We have been very busy here at the farm, for the last month or so. Since I can't remember the last post I made, and I am admittedly too lazy to look it up, I will recap here. We started out with with three pigs (two gilts and a boar) that were in pig (such a funny term for being pregnant!), due to farrow any day. We had six goats, all does, only two of which were in milk. A few heritage turkeys, eight ducks, and a small (25-30) flock of chickens. We have expanded. And not in our waistlines either.
That being said, back to the title. Why on earth is my living room a nursery? Well...
First we had our two gilts/sows farrow. Each had nine wiggly little piglets, and they shared the same paddock during the entire process. All was going well, with mama #2 sharing the job of milk bar for the first little piglets. We thought it was an awesome thing for them to be sharing the job of raising the little ones all together. At least until the second farrow which happened about three weeks later. Since Mama #2 was already nursing babies from Mama #1, she wasn't as focused on nursing her own offspring, or protecting them from the larger piglets. The younger ones ended up suffering s lot of cuts to the head, with some injuries down to the bone. They were also not thriving as well as they should have, since the older ones were pushing them out of the way. So we had to take action. After much mulling over, we decided to remove the smallest ones from their mama and raise them on bottles. It was a risky gambit, since it is generally advised to remove the sow from the piglets when they are weaned. They were also only a few days old, so had a severely diminished chance of survival.
We went in with a plan. We would sneak in after the morning feeding to surround the moms and older babies with a hog panel fence around their favorite feeding tree (a story for later). We would feed them to keep them all distracted, and hopefully swoop in and remove all the babies as fast as possible before the moms got cranky. If you have ever been around pigs, you know why we would want to be fast. For those of you who have never witnessed a cranky mama sow, imagine a pissed off Sherman tank racing towards you hell-bent on protecting its offspring. A sight to make anyone a little nervous to be sure.
For all the planning we did, the act of removing the piglets went remarkably smoothly. Moms were distracted by food, babies were swept into a Rubbermaid tub with hardly an incident, and we trooped off proud of ourselves for a job well done. The next dilemma was to make sure they were well fed and would survive the next few critical weeks of development. For that, we needed enough goat milk, the universal milk replacer for mammals.
We already had two does in milk, but the milk they were producing was not going to be enough. I did some price comparisons on artificial milk replacer (sow milk replacer as well as goat milk replacer), and found it would be FAR cheaper just to buy another doe in milk than to buy the artificial replacer. So the search ensued. We ended up finding one in our price range that was pregnant; the first one we were shown had a large lump in her udder that we were not prepared to try and treat. We drove her home, and she ended up birthing a buckling in the back of the truck in a parking lot. Not at all what we expected! Her udder was massively congested, and she wasn't letting the baby nurse, so we ended up having to remove him too so he would have a better chance of survival. At this point, we had a baby goat as well as nine little piggies in our living room.
Over the next few weeks, we realized that we would need more milk for all the pigs, as we wanted to supplement the older piglets so they would be more socialized as well as having a better diet. Milk-fed pork. Yum! The search began anew. As the story goes, the person we bought the pregnant doe from decided to divest himself of almost all his goats, so we went to pick up another. We bought the one he showed us, and he threw in her two kids for free. He also had another doe (the original one we looked at with the lump in her udder) he would sell us for just a little more, and he would throw in HER kids as well. Yikes! We went out to buy one goat, and we came back with SIX!!
In the end, we picked up ANOTHER doe (and her kid who turns out to be fairly wild) so we could have enough for ALL the piglets and ALL the kids as well. I am hoping to wean the goats within the next few weeks so we can either freeze milk for the piglets as they grow or to sell as Goat Shares.
We also picked up some Large Fowl Cochin chicks who are also currently calling an old TV box home in our living room. They are good for eggs and meat, and have little feathered feet. Squee! I will try to get some good photos of them eventually. No promises, though.
