eggs at the <a href="http://lancaster.unl.edu/4h/Embryology/CandlingPhotos.shtml">University of Nebraska-Lincoln</a>. It's perfectly all right to take the eggs out of the incubator, but not usually longer than 30 minutes. Make sure your hands are clean when handling them. You don't want to clog the pores in the egg shell.</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">The girls thoroughly enjoyed seeing the chicks moving around in the egg! They kept vying for a turn. Over and over again they peeked inside the scope to see the chick wiggling around inside its egg. It was pretty neat to see how excited the girls are getting about the chicks.</div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span><br style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;" /><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; font-family: "; margin-left: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY7Hz37MFYSiLOBR7lCVucGSG4SbGxi_iX3LQD4ddumauTDXB4MlV_GUGOJl-1UgGSYNJz55hE7-mE-0UD4X-F4bVAB4d08OwEcl_nflBG9mTKkMI5Hzw2Ujh8EObckGHmQr-RpP2oYyQ7/s200/DSC00787.JPG" width="150" /></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Egg Perched on the Ova Scope</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>There were two eggs we threw out after candling because we knew absolutely nothing was going on inside. Also, they both had a slight crack in the side we hadn't noticed before. Derek cracked them open back by our creek and there was no embryo growth in either. <br />
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I was also able to plop my camera upon the scope to get a video of the chick moving around in the egg:</div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/nKzzSD6BXnA?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div>Gaia Garden Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06869040675077315877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8734862939288552015.post-36094236222212961582011-08-03T16:49:00.000-07:002011-08-07T17:53:41.485-07:00Incubating the Chicks!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnIPNnd7C2tf5UHXwDTwpbRW9gCfP0dC5DOr6jhymW31sfParXDnGlZhU4XwxuPTEQMGRkS8EtdqI_faucuO36TbjnHePa8nvUMugEqxlpSnHaTyJoCwbVAVlQqjSv0fY3FgUqoGqTVis/s1600/DSC00405.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br />
</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeBrkyuPs3YMTFLqKm5lsjS7miOW5TIZCW-3E0JxGGZ-0zVUCXucVUtj-nJ8kjcZyEZSWkOWG8M1eWSAGJwThSwabMq_vXXWl-4zGKgJnoKDQaMP4Hi9R0i1dB_OSdzkyCHJ1-1lznA_C6/s320/DSC00405.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeBrkyuPs3YMTFLqKm5lsjS7miOW5TIZCW-3E0JxGGZ-0zVUCXucVUtj-nJ8kjcZyEZSWkOWG8M1eWSAGJwThSwabMq_vXXWl-4zGKgJnoKDQaMP4Hi9R0i1dB_OSdzkyCHJ1-1lznA_C6/s320/DSC00405.JPG" /></a></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">It's been a while since our last blog entry, but an exciting new chapter in the Furry household unfurls as I write! The countdown has begun. In roughly 14 days, we will hear the peeping of little chicks. (The gestation period for chicken eggs is 21 days.)</span></div><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br />
</span><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">We have an incubator all set up and we now have eggs! We went to our <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mansfield-Growers-Market/221922445466?ref=ts">local farmer's market</a> last week to arrange a pick up of our dozen Delaware eggs at the rock bottom price of $2.50 from our friends Mike and Chris Chester at <a href="http://www.alwayssomethinfarm.com/">Always Somethin' Farm</a>. They were kind enough to let us borrow a great little book called <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Guide-Better-Hatching-Janet-Stromberg/dp/0915780003">"A Guide to Better Hatching" by Janet Stromberg</a>. It's out of print, but you may be able to locate a used copy online. I found another excellent site that was created by the <a href="http://urbanext.illinois.edu/eggs/res19-opincubator.html">University of Illinois Extension</a>. It gives helpful information explaining the operation for a still air incubator (excellent for us, as we do not have instructions for the one we are borrowing from our aunt). Our incubator has an automatic egg turner too. Our aunt has used it many times in her classroom over the years as a first-grade teacher. We received a new thermometer before using it because they lose there accuracy over time, and temperature is an essential part of incubating correctly.<br />
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Our aunt gave us some great pointers so we could get the incubator setup correctly:</span><ul><li><span style="font-size: small;">A well (called the moisture channel) inside the bottom of the incubator holds water to keep the eggs moist.</span></li>
