fuzzi's "Gardens and Chickens...and Goats? Oh My!" Journal and More Thread

[fuzzi]

Had to remove this from the rubber tub, and add fresh water.

Caleb

One of my ponds, waterfall is below the litter bucket filter.

 

[fuzzi]

And one more task is now off the list. DS shoveled the entire driveway, I did "clean up" behind him, then cleared in front of the Honda.

Road isn't plowed, it has never been plowed in the twenty years I've lived here.

Eventually it melts.

Tomorrow I'll clean off my SUV.

 

[fuzzi]

Rahab, broody extraordinaire, will be 3 years old in a few weeks.

On the left is Jacob, with some of the hens, and that's Joanna on the right. She's the chatty one.

Water warming in the sunshine.

One of the Sussex pullets in the middle box.

 

[SageHill]

Ohhhh - The Melt --- Messy.

 

[fuzzi]

The north side of the backyard gets a lot of sun, and with Caleb dragging his tie out cable around it has completely melted.

Yesterday

Today there is no snow left in the area.

But there's still packed snow and ice around the hoop coops. I was able to lower the tarp on Coop Deux, to allow more light and air.

I've added more straw inside to keep the ground a little drier.

The shade cloth on the first coop is still buried deep in snow, so I wasn't able to pin it back up. It's raining right now, hopefully that will help with the snow melt.

 

[fuzzi]

Update

Coop One flock

Coop Deux getting their first sip of the morning. That's a very perky Esther to the right.

Woo! Time to hardboil and pickle more.

Today the snow was mostly melted, so I was able to cut the string and raise the shade cloth on Coop One. Now the flock can see outside on the yard side.

This morning I had just finished providing water and topping off feeders in Coop One when I heard Zaccheus make purring noises. He stood by the nest boxes as one of the pullets (Claudia) entered a box to lay, and he continued his vocal encouragement.

No photo, sorry.

 

[fuzzi]

Here's the shade cloth back to its original position.

 

[drstratton]

Update

View attachment 125705Coop One flock

View attachment 125706
Coop Deux getting their first sip of the morning. That's a very perky Esther to the right.

Woo! Time to hardboil and pickle more.
View attachment 125707

Today the snow was mostly melted, so I was able to cut the string and raise the shade cloth on Coop One. Now the flock can see outside on the yard side.

This morning I had just finished providing water and topping off feeders in Coop One when I heard Zaccheus make purring noises. He stood by the nest boxes as one of the pullets (Claudia) entered a box to lay, and he continued his vocal encouragement.

No photo, sorry.

My hens think of me as their rooster. They squat when I put my hand towards them and if I go into their coop they come in and go right to the nesting boxes...

 

[fuzzi]

Pullets hatched July 2025

Claudia

Lois (left)

They're laying almost daily!

Sussex eggs are on the right.

I cooked 13 eggs, pickled 10, in beet brine:

Into the refrigerator it goes!

One of the Sussex hens is laying again.

The egg at the bottom is definitely not a pullet egg!

 

[fuzzi]

Wisp Update

Wisp is one of my semi-feral cats, spayed, comes to be fed, catches vermin, allows occasional petting. She is vocal, too.

She tangled with something...

Spoiler: Bloody

There was blood spattered in her ear, and across her side. At first I thought dog, but she's pretty dog savvy. Coyote, maybe?

But I got a better, closer look, and I think she was shot at.

She didn't want to be touched, so I wasn't going to be able to clean the wound. It bled a lot, so I hope it cleansed itself.

Resting on my turnips, under heavy plastic, so out of the wind.

She worried me some last night, seemed "out of it".

But this morning she was waiting on the steps, expecting food.

This looks like a bullet furrow.

But since she seems to be acting more like her usual self, I'm hoping she improves, healing completely.