Chicken Stalking

All chicken owners know the anticipation of the first egg. As time grows closer for  hens to lay, we get the nest boxes ready, we put in "false" eggs to encourage laying, we push oyster shell for great egg shell strength. We continuously count back to when the chickens were hatched. But when it all said and done, it simply comes down to waiting...and waiting. Just when you think your have a bunch of infertile hens, an egg comes. Our first egg arrived on January 25-------------------->

I could not believe it! I went out to feed and water our ladies, and just be some chance I happened to look in our nest box. (See above regarding my thought of infertile hens) There next to a plastic Easter egg was a smaller "twin." At first I thought my mind was playing tricks on me. Then I thought I was just seeing double due to the fact that it was so cold and my eyes were watering. Upon wiping my eyes, and sticking my head deeper into the coop, it was in fact our first egg. Quickly I scooped it up and ran yelling my husband name into the house. Poor guy thought something was really amiss! Our egg, a sage green, cracked from freezing, but our egg. Unfortunately, the children had already left for school and missed out on this. But that was alright, I have been the major chicken keeper and was able to bask in miracle of this gift. Then my hubby asked, "Well who do you think laid it?" Huh? I did not know. So I took a scientific stance and began my investigation.

The process of elimination:

We have five chickens. Two of them grew into beautiful young men, so they went out to live at my friend's farm. We did replace the men with two girls that were hatched during the same time. So I started with obvious what type of bird/color of egg.

Thyme: Barred Rock=Brown egg
Mrs. Babcock: Rhode Island Red=Brown egg
Miss Prissy Fluffinbottom: White Leghorn=White egg (she is a new lady)
Luna: Marans/Ameraucana mix= Colored egg
Ebbie Loo Who: Marans/Ameraucana mix= Colored egg.(our other new lady.)

Since the first three ladies will not lay colored eggs, they were eliminated as the layer. Leaving only Luna and Ebbie. Honestly I thought Ebbie laid the first egg because there was one of her fluffs on the egg. But as I thought more, I was not sure.

Immediately I Googled "how to tell which chicken is laying?" No luck. So I went to my fellow contributing bloggers and friends at Farm Chit Chat. They should know, or at least give me some advice.  Here is what they said:

1. Stalk them and see who is in the nest box.
2. Put food coloring or Blue Kote on around their vent.
3. Put lipstick around the vent.

Needless to say, we had great laughs regarding #2 and #3. My neighbors already think I am nuts having chickens in the city, what would they think if I am out there "violating" my chicken with lipstick! So I opted for #1!

Let the Stalking Begin!

I figured out a round about time that the said "egg layer" was giving me her egg just by the average time I found the first 3 eggs and when I go out to feed/water. That gave me from 7:15 a.m to 9 a.m. I was determined to figure this out.

 Oh, did I mention it is Winter? Oh, and that I live in Northwest Ohio? If you have been following our nation's weather, it has been very, very cold here. I was not looking forward to being out in the cold, but I was on a mission.


Stalking Day!

Early Morning destination, The Coop!

Here I am! Bed head, make-up smeared, and puffy eyes! Sorry for the scary picture, but it was 7:15 a.m and I literally jumped out of bed, threw on my coat, and scarf. I realized later that I had my Pajama pants on backwards and inside out to boot! Yeah, I am hot!

I proceeded to slowly walk out to the coop. Trying to be a quiet as possible. That was not happening! Even though our dog Willow is good with the chickens, she does not like it when "Mom" spends anytime near them with out her. Let the whining, barking, and jumping on the backdoor commence. That put a wrench in the whole using my stealth Ninja skills to stalk with! Grrr!

After getting Willow relaxed with a bowl full of food, it was now 7:45 a.m. and every second counts when you have a mission such as mine. When I did get to the coop, the ladies knew I was coming and were all at the door to be let out. No egg, no one in the nest box. They wanted FOOD! Grabbing my gloves I went about the chore. I cracked the main door on the coop to be able to sneak peeks at the nest box. I went back into the house because I was starting to get cold. Time was 8 a.m. I stood at my back window watching and warming up. Then I saw Luna go up into the coop. She was then followed by Ebbie. Really? both colored egg layers in the coop? *Sigh* so much for warming up! Out again I go. I stood outside of the coop for another 20 minutes. During this time Luna kept coming up to the main door squawking at me and Ebbie sat on the roost. This was not proving to be easy. About 8:45 Luna entered the nest box. Finally! I watched her move around, peck at the straw and she finally laid down. Grabbing my camera out of my pocket I figured an egg would be arriving an minute, I fully opened the coop door. Luna stopped her fussing and stared at me, as if to say "Do you mind Lady?" Snapping off a few pics, she gave me a harder stare and a low growl,  I told her "I know, I know, I don't like to be bothered when I am ovulating either." But somewhere in my mind I was not convinced that she was going to lay. Why? I don't know, maybe it had something to do with all these months of waiting, maybe the scientific part of my brain needed a conclusion, but I was determined to see this egg laying up close and live.

