Tess has grown in confidence over the last week or so and has changed from a hen that was petrified of the girls around her (except her best friend Gertrude!) to one that is fairly comfortable with the rest of the flock! She's still living in the coop with a…
Tess has decided that she's outgrown the broody coop and now wants to live in the bigger coop with some of the other girls! Over the last few days she's becoming more confident and not as scared of the other hens so we're going to try her in the coop…
All of the hens we have are special but sometimes there's a hen - or two or three - that melt your heart even more. We re-homed Gertrude and Tess in November 2017 and of the 10 'Roses' these two hens were ill from the start and took a few…
The girls haven't been too impressed with the wet, cold, windy and wintry weather recently, but yesterday brought some sunshine and a little bit of warmth that meant lots of dust and sun bathing. This was particularly enjoyable for The Marys, re-homed in early January, who had only known winter…
Pip is growing a new coat, but she's taking rather a long time choosing her attire! Hens moult in the autumn and for the last few weeks Pip has looked a sorry state as her fine covering of feathers have literally fallen out and she's become a shadow of her…
The girls woke up to a covering of snow this morning and despite never having seen this before, the hens in the main coop didn't let it bother them, they ran out into it and started pecking at it! The group in the shed though were a bit more wary…
Little Sapphire's not quite getting it. Every night her 40+ flock mates find their way to the coop and their sleeping places but nature is telling Sapphire to go as high as she can, and the 'attic' (the space under the roof of the run) is proving quite attractive for…
Every hen is unique. They have their own personalities and traits and we're reminded of this every day. Whether it's Willow standing stationary watching on whilst every other hen goes mad for strawberries, Rose preferring her own company to that of other hens, or Lily, who has now discovered the…
Harebell has been with us for 2 months now and the transformation that she's made in that time is amazing. Not only has she grown a beautiful set of feathers, but mentally, she has gone from a petrified hen that insisted on sleeping on her own in a cardboard box…
Rose is very ill and currently battling inflamed tissue in her abdomen. She's been slowly declining this week despite being on antibiotics and steroids to try and reduce the inflammation, so as a little treat for her we took her on a picnic today! Rose has never been on a…
Little Lilac's been broody for the last few weeks, but after a spell in the barn without a nest, she's back with the main group and thankfully not showing any interest in sitting on eggs. It's unusual for an ex-commercial hen to go broody but we've had 2 this year…
The Petunias, our latest group of hens, spent today and yesterday learning that grass is a good thing to eat as well as walk, on as well as a few hours of sunbathing and relaxing! These hens are still sleeping in the barn until they're strong enough to be integrated,…
I've found a new use for my lap - a nesting area for Lily! The last 2 days, she's jumped up onto my knee, snuggled down, and laid an egg on my lap! As yesterday was the first morning Lily had woken up outside we thought she was a bit…
Today was the day we decided to integrate the recent arrivals and the hens that had been poorly but had now recovered enough to be part of the main flock. Integrating 2 groups is bad enough, but we wanted a single flock and to have all the hens outside together,…
The Rubys are 8 weeks old today and we thought it was time for them to venture outside! The chicks are not 'chicks' anymore, but more pullets, though the definition is loose, and given a pullet is a hen less than 1 year old, and because they're not 'chicks' anymore,…
Ruby was behaving strangely last night, lots of squawking and gurgling, and the same happened this morning. She spent a lot of time in the broody coop, poking around the corners and crouching on the ground - a little while later we found an egg in the middle of the…
The Rubies continue to grow and it's hard to believe that they're only 4 weeks old, they're so much bigger than they were when they arrived, yet still tuck in under Ruby each night to sleep. I'm finding I'm filling the feeder more often, which is to be expected, and…
I say this on every update on the chicks, but they're growing and they're now around the size of a blackbird! Their feathers are changing to the thicker, darker Welsummer coat and they're starting to show behaviours more, such as preening and dustbathing in the litter in their run. We…