What do I want next? A milk cow. Really. I swear, my husband and my son could both almost fully exist off of just a raw milk diet if given the choice. While we do have a source for some raw cows milk, we really just need to save up our pennies or find someone to help invest in our little enterprise so we can have our own milk cow. I never thought I would see the day when I would hear myself say that! It is amazing what happens in such a short span of time, when different opportunities present themselves. Some Guinea hens or keets would be nice too. While I am dreaming out loud, 200+ private acres in the mountains with pasture and irrigation or riverfront for our own would be awesome too...
Just Saying....
Showing posts with label chickens. Show all posts
Showing posts with label chickens. Show all posts
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Making a Simple Bone Broth
One of the best parts of cooking a turkey, duck, or chicken is saving the bones and cooking it down into a broth. I love the rich flavor this homemade broth creates, and I try to make a lot and freeze it for use later. It makes a great base for beans in the crockpot, the most awesome gravy, and is good to use in any recipe that calls for broth. Broth that you make yourself is more nutrient dense, and has only the ingredients that YOU put into it. Commercial broth often carries with it a high level of sodium; since salt enhances flavor, the commercial broths must be pretty awful without it! An added bonus is that the broth is super easy to make, and gives your body a readily available source of calcium, phosphorus, magnesium and trace minerals.
This bone broth is often made from the bones of a bird that was just eaten, and it is usually already seasoned so it needs little added to it for flavor. In my case today, I am using a chicken that we butchered and skinned about a month ago. Since it was skinned, it has none of that luscious skin and fat to protect the meat when baking and I felt it would be easier to boil it down for a nutritious and flavorful broth with a lot of chunks of meat in it. I started out with a whole chicken, and added the necks of two turkeys that we butchered for the holidays, as well as parts of the wings that were too awkward to keep on the turkey but had too much meat on to throw away.
Please excuse the poor photos, they were taken with my phone as I was in the middle of several things at once in a kitchen that boasts modern (1970's) lighting. Eventually I will work on taking fabulous food photos, but not today (or even tomorrow).
To start the broth, find the largest pot you can. Mine is an 8-quart pot I believe; the broth is still simmering on the stove so I can't easily check its size, sorry. Although I do have larger pots, this one is about the perfect size for making broth with leftover bones. Be sure to save the bones from your last fowl meal. They can be stored in a large gallon-sized Ziploc (or other brand) bag for a day or so until you are ready to cook them down. Put bones in the bottom of the pot and add water until about an inch (or two) shy of the edge of the pot. If you fill it too high, the water is likely to boil over. Add a splash of vinegar (apple cider is great for chicken), which will help to draw the minerals out of the bones. Turn heat on high, and let the bones come to a simmer. Once you have reached a simmer, turn down the heat just so the simmering is maintained. Be sure to check the water level occasionally through the day, and add more as needed to maintain the level above the bones.
I will often simmer the bones for at least 24 hours so the broth becomes as nutrient-dense as possible. A crock pot is a great way to make broth if you are going to be away from the stove for much of the day. This photo was taken as the broth was just starting to cool, so a little fat is starting to coagulate on the top. Once you have finished cooking the broth, turn off the heat and allow it to cool. Strain the bones out and compost or bury them if possible. If you are cooking a whole bird (like I am right now), pull the meat out and separate from the bones. This meat can be used for any chicken-based meal, or tossed back into the broth for a quick and nutritious soup with added vegetables. If your final broth seems too watery or takes up too much room, you can always reduce it by simmering the broth for a longer period of time.
Store the stock in glass jars for several days in the fridge or freeze for use later. Some people freeze it in ice cube trays so they can add them easily to any recipe for a boost of flavor.
Since this was an unseasoned chicken, I will eventually add some basic herbs and spices for flavor. Generally I will add what smells good to me at the moment, but a little sea salt, fresh ground pepper, thyme, and fresh garlic are my own absolute minimums for cooking a bird and its eventual broth. The flavors of the broth can be made as simple or as complicated as you like. This method can be used for beef bones as well, and also makes a fabulous tasting broth. What matters is that it is a simple and effective way to add a nutrient dense food to your diet, and it tastes good too!