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<li><span style="font-size: small;">Each egg nestles into cradles, and the eggs need to be placed skinny point down. The airspace in the egg is at the largest and widest part of the egg.</span></li>
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<li><span style="font-size: small;">Two windows allow for checking the temperature, which we set as close to 99.5 degrees as possible. Temperatures vary according to the type of incubator you have, so do the research before using your particular incubator.</span></li>
</ul><span style="font-size: small;">Another pointer our aunt gave us was to watch for excessive moisture buildup on the windows. If we see that, we pull one of the red vent plugs to air the incubator out a little. Our eggs are currently rocking away, and we're so excited to see what hatches.<br />
</span><div><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1hUfHb1bbw0oc9WN-WqCFUzDL1TSEWn7HGt1R5oHQ9khUlJXIPy4BgGiCrGuURJYxMIRXYoxx9hRARKAA2vxEKz4wb02d5QacBcdRJF3bFsTyVEh46WwuVK8PJpFoUxu51coQ7OmlqFyI/s320/DSC00401.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1hUfHb1bbw0oc9WN-WqCFUzDL1TSEWn7HGt1R5oHQ9khUlJXIPy4BgGiCrGuURJYxMIRXYoxx9hRARKAA2vxEKz4wb02d5QacBcdRJF3bFsTyVEh46WwuVK8PJpFoUxu51coQ7OmlqFyI/s320/DSC00401.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: small;">We also picked up a chick starter kit at Tractor Supply for about $20. It has a waterer and food feeder, a small bag of chicken feed starter, a box to put the chicks in for safe transport, a little cardboard corral for them to safely play outside (supervised) and some coupons for chicken-related products at the store. We also picked up a heat lamp and light bulb for it.<br />
</span><div><span style="font-size: small;">We are getting to the point were we can check the eggs and toss out the bad ones. I purchased an Ova Scope after reading <a href="http://www.communitychickens.com/profile/profiles.html#jennifers">Jennifer Sartell</a>'s awesome blog post reviewing the <a href="http://communitychickens.blogspot.com/2011/03/brinsea-ova-scope.html" title="external link">Brinsea Ova Scope.</a> I scoured the Internet for a good deal on the scope. It's a large expense at $70 with shipping, but I think the girls will really enjoy being able to see their chickens growing inside the eggs and we will use it again. It will also be fun to share with our friends and family when the eggs are hatching too. We'll have a blog for you about that in the next week or two and a video of the chicks inside their eggs (we hope)!</span></div><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span><div><span style="font-size: small;">We still have no coop, but we'll report on that, too, as we press forward. A couple of weeks ago, we received some great freebies for the coop from my godfather, which I'll post about soon. He also helped us with the coop design and supply list. We should be able to make our coop, which includes a fenced-in run, for about $100. Not too shabby. I'll be keeping track of the receipts as we buy our supplies to see how close we come to hitting the mark!</span></div></div><div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br />
</div>Gaia Garden Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06869040675077315877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8734862939288552015.post-12421073414015514742011-05-28T14:35:00.000-07:002011-05-28T14:38:24.200-07:00Planning the Coop is All Washed Out!<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I had to chuckle when Nora and I were watching the <a href="http://pbskids.org/catinthehat/">Cat in the Hat</a> on PBS one morning. The Cat and the children were talking about bird nests and wanted to build one on their own. The fish smugly commented, "You don't know how to build a nest!" In the sage words of the Cat in the Hat, "I don't know how to now, but I will when I'm done!"</div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">That's the mantra we have to follow to succeed with our daunting coop planning project. It will take time, lots of weekends, but it will be done just in time. We won't be incubating until June so warm (hopefully drier) spring and summer days are ahead of us for building.</div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">If the rain would stop for one weekend, we could really get started on our coop. I can't complain too much, because I planted most of my early spring veggies last weekend and now I don't have to worry about watering them! The next seven days are all forecast for scattered thunderstorms. Such a bummer, and raincoats aren't my idea of a fashion statement! We're itching to get started, so I may have to just take a few rainy days and clean the garage out well so we can start building in there instead. I looked through several books with my husband, Derek, and we decided to start with a coop to accommodate up to 10 chickens. This way we have room to grow and add to the flock next year.