Chicken Chronicles

[Addie]

LOL princess and taxy...

Happy to hear Gladys is OK. I love these chronicles.

Me too. Chicken Chronicles is my favorite thread. If the house was on fire and there was something posted here that I hadn't read, that cute fireman would have to wait to rescue me.

 

[Addie]

At first, I thought she was dead...I was so glad to hear her peep and flutter her wings when I picked her up! She got to come in the house to eat and drink before going back out to her flock mates. We'll see how she's doing in the a.m. I've been out three times to check on her...they are getting a bit annoyed with me...they don't appreciate having a flashlight shined in their faces when they are sleeping.

But that is what all good mothers do at night. Check on their babies and make sure they are all tucked in.

 

[CWS4322]

Miss Betty White has graduated to "Broody Hen" status. Of three eggs she's been sitting on, one hatched this morning and the other two are extremely warm and peeping. I cleaned (sanitized) a dog crate to move Miss Betty White and baby (babies). Not that I wanted more chicks at this time of year, but great to have another Broody Hen who doesn't need to watch the video.

 

[Addie]

Miss Betty White has graduated to "Broody Hen" status. Of three eggs she's been sitting on, one hatched this morning and the other two are extremely warm and peeping. I cleaned (sanitized) a dog crate to move Miss Betty White and baby (babies). Not that I wanted more chicks at this time of year, but great to have another Broody Hen who doesn't need to watch the video.

Your family is certainly growing very fast.

 

[CWS4322]

The poor little chick was soaking wet--Miss Betty White had tipped over the water, so I brought the baby in the house, turned on the oven to 110F, turned it off, opened the door and let it cool down to 95. While the oven was cooling, I used my hair dryer on low to dry the baby. I then I put a bath towel in my spring form pan (happened to be in the dish rack) and put the baby in the oven until it started to move around (peeping for it's momma). It hadn't been out of the shell very long. Once warm and dry, I took the baby out to Momma. I then loaded Momma, baby, unhatched egg (miscounted--there is only one other egg) into the car to take them out to the farm. I also brought Myrtle. Why not? She rode on the dashboard. At the gas station, the person next to me took a picture of Myrtle!

Once at the farm, Myrtle explored everything. She's perched in her old spot in the barn. It has been two summers since Myrtle was at the farm. Who said chickens are stupid? She obviously remembers the farm and the barn. She was in the garden with us (eating pea shoots) and found the compost pile...ate a couple of small tomatoes off the vines. I want to get her used to going in the car because I've talked with a local nursing home about bringing her to visit the residents as a therapy chicken...I live outside a small village in the middle of farm country. I figure a lot of the residents grew up with chickens...

 

[Addie]

The poor little chick was soaking wet--Miss Betty White had tipped over the water, so I brought the baby in the house, turned on the oven to 110F, turned it off, opened the door and let it cool down to 95. While the oven was cooling, I used my hair dryer on low to dry the baby. I then I put a bath towel in my spring form pan (happened to be in the dish rack) and put the baby in the oven until it started to move around (peeping for it's momma). It hadn't been out of the shell very long. Once warm and dry, I took the baby out to Momma. I then loaded Momma, baby, unhatched egg (miscounted--there is only one other egg) into the car to take them out to the farm. I also brought Myrtle. Why not? She rode on the dashboard. At the gas station, the person next to me took a picture of Myrtle!

Once at the farm, Myrtle explored everything. She's perched in her old spot in the barn. It has been two summers since Myrtle was at the farm. Who said chickens are stupid? She obviously remembers the farm and the barn. She was in the garden with us (eating pea shoots) and found the compost pile...ate a couple of small tomatoes off the vines. I want to get her used to going in the car because I've talked with a local nursing home about bringing her to visit the residents as a therapy chicken...I live outside a small village in the middle of farm country. I figure a lot of the residents grew up with chickens...

They do know that animals having a calming effect on the elderly. I think Myrtle would thrive along with the residents with all the attention.

 

[CWS4322]

Well, the local Department of Health would have to approve Myrtle visiting...concern about diseases transmitted by birds. I have several friends who are veterinarians, so could get her checked out, etc. I don't fancy bathing her every week....and, I must get that flight suit ordered. But, there are therapy chickens:

Therapy chicken cheers nursing home residents - Ageing Mind Initiative - The University of Queensland, Australia

Chicken Therapy: A New Way to Help Alzheimer's Patients | Care2 Causes

My mom suffers from vascular dementia. No one wants to use the "A" word. When I call her or visit, I tell her stories about Myrtle and the other chickens. Her mom (my grandma) kept RIR chickens. My mom loves to hear about the chickens. If it weren't for the International border, I'd bring Myrtle with me.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Have Chicken, Will Travel???