My determination lasted to 9:15 a.m. Chickens like privacy when laying, I get that, but I think it had more to do with the fact I could no longer feel my fingers and toes. That was all I needed was to get frostbite and have to explain to the doctor how, "Well, Doctor, I was stalking my chicken you see..." So off to a hot shower I went. The whole time I was in the shower, I knew, just knew Luna would lay that egg while I was in there. Guess what? She did, and has continued to gives us her beautiful green eggs daily.

Do you mind????

Conclusion

My chicken stalking days are over. I have come to the acceptance that the other ladies will lay. I have them set up for success. Kind of like in the movie Field of Dreams, "If you build it they will come." Our ladies have been given a place to be happy and productive layers. My advice for first time chicken owners waiting for their first egg, it will happen, when it will happen, regardless. Remember the old saying? "A Watched Pot Never Boils."Learn from my insanity, but if you too want to be a chicken stalker, may I suggest doing it when the weather is warmer.

Good luck!

Bread Making + Me= EPIC FAIL!

 Today starts the day when we ladies at Farm Chick Chit Chat kick off the "Bread Bake Off." My first initial thought was "o.k, I don't like to bake, but I can do this." I love to cook. Give me some spices, and an apron and I can whip any culinary delight. I got this covered. Or so I thought. My bread is now sitting in our compost bin. Our chickens would not even touch it. Yes, it was pretty awful!

First let me say that I understand the scientific process of bread making. I get the whole idea behind it. The interaction of the yeast, the rising, the kneading etc. Yet I have never made bread. Granted I have made banana bread, pumpkin bread, and  zucchini bread, homemade pretzels, and even homemade cinnamon rolls.  The cinnamon rolls and pretzels required the same "thinking" of making a loaf of bread, right?

So the what the ding dong heck did I do wrong? I have a few ideas:

1. I got too big for my britches. After reading recipes, upon recipes, making bread seemed pretty easy. Ha!
2. I wanted to make a "healthy" bread and used Spelt flour. I never worked with it before. I mean come on it is wheat.
3. I was doing five million things at the time it rose, and I punched it down like the recipe said. But I admit, I let it rise again and again, before I did anything with it. 
4. I think I over kneaded it? Is that possible? It has to be.
5. My oven is psycho. If it says bake something at 375 degrees, I have to set my temperature at 300 degrees. Because of this I have to "watch" things in the oven very carefully. Oh, did I mention I was doing five million things at once?
6. And maybe,  just maybe I am not meant to make bread? Is there some unforeseen force out there that knows this and does not want me to expel my energy in this type of venue? 

So, until I master this art of bread making, which was not going to happen by today, I was not going to let my fellow Farm Chicks down. I was going to contribute something doggone it!

Here it is: 

 Can you just smell it? The most delicious tasting, healthy alternative. Yep! It is "Aunt Millie's 100% Whole Wheat and Whole Grain bread." She makes the best store bought bread ever!*sigh*

Do not worry, I am not "done" attacking this bread adventure. Even if I have to purchase a new oven or a bread machine, It is On! I will overcome!

                            ~Heather 

Illusions of Grandeur: My backyard

It has been unseasonably warm for January the last few day here in Northwest Ohio. Now will it stay this way? Heck no! But it is just enough to taunt me. It does not help that a lot of people I know are talking about seed catalogs and planting ideas. Now that the holidays are over, it is time to start shifting gears and planning my attack for the garden/yard.

Oh, the feel and smell of the earth! The beauty of a seed growing into something that sustains you. Sitting in the garden at twilight and appreciating the beauty around you. Ah! Relaxing.

 POP! there goes the dream, it was all an illusion! Instead you see this...

The WAR ZONE!!!!!!

     The above pictures are my backyard.  Small, muddy, and in need of more TLC! Most of my grass is crab grass, so when that dies all that is left is mud. I blame the majority of this mud hole on the dog. She for some reason just loves to dig when it is winter, spreading dirt every which way. This fall I raked the straw from the coop clean outs in the the most muddy areas. Now all I can think of is the movie "Ten Commandments" you know the scene when Moses is down in the slave pits churning mud as other slaves are adding straw to make bricks. Hmmm...


 
The houses in our neighborhood are close together. So close you could hand a cup of sugar out your window to your neighbor's without leaving the house. Alright, I may be exaggerating, but you get the point. Pretty much everyone on my side of the street have shared driveways. Lucky for us we love our neighbors so it is not too bad.