This bone broth is often made from the bones of a bird that was just eaten, and it is usually already seasoned so it needs little added to it for flavor. In my case today, I am using a chicken that we butchered and skinned about a month ago. Since it was skinned, it has none of that luscious skin and fat to protect the meat when baking and I felt it would be easier to boil it down for a nutritious and flavorful broth with a lot of chunks of meat in it. I started out with a whole chicken, and added the necks of two turkeys that we butchered for the holidays, as well as parts of the wings that were too awkward to keep on the turkey but had too much meat on to throw away.
To start the broth, find the largest pot you can. Mine is an 8-quart pot I believe; the broth is still simmering on the stove so I can't easily check its size, sorry. Although I do have larger pots, this one is about the perfect size for making broth with leftover bones. Be sure to save the bones from your last fowl meal. They can be stored in a large gallon-sized Ziploc (or other brand) bag for a day or so until you are ready to cook them down. Put bones in the bottom of the pot and add water until about an inch (or two) shy of the edge of the pot. If you fill it too high, the water is likely to boil over. Add a splash of vinegar (apple cider is great for chicken), which will help to draw the minerals out of the bones. Turn heat on high, and let the bones come to a simmer. Once you have reached a simmer, turn down the heat just so the simmering is maintained. Be sure to check the water level occasionally through the day, and add more as needed to maintain the level above the bones.
Store the stock in glass jars for several days in the fridge or freeze for use later. Some people freeze it in ice cube trays so they can add them easily to any recipe for a boost of flavor.
Since this was an unseasoned chicken, I will eventually add some basic herbs and spices for flavor. Generally I will add what smells good to me at the moment, but a little sea salt, fresh ground pepper, thyme, and fresh garlic are my own absolute minimums for cooking a bird and its eventual broth. The flavors of the broth can be made as simple or as complicated as you like. This method can be used for beef bones as well, and also makes a fabulous tasting broth. What matters is that it is a simple and effective way to add a nutrient dense food to your diet, and it tastes good too!
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Chasing Sparrows
Tonight has been a bit of a downer for me. It is probably part of the whole depression I have been feeling about our living situation. Rather than focus on the negative and the feelings of frustration and sadness I have been experiencing tonight, I thought I would tell you about our rooster instead. It will be worth it, I promise.
If you have been reading along, you will remember that this spring we picked up a whole flock of baby roosters. We originally intended to keep 5 of them; two Americauna and two Barred Rocks for breeding to our hens. Five was a lofty number, and we knew we would eventually narrow it down to hopefully the best rooster or two. The remainder we planned to butcher once they got to a decent size or started crowing, whichever came first. As they grew from adorable little fuzzballs into feathered ruffians we watched for signs of impending maturity. At some point we realized that we had WAY too many birds, and some of the roosters were just going to have to go. We ended giving away about half of our "free" roosters before we figured out the butchering aspect ourselves. It was a bit of a disappointment, but I still think it was the best decision at the time.
Then the fateful day finally arrived. Late one afternoon, a faint and squawky "cock-a-doodle-do." Oh crap. Apparently one of the Barred Rock boys felt he was getting to be a big boy. Then another one. And another. At first, I was holding out hope that there was one creative rooster feeling his oats, but no. We suddenly had THREE of them trying out their voices! After a few weeks of hearing their chorus turn from adolescent to full-throated rooster, we ended up permanently silencing the majority of the roosters. As it turned out, two of the "pullets" (young hens) we bought in the spring ended up being roosters as well. Ah well! It sometimes happens that way since sexing a day-old chicken is an art in and of itself. After a few months of watching the boys interacting with our hens (and the turkeys, they share the space), we ended up with a final three roosters. All Americaunas.