</div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN-TrPAVTyBWzhyphenhyphen8kUwS9mDhGs6O0L7VxrYeyti-DobmAqXhaDbwFT96606XxOxjA6FZDGV9BwRpAR06zA-4SgniuQ4OeodBq0d0KMGuiuoJ21MlKB9OvlpKQOd1PczrigTCTeVsfyUz65/s1600/DSC08915.JPG" style="clear: left; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN-TrPAVTyBWzhyphenhyphen8kUwS9mDhGs6O0L7VxrYeyti-DobmAqXhaDbwFT96606XxOxjA6FZDGV9BwRpAR06zA-4SgniuQ4OeodBq0d0KMGuiuoJ21MlKB9OvlpKQOd1PczrigTCTeVsfyUz65/s320/DSC08915.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">On the bright side, I went to our local library book sale last month and scored a bunch of books for the girls about chickens! I put the books in their Easter baskets and they continually pick chicken-themed books for our bedtime stories.</div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I also found some nifty wind-up chickens that lay bubblegum eggs for the girls' baskets. It was such a hit!</div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">At my last visit to the library, I stumbled upon a really awesome book that I wanted to share with those out there with little ones. It's called <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0545224837/ref=rdr_ext_sb_ti_hist_2">Egg to Chicken/Tadpole to Frog (Flip Me Over) (QEB Life Cycles)</a>.</div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj77sCPyrpTdj9TqSXyHgr_fMb8tGeAhH5hlckvgnVVJOClJMsNP5RQgCUsEKZ5hp7rFoRF9XeHxhsW6jZi65OMM4CDLCQinst4YbhT5mb5K18_2nxOStLAKKiqfTcd9cHB0EHBquuGGys0/s1600/DSC08294.JPG" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj77sCPyrpTdj9TqSXyHgr_fMb8tGeAhH5hlckvgnVVJOClJMsNP5RQgCUsEKZ5hp7rFoRF9XeHxhsW6jZi65OMM4CDLCQinst4YbhT5mb5K18_2nxOStLAKKiqfTcd9cHB0EHBquuGGys0/s320/DSC08294.JPG" width="236" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Emu at Reptiland</td></tr>
</tbody></table></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The book does an excellent job of explaining and defining essential terminology like nesting, brooding, parts of the chicken, what happens inside a fertilized egg and how it hatches.</div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">What's even better, you flip the book over and the other half explains the lifecycle of tadpoles to frogs! The book appealed to both our daughters (almost 3 and 6 years old). Nora, our youngest, enjoyed the pictures and asked questions, while Ara grasped more and asked really thoughtful questions. The book had a picture of an ostrich and its egg, and she remembered her visit last month to <a href="http://www.reptiland.com/index.html">Reptiland</a> where they had emus.</div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">She wondered if emu eggs where close to the size of ostrich eggs. I was impressed that she made the connection! This book was certainly apropos.</div><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghTQ-hZUVuyHo-iTi5U1KacxFWtSy9og2zDome38S6k6qn9yrSb4SZppLmXsKA-Y6i743iIdvGi9G_zwkpyVqIf-43Fn17gVlUbgxP3e5j05nCzjQcpPXeee2u7ZuedKry2Wv7v9nWxrWs/s1600/IMG_1292.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghTQ-hZUVuyHo-iTi5U1KacxFWtSy9og2zDome38S6k6qn9yrSb4SZppLmXsKA-Y6i743iIdvGi9G_zwkpyVqIf-43Fn17gVlUbgxP3e5j05nCzjQcpPXeee2u7ZuedKry2Wv7v9nWxrWs/s320/IMG_1292.jpg" width="240" /></a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: small;">On a recent visit to our friend Bonnie's house, she gave us frog eggs to take home. Nearly every egg hatched and we now have a little two-gallon tank bustling with tadpoles!</span><br />
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</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; font-size: small;">One other book that I checked out of the library turned out to be wonderful</span> for younger ones. It's called <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Doras-Eggs-Storytime-Board-Books/dp/product-description/1589258010">Dora's Eggs</a>. It's a board book and the illustrations are great. I looked online and the library version appears to vary a lot of from the retail version.</div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ_8G7gaBpMYWggkFSLCJ7wsfvb0j28Q6PLhRU_iFUd1XRQzVYYG6HTGuwBMBKNlecN_yCPaQWYHdRRjb0FDVIUfXnu8LsJbLzYYKF5UkhfmZUaeT9E8HId1ao8lIi5ZUMrPRsfYwzp__G/s1600/IMG_1299.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ_8G7gaBpMYWggkFSLCJ7wsfvb0j28Q6PLhRU_iFUd1XRQzVYYG6HTGuwBMBKNlecN_yCPaQWYHdRRjb0FDVIUfXnu8LsJbLzYYKF5UkhfmZUaeT9E8HId1ao8lIi5ZUMrPRsfYwzp__G/s320/IMG_1299.jpg" width="240" /></a>We were also lucky this past week to meet Bonnie's daughter Raisa's ducklings! As you can see from the pictures, the girls doted on the ducklings and had a blast!</div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I was really pleased that Raisa allowed the girls to play with the ducklings. As I expected, there were a few ducklings that were a bit tenuous with two young, independent-minded girls!