Hello February, Good-bye Ethel...

A lovely, quiet weekend on the farm made for a great beginning to February. Saturday was a day for butchering two of the Turken (aka "Naked Neck") hens that had approached the ripe old age of two years.  But really I was in a hurry to butcher them, because they are constantly eating everyone else's eggs, and because they are just plain mean to the other chickens.  Roosters included.

So the deed was done, and on Sunday I made a nice dinner of roasted chicken with a side of au gratin potato. The butchering chore was preceded that morning by a breakfast of French toast sprinkled with summer blackberries pulled from the freezer.  I even tossed a chunk of butter on top.

Mmmmm.... French Toast

The potatoes were easy; one potato-sliced thin, grated parmesan and heavy cream...

The dogs needed to get out and run, so I took a nice walk late afternoon to check fence lines and have a look around. The creek back in the woods was frozen, but I could still hear the little waterfall underneath the ice and snow. The dogs very much enjoyed the walk and slept well in the warm kitchen the rest of the day. Although, they seem to be confused as to which bed is in tended for which dog.



Louie on the hunt...

Checking the Fence



There's a waterfall under there somewhere...

Later in the evening when it was time to bring the horses in for the night and feed everyone else, I ended up needing Louie's assistance to help catch the turkey hen that escaped her pen.  She's done this three times now, so last night I clipped her wings. Hopefully this will put an end to that.  Her name is now "Lady Houdini..."

Limbo

Life on the farm feels madly stuck in a sort of "limbo" stage at the moment.  Everything is frozen. And still. And nearly lifeless.  I rode one of the horses all over the property last weekend to inspect everything and see what was new.  Not much.

In the garden, the garlic had poked their little heads through the soil at some point during this winter and the little green tips were frozen solid.  But I'm not concerned, the same thing happened last year and everything was fine come July. The only thing that appeared to show tiny signs of life were the blackberry bushes. They seem to be growing a little, like the buds on the trees.  But it could be my imagination.  Or just my lust to see something green and growing!

The goat is still waddling around looking like a small pregnant cow. The woodpile continues to shrink.  I'm worried about the goat because if she is actually pregnant and does go into labor please, please, please, don't let it be in the next ten days when the temperatures are in the low "teens" and dipping below zero during the nights.  Otherwise, I will have to bring her and any babies into the house.  No question there!



January 13, 2014

The sun sets today at 5:29 p.m. here in Northeast Ohio.  How I long for the month of May when things really start to green up and the sun sets at a more respectable time!

On another dismal note, I've discovered lately that one of my racehorses has come to despise chickens. He's bashed a few around now, but this latest outburst was downright savage! Not only did he crush this hen, but then proceeded to tear into her, toss her around a bit, and then finish her off by stomping her to death. Maybe the horse is suffering from cabin fever as well...

Birthday Buddies

Yesterday was my Birthday.  I turned 41!

I had to spend my big day without any human company for the evening becuase, well,  humans have to work and travel and do all that other human stuff.  So I seized the moment!  The day was perfect when I got home from work around 6:30 pm.  The sun was shining and it was 76 degrees outside.  I poured myself a little (okay, HUGE!) glass of cold Pinot Grigio, grabbed my camera, and headed outside to spend some quality time with the "gang".  They were loving the weather as much as I was.  And I'm sure I heard them whisper "Happy Birthday" to me in their own little ways...

This is "Nigel." He's a five year old Thoroughbred.  I hope he can run fast. Really fast.



 Next we have "Maggot," a 14year old Thoroughbred, and retired racehorse. (a.k.a. "Widow Maker")

And here's "Dottie."  She's a five year old Snowflake Appaloosa mare. She likes to buck.

"Louie" is a 3 year old Pitbull mix who I rescued from the city streets. He now has the responsibility of being the livestock gaurdian dog.  And stinking beyond belief. I wouldn't mess with him, woud you?

"BiBi" is my little girl.  She's a Toy Fox Terror.  I mean, "terrier."  She's three years old also.

Next in line is "Ezra," a ten week old Boer-Nubian cross.  I just got him a few weeks ago.  He has great lawn-mowing skills...

Here is one of the new chicks that hatched on March 3rd.  I think it's a hen, but I'm not really sure yet.  I'm pretty sure the Naked neck rooster was the daddy though!

"Mr. Fugly" is the Naked Neck Rooster.  He's odd. And he does innapropriate things to the two ducks. That's all I can say.

Fugly out...

Well, the broody hen finally hatched a little bobble-head. It’s a “Turken,” also known as Transylvania Naked Neck chicken. I was hoping it would have been one of the fancy French rooster’s offspring, but alas, the hen had other plans. Now she's left sitting on one egg and a golfball; so I have a 50% chance of hatching a chicken or a golfer, right?


Another hen went broody as well over the weekend. Any ideas on what to do when this happens? Why these hens think it’s a wise idea to have a bunch of little chicks running around in the dead of winter is beyond me.

I keep pondering how, or if I should, do anything special to prepare for hurricane “Sandy,” other than make sure all the animals are comfortable. It has been raining constantly up here since Saturday (no surprise), much to the delight of the ducks, but not the rest of the animals. It delayed me in putting more hay up over the weekend. I still need to get 150 bales in my loft for the winter. I’m sure many of us are preparing for the storm as I write this. All summer everyone prayed for rain. Well folks, here it comes. Be safe.



10/26/12     Black Australorp / Turken Chick