 

[Aunt Bea]

Have Chicken, Will Travel???

Road trip!

Car Animated GIF

 

[Mad Cook]

Road trip!

Car Animated GIF

A driver with a death wish or a desire to see the inside of a police station.

 

[Aunt Bea]

A driver with a death wish or a desire to see the inside of a police station.

I thought the chicken was doing a fine job!

 

[PrincessFiona60]

 

[CWS4322]

Road trip!

Car Animated GIF

Aunt Bea, don't be giving Myrtle any ideas. I'm not going to show her that video. I was thinking of rigging up a "basket" on the passenger seat so she could sit in that and see out instead of on the dashboard.

 

[CWS4322]

Little did I know when I started this thread it go on for 37 pages (more still to come)!.

Update on Miss Betty White and baby. There will be no more chicks. The mother hen communicates with the embryo while it is in the egg. Well, she knew the other egg was not going to hatch. She exploded it. Oh my goodness, the smell of rotten egg! Ugh. Once exploded, she started to eat, and eat, and eat and drink, and drink, and drink. Baby has learned to do both. So far, Miss Betty White is showing the signs of being a natural momma hen. The baby is so cute. I must take some pics for you guys.

 

[CWS4322]

Little did I know when I started this thread it go on for 37 pages (more still to come)!.

Update on Miss Betty White and baby. There will be no more chicks. The mother hen communicates with the embryo while it is in the egg. Well, she knew the other egg was not going to hatch. She exploded it. Oh my goodness, the smell of rotten egg! Ugh. Once exploded, she started to eat, and eat, and eat and drink, and drink, and drink. Baby has learned to do both. So far, Miss Betty White is showing the signs of being a natural momma hen. The baby is so cute. I must take some pics for you guys.

PS--for those who don't want to start to read at the beginning of this thread, I got laying hens because eggs are one of my favourite sources of protein and I was appalled by the conditions in which laying hens were kept. I had the "opportunity" to tour a battery farm when I was doing Saint Bernard rescue (no, the people did not get one of our dogs--I actually brought my Saint, not the one up for adoption, just so I could get inside the battery farm). After that visit, I couldn't bring myself to support the battery chicken farm industry. I like that my hens get to go outside, chase bugs, take dirt baths, forage, have names, and that Myrtle is so gregarious. I like that they names and that they know their names. They have a good life. They die natural deaths and I bury them. I don't eat them. I can't raise cattle, sheep, or pigs, but at least I can control the environment from which I get my eggs. My hens are an important part of my life. They've helped me have a purpose--a good thing to have when you suffer from chronic depression. For those who think this thread is silly, I challenge you to get some laying hens.

 

[Aunt Bea]

Aunt Bea, don't be giving Myrtle any ideas. I'm not going to show her that video. I was thinking of rigging up a "basket" on the passenger seat so she could sit in that and see out instead of on the dashboard.

Don't worry!

Myrtle can't get a license until she is 16.

Maybe she would be content with a few quick spins around the farm until she is old enough to hit the open road.

 

[Dawgluver]

Don't worry!

Myrtle can't get a license until she is 16.

Maybe she would be content with a few quick spins around the farm until she is old enough to hit the open road.

She can get her learner's permit at 14, but CWS will still need to be in the car with her.

 

[taxlady]

She's in Ontario. She can get a learner's permit at age 16. If it is like in Quebec, she can only get a full driver's license at age 18 or with a parent's signature.

 

[Dawgluver]

Ah. So no worries for a few years. Myrtle's only about 3 now. And I suspect her biological parents are long gone.

 

[Addie]

In answer to CWS's PS post, I would suggest that our new members take an afternoon and sit down starting with page one of the Chicken Chronicles. This has to be my favorite thread of this whole forum. When one got sick, we all waited to hear if that chick would be all right. How many times we waited to hear about the baby chick who came out of the shell with a bent leg. Would it straighten out on its own? Read the whole thread to find out. And what about Rocky the Riled Rooster? Would he ever let CWS go near one of HIS girls? So many adventures. So many mysteries. Which chicken kept trying to fly the coop?