We didn't intend to end up with these specific guys, it just sort of happened that way. One would escape my husbands eye when he would go to catch several of the boys on a butchering day. Another would hide with the hens (chicken!!). The third kept flying into the goat pen and hiding out there - he seemed to prefer their company to the other birds. Yet the remaining three were awfully pretty, so we were more hesitant to let them go. We actually intended to butcher two of them during one of our butchering days, as one was a bully and somewhat aggressive. No way am I going to have a 8 pound bird be aggressive towards my family!! Plus, he was starting to beat up on the hens. He HAD to go. His buddy had to go too, since we decided that three roosters was easily three too many. I think it was the noise that was really getting to us at the time. We are staying on half an acre or so, and we worried the neighbors were getting cranky with the early morning wake-up calls. The bully had an especially loud an resounding call that annoyed.
Somewhere along the way, after the final three escaped the axe(sounds like your typical reality show, doesn't it?), we decided to find new homes for at least two of them. I tried selling them. I tried giving them away for free. I swear, I had 15 different people ask about them, and even drive out here to pick them up only to get lost or blow me off entirely. I was getting massively frustrated, and Greg was threatening to butcher two of them if they didn't have a new home soon. The bully chicken, while beautiful, was getting to be too aggressive. How do you get the point across to a bird that they are NOT the boss? We happened upon an unusual solution. When all our birds are young, and at least once a year thereafter, we trim their flight feathers. It doesn't hurt them, and it keeps the birds from flying too far off the ground. This can be a huge concern, as we lost a turkey to a neighbor dog earlier this year when it flew into a neighbors yard. I don't want to lose any more of our birds because they flew into a yard that wasn't safe. So, we trimmed a few of his long tail feathers (he was a little unhappy, but not hurt), and then several of his cape feathers (he was *really, really* cranky about those!!), and then tossed him in with the goats' rooster. What better way to demote a rooster than to remove the feathers that marked him as a male?! Chicken psychology as it were. Since the bully had been picking on the smaller rooster who liked the goat pen better, we simply left him to live with the goats so he wouldn't be beat up so much. We thought the change of pace and seclusion from the hens might be helpful for the bullys attitude. Plus, he (the bully) would be easier to catch without all the other hens and turkeys around.
Apparently our little goat-loving rooster became more territorial about the goat pen; As soon as the bully rooster landed in the goat pen(sans his male-determined plumage), the picked-upon rooster chased him around and pecked at the bully until there was submission. I don't think it was the path the bully rooster would have preferred, but it did calm his behavior down somewhat. Chicken politics, fascinating to watch! The day after the bully was moved to the goat pen, I was finally able to adopt out the two roosters. Since the guy living with the goats was generally peaceable, quiet, and liked hanging out with the caprines, we decided he could stay with them and help keep their pen bug-free. The remaining two boys went to their new home, which was a comedy of errors in and of itself. I hope that poor woman didn't have two cranky roosters flying in her little car when they drove to another state. It was obvious she had never held a live chicken before! So we were finally down to one rooster, who prefers to live with the goats.
It is a funny arrangement he seems to have. He talks to the hens, and a few of them hang out by the communal fence to show off for him. He runs around the yard when the goats are out during the day, and hops over the fence at night to sleep in his pen with his dairy goats. He *could* easily fly into the pen with the hens, but he hasn't yet. I fully expect to discover him in there one morning. And he is apparently rather territorial about his pen. When we were milking this morning, I saw him running around after some little sparrows. A small flock of them was hopping around the goats pen looking for leftovers, and apparently the rooster wanted to protect what was his! It was hilarious watching him running and chasing the tiny birds, from one end to the other, as they swooped in to capture what they could. It looked like they split into two smaller flocks, and our poor ruffled rooster was left chasing one and then the other out of his pen. I guess he has finally found his home.