</div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Nora and Ara held the ducklings, watched them swim in the pond and followed them around as they quacked! Raisa paddled in her kayak with the ducks on the pond and watched after them carefully ... as any mother hen would!</div><br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We also checked out their coop. It was a great experience for the girls and it was awesome for us to watch them interact with the ducklings!</div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></div><div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dy8nlCqfOHxmAikSfKITU6Qk6UlmWs4ccHtFc1Kp93DdZQ_SKqJEXDOtlBI-AImXwJZhU32AZ9ht7cay02BUw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe> </div><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span>Gaia Garden Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06869040675077315877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8734862939288552015.post-37696757920755777102011-04-18T13:17:00.001-07:002011-04-20T18:15:41.344-07:00Coop on the Cheap! Cheap!<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span class="style23" style="color: black; font-size: small;"><div><span class="style23" style="color: black;"><span class="style23" style="color: black;"><div>I love to make a game of saving money and spending less. I try my best to get whatever I need for the lowest possible price. I keep a vigilant eye on curb sides and go hunting at yard sales and thrift stores. My husband rolls his eyes when I gleefully show off treasures I found. Scoring free stuff really makes my day and re-purposing (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upcycling">upcycling</a>) is nothing short of awesome!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOM0dt41eDnieAVUNkaAlDyX_GmmDN5rD2ZFg_0rLnYey2FvCCBbmsf3bLtGdUdChpUa6eBz4-qpwIX96y1kzrWSe1Ev2dKf6FV89EfDQrqN1jr0opAc4KT0_MDeDWzsT4kov-t0PEdemr/s1600/DSC07335.JPG" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOM0dt41eDnieAVUNkaAlDyX_GmmDN5rD2ZFg_0rLnYey2FvCCBbmsf3bLtGdUdChpUa6eBz4-qpwIX96y1kzrWSe1Ev2dKf6FV89EfDQrqN1jr0opAc4KT0_MDeDWzsT4kov-t0PEdemr/s200/DSC07335.JPG" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">"Free Friday" at Significant Elements</span></td></tr>
</tbody> </table>I've scoured several really great places within an hour's drive of our house. My first success was at <a href="http://www.significantelements.org/">Significant Elements</a> in Ithaca, N.Y. (my old stomping grounds). It's a nonprofit architectural salvage warehouse. I shopped there one time many years back to get an old-fashioned door for our home when we became proud "home owners." I've always loved the charm of this store chock full of memories of days gone by from beautiful old houses. I found some magnificent hammered metal handles and matching hinges. Nora helped me count out enough matching screws. We picked up a few extra just in case (those with children understand me completely!). All told for two sets of hinges and two handles and screws cost $4.00. Not too shabby for a vintage touch to the coop. We toured all three floors of their building. Doors, windows, staircases, sinks, bathtubs, molding, and the list goes on.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIE2bRL-XxMFjEWrsDADjDLN7A05LoysymNBF4aE4CBQekRdwDo3rMC10QbLsvcF4ULeYiNnX-Xse2mTDBHe2PxKDUBbTnUxzcYO0poDT_5pWskES4ylm3vZqQo45Ov-nny83G2A8TXo51/s1600/DSC07330.JPG" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIE2bRL-XxMFjEWrsDADjDLN7A05LoysymNBF4aE4CBQekRdwDo3rMC10QbLsvcF4ULeYiNnX-Xse2mTDBHe2PxKDUBbTnUxzcYO0poDT_5pWskES4ylm3vZqQo45Ov-nny83G2A8TXo51/s200/DSC07330.JPG" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Awesome array of hardware</span></td></tr>
</tbody> </table>The best part and the quintessential reason for my visit was "Free Friday." At the side of the building, was a large sign saying, "FREE." I saw most of the good stuff spirited away in a Prius (who knew they had so much trunk space?). Nevertheless, I scored a beautiful, working pair of shutters. I'm not sure how they fit into the coop design yet or even at all. As we can get some really hot spells, they may come in handy if we can add them to our building plans to ventilate the coop.</div><br />