I am not garden handicapped. I get "gardening." Each year I attempt to create the perfect haven. We put in the the patio, we did a koi pond, I did an herb garden. But at the end of the summer, I realize I did not achieve my desired goal. But this year will be different! I have been saved so to speak.

My saving grace came in the form of Chris McLaughlin's book "Vertical Vegetable Gardening." This book is a must have! I was able to get a copy of this book before it hit the shelves. Chris and I met through the blog Farm Chick Chit Chat. We both are contributors for this blog. She asked us to read this and write a review for her. I read this book in two hours. My head was spinning at all the ideas that I will be incorporating into my small yard this year. One of my favorite aspects Chris uses is
re-purposing items. I love to reuse items.

Of course my dream is to move out of the city, I would even take just an acre. But for now my plans are coming together for the spring. Seed catalogs are on their way, my green thumb is itching to play in the dirt, and as the saying goes  "Bloom where you are planted!"

A "new" New Year's Eve Munchie.

 With New Year's Eve just a day away, my family is already asking what "goodies" we are going to munch on for the big night.  Ugh, I do not know about you but I am still trying to recover from all the eating that we did from Christmas! When I suggested we do not have anything, we almost had mutiny here in the ol' homestead. The tradition of each person picking out a munchie for the big night runs strong in this clan, I was out numbered!

Since I am trying to whittle down to the "Goddess I Truly Am Inside" I came up with a NOT as fattening goodie for me. I found that I had some mini sweet peppers back in the fridge. (I like to say I buy these for the health benefit, well I sort of do, but I am a sucker for anything little and cute.) Sorry, I digress...

With my stock of what not in the refrigerator, a bit of creativity, "Savory Stuffed Sweet Peppers" came to life!

Savory Stuffed Sweet Peppers

Believe me they are just as yummy as they look! The best part is these are ALL mine! (Insert Evil laugh here!) My kids and hubby are not pepper fans. Here is how I made them:

Ingredients:

*For a serving of Eight Peppers

8 Mini Sweet Peppers

 4 oz. Low-fat cream cheese

1/4 cup of low-fat cheddar cheese

2 slices of bacon, crumbled

1 tsp. of onion powder

1 tsp. of garlic powder

1 tsp. of Oregano

Black Pepper to taste

Clean and hollow out the peppers, removing the steam and seeds. In a separate bowl, mix all the other ingredients together.  Spoon the mixture into the peppers to fill them. Now for the tricky part. Baking them standing up so your mixture does not spill out of the pepper. I have seen baking pans that are made for Jalapeno Poppers. They have small holes to allow the pepper to stand up. I do not have one, so I just used a mini muffin pan to keep them in their up right position.I also use this idea when I make Stuffed Mushrooms. I am all about using what you already have in your kitchen. Bake them at 325 degrees for about 15 minutes or until the pepper is soft. I put sprigs of Marjoram on the tops for an added sweet taste.

Enjoy!

 

Family Favorite Holiday Cookies

Nut Jammers

1 cup of Butter

8 oz. package of cream cheese

2 c. sifted flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

2 cups chopped walnuts

1 12 oz. jar of apricot or peach jam

2 tsp. granulated sugar

1/2 cup of powdered sugar

Bake for 20 minutes at 375 degrees.

Oh, the light, fluffy, nutty goodness! Here is how to make them:

Cream butter and cream cheese. Sift flour and baking powder and then add to the creamed mixture. Chill dough for 2 to 3 hours. Mix nuts, jam and granulated sugar. Divide dough into 4 equal parts, work with half of the dough at a time. Roll dough very thing on a floured surface. Cut dough into 2 inch squares. Spoon in nut mixture in the center of the square. Fold on side of the dough square over nut mixture to create a pocket. Use fork to seal. (See picture above) Bake 20 minutes. Remove cookies from cookie sheet to cool. Sprinkle powdered sugar over them. 

Here is another Family Favorite! Especially for my Dad. This is his Mom's recipe!

Grandma Cutcher's Molasses Cookies

2 cups sugar

2 sticks of margarine

2 large eggs

1 12 ounce bottle of molasses

1/2 cup of water

3 tsp. of baking soda

2 tsp of Cinnamon

1/2 tsp of Ginger

1 tsp. salt

6 cups of flour

Cream the first three ingredients together. Add Molasses and water to the creamed mixture, mixing well. In a separate bowl, combine the baking soda, Cinnamon, Ginger, Salt and flour. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the creamed ingredients. Make sure you mix together well. Batter will be sticky, so put into the refrigerator for about 2 hours to chill. Roll dough onto a well floured surface to about 1/2 inches thick. Cut out with a round cookie cutter or use other fun shapes. Bake at 350 degrees for 13-15 minutes. I look at the bottom of the cookie to see if they are done. The bottom should be just lightly brown. Remove from sheet immediately to cool. Frost with your favorite icing

Cluck, Cough, Cluck, Cough! A Chicken Cold.