If you have been reading along, you will remember that this spring we picked up a whole flock of baby roosters. We originally intended to keep 5 of them; two Americauna and two Barred Rocks for breeding to our hens. Five was a lofty number, and we knew we would eventually narrow it down to hopefully the best rooster or two. The remainder we planned to butcher once they got to a decent size or started crowing, whichever came first. As they grew from adorable little fuzzballs into feathered ruffians we watched for signs of impending maturity. At some point we realized that we had WAY too many birds, and some of the roosters were just going to have to go. We ended giving away about half of our "free" roosters before we figured out the butchering aspect ourselves. It was a bit of a disappointment, but I still think it was the best decision at the time.
Then the fateful day finally arrived. Late one afternoon, a faint and squawky "cock-a-doodle-do." Oh crap. Apparently one of the Barred Rock boys felt he was getting to be a big boy. Then another one. And another. At first, I was holding out hope that there was one creative rooster feeling his oats, but no. We suddenly had THREE of them trying out their voices! After a few weeks of hearing their chorus turn from adolescent to full-throated rooster, we ended up permanently silencing the majority of the roosters. As it turned out, two of the "pullets" (young hens) we bought in the spring ended up being roosters as well. Ah well! It sometimes happens that way since sexing a day-old chicken is an art in and of itself. After a few months of watching the boys interacting with our hens (and the turkeys, they share the space), we ended up with a final three roosters. All Americaunas.
We didn't intend to end up with these specific guys, it just sort of happened that way. One would escape my husbands eye when he would go to catch several of the boys on a butchering day. Another would hide with the hens (chicken!!). The third kept flying into the goat pen and hiding out there - he seemed to prefer their company to the other birds. Yet the remaining three were awfully pretty, so we were more hesitant to let them go. We actually intended to butcher two of them during one of our butchering days, as one was a bully and somewhat aggressive. No way am I going to have a 8 pound bird be aggressive towards my family!! Plus, he was starting to beat up on the hens. He HAD to go. His buddy had to go too, since we decided that three roosters was easily three too many. I think it was the noise that was really getting to us at the time. We are staying on half an acre or so, and we worried the neighbors were getting cranky with the early morning wake-up calls. The bully had an especially loud an resounding call that annoyed.
Somewhere along the way, after the final three escaped the axe(sounds like your typical reality show, doesn't it?), we decided to find new homes for at least two of them. I tried selling them. I tried giving them away for free. I swear, I had 15 different people ask about them, and even drive out here to pick them up only to get lost or blow me off entirely. I was getting massively frustrated, and Greg was threatening to butcher two of them if they didn't have a new home soon. The bully chicken, while beautiful, was getting to be too aggressive. How do you get the point across to a bird that they are NOT the boss? We happened upon an unusual solution. When all our birds are young, and at least once a year thereafter, we trim their flight feathers. It doesn't hurt them, and it keeps the birds from flying too far off the ground. This can be a huge concern, as we lost a turkey to a neighbor dog earlier this year when it flew into a neighbors yard. I don't want to lose any more of our birds because they flew into a yard that wasn't safe. So, we trimmed a few of his long tail feathers (he was a little unhappy, but not hurt), and then several of his cape feathers (he was *really, really* cranky about those!!), and then tossed him in with the goats' rooster. What better way to demote a rooster than to remove the feathers that marked him as a male?! Chicken psychology as it were. Since the bully had been picking on the smaller rooster who liked the goat pen better, we simply left him to live with the goats so he wouldn't be beat up so much. We thought the change of pace and seclusion from the hens might be helpful for the bullys attitude. Plus, he (the bully) would be easier to catch without all the other hens and turkeys around.
Apparently our little goat-loving rooster became more territorial about the goat pen; As soon as the bully rooster landed in the goat pen(sans his male-determined plumage), the picked-upon rooster chased him around and pecked at the bully until there was submission. I don't think it was the path the bully rooster would have preferred, but it did calm his behavior down somewhat. Chicken politics, fascinating to watch! The day after the bully was moved to the goat pen, I was finally able to adopt out the two roosters. Since the guy living with the goats was generally peaceable, quiet, and liked hanging out with the caprines, we decided he could stay with them and help keep their pen bug-free. The remaining two boys went to their new home, which was a comedy of errors in and of itself. I hope that poor woman didn't have two cranky roosters flying in her little car when they drove to another state. It was obvious she had never held a live chicken before! So we were finally down to one rooster, who prefers to live with the goats.