I also stopped at a <a href="http://www.habitat.org/cd/env/restore_detail.aspx?place=70">Habitat ReStore</a> shop on our way to Ithaca in Corning, N.Y. I kindly asked at the front desk if they had any free or scrap wood and was directed to the back of the building. I was told you can take as much firewood as you'd like. I grinned and said, "Thank you!"<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH6PoXD-EESh4bDiXC7XufYw3MECFcS5ETGocS_noQl51MdzXXU66SsfqwXfoPbrqpwhjUGDuZTy1tuG1g2Qrc0QTNd_UDfyU4RT0mfoD4nIclFZWaZSVLnRHfJiaVva6qKX5snYN-4W5Z/s1600/DSC07332.JPG" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH6PoXD-EESh4bDiXC7XufYw3MECFcS5ETGocS_noQl51MdzXXU66SsfqwXfoPbrqpwhjUGDuZTy1tuG1g2Qrc0QTNd_UDfyU4RT0mfoD4nIclFZWaZSVLnRHfJiaVva6qKX5snYN-4W5Z/s200/DSC07332.JPG" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Significant Elements</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>I found a sizable hunk of particle board and what looks like an old cabinet front with strips of wood on the back that would work wonderfully for a ramp to the coop. All the scrap wood was outside and still covered in snow. I learned an important lesson that day: Leave leather gloves in the car for pickin'! I started to feel a little like Mike and Frank from History Channel's <a href="http://www.history.com/shows/american-pickers">American Pickers</a> although my treasures are not even comparable to what those guys are after.<br />
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More good news to report on our jaunt to Ithaca is my godfather, Mark, was gracious enough to allow us to pick his scrap pile. He is a carpenter and builder extraordinaire and always has leftovers from jobs and remodels. Derek headed over with nest box plans to see if he could find some wood.<br />
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There were lots of wonderful leftovers. We scored an unfinished solid cherry cabinet 15" x 12" to use possibly as the base for our nesting box; four, six foot 1x4's; and two, three foot 4x4's to elevate the coop. He made us an offer we couldn't refuse ... all of this for FREE! We steered clear of the treated wood, since we want our chickens and the eggs to be as chemical-free as possible. Derek explained to him that we're building a living/green roof for the coop, and he's going to get us waterproof lining for the roof so it won't rot. Even better, Mark said to e-mail him with our wish list for building materials for the coop and he'd collect it for us as he cleaned out for his jobs. Upcycling people's refuse from remodels warms my trash-pickin' heart!<br />
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I also remembered that my mom's next door neighbor handcrafts furniture in his garage and always has wood shavings. I asked my mom to speak with him to see if we can get pine wood shavings for the nesting boxes when the day approaches that we need it. I'll return the favor to both my old neighbor and godfather by sharing the hens' eggs with them.<br />
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We still haven't made a final decision on the coop. Our plan is to show you how we make it on the cheap (pun intended), but we need to commit to a coop plan first. From our research online and in books, we understand that the essentials that makeup the anatomy of a chicken coop include: a nesting box, a roost (branch or wood that the chickens can perch on) and a chicken run where they can get outside and hang out. Important, too, is an area for feed and water. The coop must also protect the chickens from the weather and predators. Chickens don't like being wet in their home and they need enough ventilation in the summer that they don't overheat. Cats, dogs, possums, raccoons, bobcats, hawks and foxes all enjoy chicken for dinner. I'm going to avoid this scenario by properly protecting the coop and chicken run.<br />
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<b>I'm keeping track of my expenses for the coop, so far:</b><br />
<ul><li>$4.00: Hardware from Significant Elements</li>
</ul><ul><li>$12.43: <i>Building Chicken Coops for Dummies</i> book (Really good plans and general construction tips)</li>
</ul><ul><li>$13.57: <i>Chicken Coops: 45 Building Plans for Housing Your Flock</i> book (Lacking complete building plans. Unfortunately, the coop we liked gave a web address where you can go to buy the actual plans. Great designs, drawings and photographs to get you thinking about your coop.)</li>
</ul><ul><li>$16.47: <i>How to Build Animal Housing: 60 Plans for Coops, Hutches, Barns, Sheds, Pens, Nest Boxes, Feeders, Stanchions, and Much More</i> book (Diagram for nesting box, and information on living space requirements; very helpful)</li>
</ul><ul><li>$4.20: <i>Chickens In Your Backyard: A Beginner's Guide</i> book (Straightforward, easy-to-read advice on raising chickens on a shoestring)</li>
</ul><ul><li>$50.67: Out of pocket</li>