** My Disclaimer: Before I even begin, I am not a vet and do not claim to be. My experience with what I am going to talk about comes from first hand, a lot of reading, and my own vet's instruction.

When we decide to venture into the world of "chickens" we educated ourselves, talked to other chicken owners, and read countless books and blogs. Having chickens seemed like a fairly easy thing to do, and truly it is. However, we were not prepared for dealing with illness. The illness we have encountered is one that many small backyard flock owners deal with. Coryza.

Coryza? Maybe you know it by Roup, or you have never heard of it before. If you have not, then I am glad. Basically, the word Coryza means "cold." In chickens, Coryza is one the most highly contagious respiratory illnesses. Just like humans, a cold in chickens spreads easily and will infect your whole flock. If you are like me, you will Google this and freak out, don't! You will end up crying thinking you will have to cull your flock. Dealing with Coryza is not fun or cheap but it can be managed in small flocks. Remember I said "small flocks." Granted having a Coryza outbreak in large commercial flocks would not be good and many in this situation do have to cull their birds. Depending on your situation, you may even cull your birds. I would not judge anyone for this. For us, this was not an option. We are lucky to have a avian vet locally that "knows her chickens." But I digress...

Let's look at the Nuts and Bolts of this Coryza thing, alright? The best place to turn to when you have a sick chicken is a reputable source for chickens and their illnesses. My first mistake was to go to a "forum" and read and ask questions. Some of the information was helpful, some scarey, and some according to my vet was way off! So, proceed with caution.

So how do you know if your sick chicks have Coryza? There are common symptoms. For us some of the symptoms did not show right away. We actually thought our chicken  had just got her eye pecked and kept irritating it by rubbing it with her foot and her wing. It was not until another of our girls started with watery eyes that we knew we had an issue.

Our Luna at her worst.

Common Symptoms of Coryza

• Watery and bubbly eyes
• Swollen eyes and nasal areas. Especially around and behind the eye.
• Coughing
• Nasal discharge that smells like a dead animal. Believe me once you smell this you will always know the smell! That was the number one give away for our vet.
• Lack of eating/drinking
• Lack of energy
• Death may result if not treated or in birds that have a low immunity or are young.

 Causes/Treatment

Coryza is caused by a bacteria. The Merek Veterinary Manual does a good job explaining the type of bacteria if you are interested.   Because it is caused by a bacteria, antibiotics are the only way to treat Coryza. Common antibiotics used are Erythomycin and Oxytetracycline based. Sulfamides can also be used.  Despite our efforts to treat this herbally, we had to use medicine. However, we still gave the girls their Apple Cider Vinegar, greens, garlic and other immune giving treats to them. I believe this did help when combining the medicine. Our vet also suggested that we utilize a vaporizer or put them in our bathroom and steam them to help loosen up the congestion. I used VETRX which is to me Vicks for chickens! Because Coryza is highly infectious, we had to separate the sick chickens from the rest of the flock for 21 days while they were being treated. Coryza does not penetrate egg. However, you must throw out the eggs while the chickens are being treated with antibiotics. We did not have to worry about it because our girls were still young.

Prevention

Oh, the things you learn! The best way to avoid Coryza or any other disease in your flock is BIOSECURITY! Maintaining an "All in/All out" practice is important. When getting new birds, isolate them for a good period of time before introducing them to the rest of the flock. Make sure that you do not cross contaminate anything between flocks. Symptoms for our chicken took about 2 1/2 weeks to even show.

Coryza even though we successfully treated our girls is not anything I would wish upon anyone. The expense, the special accommodations, and not to mention the emotional aspect. I was a emotional wreck! I was such a worried Chicken Mom, just like I worry over my own human children when they are sick. Not to mention what a hassle it was to give antibiotics orally to chickens. Luckily, they were only about a pound, I could not imagine doing it now with 5 month old big girls! It gave wrestling a whole new meaning! But we do what we do, and continue to love our chickens!

*Update* On Willow vs. The Chickens: We have success!

 Let there be peace on earth, or at least in our backyard!
  
We knew that having a "bird dog" and getting chickens may be a conflict of interest. However, we have success! I joke that it is a holiday miracle, but after three months of a LOT of getting to know you, training, and positive reinforcement, our Weimaraner Willow no longer wants to eat the Ladies of the yard! However she still becomes a hot barking jealous mess any time I go out with ladies and do not include her, but I will take it!

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"What do you mean you are going to bed?