It is a funny arrangement he seems to have. He talks to the hens, and a few of them hang out by the communal fence to show off for him. He runs around the yard when the goats are out during the day, and hops over the fence at night to sleep in his pen with his dairy goats. He *could* easily fly into the pen with the hens, but he hasn't yet. I fully expect to discover him in there one morning. And he is apparently rather territorial about his pen. When we were milking this morning, I saw him running around after some little sparrows. A small flock of them was hopping around the goats pen looking for leftovers, and apparently the rooster wanted to protect what was his! It was hilarious watching him running and chasing the tiny birds, from one end to the other, as they swooped in to capture what they could. It looked like they split into two smaller flocks, and our poor ruffled rooster was left chasing one and then the other out of his pen. I guess he has finally found his home.
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Chicken Butchering
Several years ago when we decided to get chickens, we knew that a consequence of having them would be that we would eventually have to butcher them. While we could have decided to keep them as pets, we felt it was important to acknowledge that while they were providing us eggs during their best years, they would eventually be a food source in their own right. After all that is an important part of our desire to be self-sufficient - being able to provide ourselves with fresh meat from the animals we have raised.
For years we kept the hens, talking about the eventual demise of some of them, and tried to find tutorials and information that would help us figure out how to most humanely butcher them. When we picked up the 25 roosters this spring, we both agreed it was time to figure it out and get past whatever was blocking us from doing the job ourselves. I have to say, while tutorials are reasonably plentiful online, it would have been nice had we found a mentor to walk us through the process. At one point several months ago, I thought we had found someone, but the moment to get together never occurred.
While a mentor would have been nice, when we finally decided on a day to slaughter our first chicken it actually wasn't as emotionally difficult as either of us had thought it would be. We decided to do one bird, and see how it went. I had read stories of it taking almost two hours your first time, because you don't know what you are doing. It seemed simple enough, though. Kill bird, pluck, eviscerate, clean up, cool/freeze/eat. That is pretty much how it went, too. As usual we split the work without really talking about it before hand. While both Greg and I are fairly sensitive people, we were able to deal with the whole chicken in about 30-45 minutes. We served him up for lunch the next day, and he was pretty darn tasty. I believe that Claire has decided that she wants nothing to deal with store-bought birds again as their taste was so poor in comparison. She turns her nose up at the paltry offerings from the fast-food place when her grandparents have offered.
Since that first time we have processed the rest of our extra roosters (we are keeping one who prefers to live with the goats), and all but two of our male ducks. We have plans to butcher a couple of the turkeys for the holidays coming up, which will be interesting. They are so much bigger than what we have handled so far, and considerably stronger. We also saved the duck down and feathers for making our own down pillow. I am so excited to be able to do such a project that brings a more well-rounded feeling to this whole experience!! I'll let you all know how that goes once I get the ticking for the pillow. But for now, goodnight.
For years we kept the hens, talking about the eventual demise of some of them, and tried to find tutorials and information that would help us figure out how to most humanely butcher them. When we picked up the 25 roosters this spring, we both agreed it was time to figure it out and get past whatever was blocking us from doing the job ourselves. I have to say, while tutorials are reasonably plentiful online, it would have been nice had we found a mentor to walk us through the process. At one point several months ago, I thought we had found someone, but the moment to get together never occurred.