</ul></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span"><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=welcom0b8-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=0470598964&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=welcom0b8-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=1580176275&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=welcom0b8-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=1580175279&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=welcom0b8-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=0878571256&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe></span></span></div></span></div>Gaia Garden Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06869040675077315877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8734862939288552015.post-5365314221001011752011-04-02T12:57:00.000-07:002011-04-05T06:27:07.640-07:00Pickin' Chickens<span class="style23" style="color: black;"><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7fn-TqlR-iQtnH-HZcM5lbxAw8Yrxdmj84H1bGUKrs0VtmD8MOPrj_AwVUFafPU1HiaLiunrRsmnAXgLtTT9moU-f8-iKVziVgGzxkok3jzCu6WFbxl_AwtUAMwvMDBI9iNgcxt06fZNd/s1600/chick+ara.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7fn-TqlR-iQtnH-HZcM5lbxAw8Yrxdmj84H1bGUKrs0VtmD8MOPrj_AwVUFafPU1HiaLiunrRsmnAXgLtTT9moU-f8-iKVziVgGzxkok3jzCu6WFbxl_AwtUAMwvMDBI9iNgcxt06fZNd/s320/chick+ara.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lands at Hillside Farms visit</td></tr>
</tbody></table><a href="http://www.communitychickens.com/images/blogs/kimberly.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">We all have been busy thinking and talking about the chickens.</span><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">The girls checked out pictures online of various breeds. Ara loves Silkies, as do I. We saw them on one of our fall ventures to the </span><a href="http://www.thelandsathillsidefarms.org/" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Lands at Hillside Farms</a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">.</span><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Silkies have amazing temperaments, according to my readings. The drawback is that their eggs are very small. I've been mindful of what breeds I see doing well close to where we live, because they will do the best in our climate. When I started researching last year, I knew I wanted to go with a </span><a href="http://www.motherearthnews.com/Sustainable-Farming/2005-02-01/Enjoy-Heritage-Chickens.aspx" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">heritage breed</a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> because many are endangered and I'd like to do my part to keep them around. </span><a href="http://www.alwayssomethinfarm.com/" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Our neighbor</a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> recommended the Delaware breed and explained, "Delaware's are a heritage breed with many desirable characteristics: The hens lay nice brown eggs, the roosters are not aggressive, they are excellent foragers for bugs, they can roost in trees if need be, and the young roosters that you may not want to keep taste great." All great reasons for us. I also learned researching online that they are critically endangered and at risk for extinction.</span></div><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWIA79AL_C16T3Q14QHRpjAG-10cvPP8Mx1kTWxcnxmoI1tp9At9t_rni-KM8NO5wMCv-xGSTL3HAOQHiQAc6DxzblY6D_5UAnMICgSbGg4QjuHyFxwg0rG4Fd5Fhy4JWuiVPQi7ECb-Dq/s1600/hillside+farms.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWIA79AL_C16T3Q14QHRpjAG-10cvPP8Mx1kTWxcnxmoI1tp9At9t_rni-KM8NO5wMCv-xGSTL3HAOQHiQAc6DxzblY6D_5UAnMICgSbGg4QjuHyFxwg0rG4Fd5Fhy4JWuiVPQi7ECb-Dq/s320/hillside+farms.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some Silkies off to the right by the feeder</td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Of utmost importance to us is having a breed that will be good with the kids. My first foray into the world of hendom as a child wasn't what I'd hoped for. I was 8 or 9 years old. I can still clearly remember trying to help my childhood friend Molly move her hens to their new coop with her family. Those chickens squawked and flapped and clawed. After trying fruitlessly to move a hen, I backed away from the cloud of feathers and decided to just watch as others scooped them up with ease. It wasn't a scarring experience. I did walk away thinking chickens weren't very personable and very skittish.</span><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><br style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;" /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Verdana,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdnSoFmCt5Z01zQZ8VmvK6neLYIRL1wvDkxfC9E4B-Sii7OsKq0kHU-ojOatxN5JpfFtu4NmyXzlO1Z8uTsczz7lV5tkQ-EVvXLQSaKYHuJqL0lMxR4LIad_OdPKvosVs9_OlyAYdFRDeI/s1600/DSC08009.JPG" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdnSoFmCt5Z01zQZ8VmvK6neLYIRL1wvDkxfC9E4B-Sii7OsKq0kHU-ojOatxN5JpfFtu4NmyXzlO1Z8uTsczz7lV5tkQ-EVvXLQSaKYHuJqL0lMxR4LIad_OdPKvosVs9_OlyAYdFRDeI/s320/DSC08009.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Another consideration is consumption. I love brown eggs and the Delawares lay large size brown eggs, perfect for cooking. I have seen an app from MOTHER EARTH NEWS. I finally relented and spent $2.99 for the </span><a href="http://www.motherearthnews.com/happy-homesteader/chicken-breeds-with-pictures-zb0z10zgri.aspx" style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">MOTHER EARTH NEWS Pickin' Chicken Breed Selector App</a><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> and gave it a try on my iPhone. I have to say I liked it well and it was worth the money spent. It confirmed what my neighbor had told me about the Delaware breed and gave me photographs and more detailed information specific to the breed. Nine other breeds also met my requirements, and we may consider them down the road. So we are going to start with a few Delaware chickens this summer and will add to our flock the next year with a couple of Silkies.</span></span>Gaia Garden Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06869040675077315877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8734862939288552015.post-47630921730936541862011-02-21T13:56:00.000-08:002016-08-15T10:52:07.374-07:00Bedtime Stories & Coop Roadblocks<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span class="style23" style="color: black;">I purchased a few books and searched for some books at our local library about building chicken coops. Unfortunately, they weren't what I imagined. I've searched the Internet endlessly and the Community Cluckers blog. I have some ideas and great pictures, but nothing concrete with regards to actual plans. I'm no carpenter, but thankfully Derek has a lot of aptitude when it comes to building and constructing. Unfortunately, neither of us can put something together without some basic instructions.<br />
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I was inspired by one blog where a guy made a really cool looking coop from Ikea items, but there's no Ikea even remotely close to us and the supplies he used were really pricey. I have a twin size futon frame that has taken up residence in the basement after my college days. Maybe there's some potential with that piece to be re-purposed. We have quite a bit of leftover chicken wire from garden fence projects. More than anything we want to construct a coop on the cheap with whatever we have lying around. I've ordered another book from the "Dummies" series called <u>Building Chicken Coops for Dummies</u> and <span class="item-title"><u><span style="color: black;">Chicken Coops: 45 Building Plans for Housing Your Flock</span></u> </span> to see if it can get us on track with a design plan or a least give us a better idea of what we'd like for a coop. I think a chicken tractor would be great. I like the idea that we could move the chickens around our yard taking advantage of the shade from the pine trees in the summertime or have them closer to the house during those cold, northeastern winter months. Did I mention that we've had a lot of snow? "A lot" is an understatement this year! I also really dig <a href="http://communitychickens.blogspot.com/2010/10/coops-beginning.html?showComment=1288718764534_AIe9_BGmD3Oh9Nbtar6FNSG3EorPnlndeUFKZAWEuGE33ehiwEMbHuUAERI2oIVKVBe2ci8gNgOqioeIc7e0wEesSKG4CRQVUU98IM1Ch1s3LOiVrwEC0K92k9Q7LyQ70NyHzylFfZsh138_nfhn6n7EqHJXRfvarCrr7XA7Pzo6Qy1nJIVVTDTmwp-Mp1qBLfSicOI-sGnszzMtvGsShQF3ZFPCxaMI54xjRHYLbqdP8wtFJ9PYLq4noTr5e3YnnHZ9afI4hDjbXO2S9gcvq1_qiNa9v1QpRtvRE5_NY2TpLoajccTqqR7V-PLBPhCSO46AmKh_jjZkKgNPHpGK-V9rWyyltAc23odQNuCACwQQtOQVk7VQCSJlNRYyO8kZseIMytCfneSZ7HrQoaysLzJpw4QhHPRz9tJ904KSQ3AJMIJ4Vcc3QRTzn2tOdvbN_roD1I3vCj6Ul5s4jbRpXmMhb-kLdWWXecv-PMh5R5vln5jQuWnqr-0n3VQcbFN7Xpgg6ytktWjC#c7732238974448222836">Community Clucker Rebecca Nickols' living roof</a> on her coop. I make living wreaths, so I have a wealth of sedums in and around and just about everywhere in the garden and lots of good friends always willing to share their sedum bounty. I am definitely working a living roof into the plans!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span class="style23" style="color: black; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">On the upside, bedtime stories with the girls have been all about roosters and chickens. Ara's favorite read was a great find at our local library's book sale. It's called <u>The Little Tiny Rooster</u> by William Lipkind and Nicolas Mordvinoff. It's from the 60's and out of print, but there are many used copies available online and hopefully some copies still in libraries. Another good book we've read is <u>Big Chickens Fly the Coop</u> by Leslie Helakoski and illustrated by Henry Cole. This one is in print and pretty easy to find. We picked up our copy at the last Scholastic book sale for $2.50 at Ara's elementary school. The girls love all things chickens and these books are filling them with excitement and inspiration!</span></span>Gaia Garden Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06869040675077315877noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8734862939288552015.post-71633129502829126592011-02-02T17:49:00.000-08:002011-03-08T19:12:58.908-08:00Ara Wants Backyard Chickens!