While a mentor would have been nice, when we finally decided on a day to slaughter our first chicken it actually wasn't as emotionally difficult as either of us had thought it would be. We decided to do one bird, and see how it went. I had read stories of it taking almost two hours your first time, because you don't know what you are doing. It seemed simple enough, though. Kill bird, pluck, eviscerate, clean up, cool/freeze/eat. That is pretty much how it went, too. As usual we split the work without really talking about it before hand. While both Greg and I are fairly sensitive people, we were able to deal with the whole chicken in about 30-45 minutes. We served him up for lunch the next day, and he was pretty darn tasty. I believe that Claire has decided that she wants nothing to deal with store-bought birds again as their taste was so poor in comparison. She turns her nose up at the paltry offerings from the fast-food place when her grandparents have offered.
Since that first time we have processed the rest of our extra roosters (we are keeping one who prefers to live with the goats), and all but two of our male ducks. We have plans to butcher a couple of the turkeys for the holidays coming up, which will be interesting. They are so much bigger than what we have handled so far, and considerably stronger. We also saved the duck down and feathers for making our own down pillow. I am so excited to be able to do such a project that brings a more well-rounded feeling to this whole experience!! I'll let you all know how that goes once I get the ticking for the pillow. But for now, goodnight.
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Fowl Thoughts
Owning and caring for fowl can be really interesting, and I have learned a lot over the past 4 years or so. It really takes caring for a number if different breeds before you discover what you like and what you don't, as well as what you really want to look out at every day that makes you happy. I think I have come to a certain point where I can say what birds I really want to have on our farm of the future. So, here is our fowl story so far...
Several years ago we picked up a dozen chicks, after talking about it for a few months. We have always had an interest in heritage or unusual breeds, so we decided on some Dominiques (heritage breed) and Americauna (beautiful colored eggs) hens. We originally wanted Auracauna hens, but had discovered that they are super rare and expensive after doing a lot of research. The vast majority of hatcheries that supposedly have Auracauna chickens actually have Ameraucanas, which still lay blue, green and even pink eggs (they are also called "Easter Egger" hens, a name which I personally find irritating). The trait for the colored eggs seems to be dominant enough for the Ameraucana breed to stand alone. Plus they are a pretty bird with a wide variety of corporation and features that I find attractive.
We lived with them in our tiny suburban backyard for about 18 months, before deciding that we loved our chickens, but didn't want to live WITH them any more. They really needed more space than what we had, so we moved half of them to live at my in-laws place, on their half acre. Unfortunately, several months later, they were killed by a couple of dogs. It was so sad, especially because Claire raised them from chick-hood, carrying them in a sling like little babies. Truthfully, it was almost a year before I told her about it since I knew she would be devastated.
Some time later, we moved the rest of the chickens (and a few more we got from friends) to the in-laws as well, and reinforced the pen so they were more protected from dogs. Along the way, we picked up several other miscellaneous laying hens from a friend, as well as from someone who was moving and couldn't take his hens with.
Then, this spring we picked up a group of 30 chicks (Americauna and Barred Rock), supposedly all girls. Plus 25 free chicks (all boys, of course) that were Rhode Island Reds, some ducks (we adopted 3 runner ducks and their Buff duck buddy), and a group of heritage turkeys!!
Just a few birds around here this summer. Several weeks ago we started to butcher the extra boys (an altogether different story!), and I think I have a few tentative conclusions to make. I love my Americauna and Dominiques chickens. They are colorful, have good personalities, and are fairly mellow. Barred Rocks are ok, but the boys are a little loud. Rhode Island Red roosters are obnoxious - they are push toward the hens, and are rather mean to each other. However, they taste really yummy baked in the oven.
As for ducks, I love my little Runner Ducks. They walk upright and are sweet, but not really to have for a dual-purpose bird (eggs and meat). The Khaki Campbell are ok, and the larger Blue Swedish ducks are ok too, especially on the dinner plate for their size (the males, that is).
And I love my turkeys. They are hilarious to watch and listen to (and for the record, turkeys really do say "gobble, gobble".) Unfortunately we ended up with only two girls and about 8 boys!!!! So, obviously, several will be invited to join us for the holidays.
YUM.
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