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWowWpwLq4TNcqKwwSiVmMx-poko62kkE1sRsVZ_Tyx6qgp7MFXh-nfXEhyphenhyphen9u6oAC2DHANZlCOXHBS5AFDiwXE1dGQKFxncQInBqWoFXNso3FvItFURK7hwAu1QhrNyWSkJeL419zK-uo/s1600/poult.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWowWpwLq4TNcqKwwSiVmMx-poko62kkE1sRsVZ_Tyx6qgp7MFXh-nfXEhyphenhyphen9u6oAC2DHANZlCOXHBS5AFDiwXE1dGQKFxncQInBqWoFXNso3FvItFURK7hwAu1QhrNyWSkJeL419zK-uo/s320/poult.jpg" width="181" /></a></div><span class="style23" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This has been a constant and long-standing request: "Mama, I want baby chicks!"<br />
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Each time my daughter Ara asks for them, I cannot help but roll my eyes, thinking, "Fools rush in ...” The excitement at the idea of chicks crashes over her 5-and-a-half-year-old mind like an ocean wave. Her face lights up, she claps her hands excitedly and jumps up and down, imagining what it would be like to have the chicks.<br />
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Both she and her sister, Nora (2 1/2 years old), know it's chick time when we enter the post office in the spring: You can hear the young birds peeping in the mail room, waiting to be delivered to their homes. We've visited the baby chicks at the local Agway for a couple of years now. It's the only thing the girls want to see when we enter the store. They run quickly to the back of the store and beg for me to pick the peeping chicks up so they can take a look. I’ve stood strong and waited for more than a year, and Ara’s still pining for backyard chickens. Nora is pleased no matter what, but she is starting to want whatever her sister wants. Nora’s unconditionally willing to support her big sister's cause.<br />
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We took a field trip to our neighbor’s <a href="http://www.alwayssomethinfarm.com/">farm</a> last summer and all Ara wanted to do was hold the poults (baby turkeys), as pictured above.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-khFc5fCliM1awfZkEJFy_zmRiytLDVTGzVGXhCpcghlCGrY92E5FEnnZ8WVzihgid6Rc6bxpc8-ZcCXV-pRlrG_jL6NtQ3FdwWNsX1X5YdIDEnO8FzS-Eml9qLVp8RHkUhd6-zoViNhx/s1600/DSC04061.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-khFc5fCliM1awfZkEJFy_zmRiytLDVTGzVGXhCpcghlCGrY92E5FEnnZ8WVzihgid6Rc6bxpc8-ZcCXV-pRlrG_jL6NtQ3FdwWNsX1X5YdIDEnO8FzS-Eml9qLVp8RHkUhd6-zoViNhx/s320/DSC04061.JPG" width="240" /></a>She intently checked out all the chicken coops as Derek and I inspected, too. Both of us were trying to get an idea for a coop that would work in our backyard. Our neighbors kindly offered to loan us an incubator so we could show the girls the entire process of raising chicks when spring rolls around.<br />
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It's obvious this is not just a momentary wish, but something Ara honestly wants. I'm hoping this will be an opportunity for her and her sister to learn more about responsibility and caring for another animal besides our cats, who couldn't care less about the girls most of the time. I'm a teacher at heart and love the idea of opening another awesome part of the world up to my girls. This indeed is a wonderful opportunity full of teachable moments. As well, we'll all enjoy the fresh eggs in the fridge. I'll also enjoy the chicken manure which, once aged, is wonderful for the garden. I'm an avid gardener and love growing veggies, perennial flowers, fruit-bearing trees and bushes with the entire family. It will be pretty neat having the hens around!<br />
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We've decided we want no more than four hens and two would even be fine for us. I've purchased some books on building coops, so our next step is to pick one that's right for us.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKP-ADOz_dmYWKXRONXBc-bI_m-thoha04BVd_FLddGQrs-gqdOSnfsqeY9Wif6bvwuaL5fUqeToST_5JTBoNCMTpfnSpMcVvYRpAMqKs876fMS-kZ4gFqHQ_GvCxy3_FdfwdNDtJTn1t_/s1600/DSC04051.JPG" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKP-ADOz_dmYWKXRONXBc-bI_m-thoha04BVd_FLddGQrs-gqdOSnfsqeY9Wif6bvwuaL5fUqeToST_5JTBoNCMTpfnSpMcVvYRpAMqKs876fMS-kZ4gFqHQ_GvCxy3_FdfwdNDtJTn1t_/s320/DSC04051.JPG" width="320" /></a>So for our next blog entry, the reading and planning begins for the coop! It is my intent to blog about our journey into "hendom" at least twice a month as we prepare for chickens in our backyard. I'll share the books we use and do my best to explain the highs and lows of raising backyard chickens. We live in rural Pennsylvania on almost four acres of land. So, join us on our journey into hendom!</span>Gaia Garden Girlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06869040675077315877noreply@blogger.com2