Oscar and Hepzibah

Oscar has a lot to answer for. He was sitting smugly in our garden as if nothing was wrong and without a care in the world. There was some evidence of a scuffle and Hebzibah was nowhere to be seen. Now, it is not too hard to work out that Oscar had committed an act of moral terpitude in connection with Hepzibah, poor girl. Indeed, it was even possible she was lying moribund or dead behind a hedge or bush, particularly as there were black feathers strewn across the lawn.

It is with huge relief that I can report the discovery of an indignant Hepzibah Hen in a neighbour's garage, where she was taking refuge from the unwelcome attentions of the feline fiend called Oscar. Long live Hepzibah!

There is something in the water

What makes people say and do eccentric, strange or unacceptable things? Yesterday my wife let out the chickens and then shut the hen house door. If you shut the door they can't get to the nesting box. If they can't get to the nesting box, where do they lay their eggs? Outside, right by the door, just to make the point, that's where. Poor girls! Rosie was suitably contrite and would probably have begged their forgiveness had her husband and daughter not been watching with wry smiles on their faces. These things happen. Maybe there is something in the water.

Then there is work. Most of the time things zip along smoothly with the usual little stresses, strains and challenges balanced in with successes and achievements. Normal. Then there are times when things go horribly awry. Normal too.
There is something in the water.

jaded hens

The hens are looking a little jaded so I am going to administer various potions and powders this morning to see if that perks them up a bit. I have already put cider apple vinegar in their drinking water and moved their run to virgin grass. If only they would poo less, things would generally be more hygienic. Chickens will be chickens, so no chance of that.

First egg for Hepzibah Hen

All our hens are now laying and today was the first time we had three eggs. Well done girls! Long live Hermione Hen, Harriet Hen and Hepzibah Hen.

As an aside, I should mention that Hepzibah was named after a book I owned and read as a child, by Olwen Bowen, called, believe it or not, Hepzibah Hen. I think it is still around somewhere.

Harriet Hen nearly chicken stew

Harriet Hen nearly ended up as our neighbours' chicken stew last night because she flew over our wall into their garden. Unfortunately, Kay had already told us she was scared of chickens, so this was anything but welcome. However, when I suggested I might put a wire mesh fence along the wall to heighten it to prevent this happening again, I though Mike (Kay's husband) was going to make a stew out of me as well as Harriet. Conundrum. I don't want the hens confined to quarters all the time, although the run is big enough. They need some freedom to roam at leisure, but not next door!
Maybe I should clip their wings...

Hermione lays her first egg

Hermione Hen has laid her first egg, which weighs 36 grammes. Progress!
She was strutting around this morning looking as if something momentous was going to happen. She disappeared into the Eglu for half an hour and then wandered out, leaving this little egg behind.

Gloucestershire and hens

We have had a brilliant time in the county of my birth and upbringing, Gloucestershire, staying with Rosie's old friend Yvonne, whose 50th birthday it was on Friday. She lives with her husband Jeremy and offspring Steph and Greg in Wotton under Edge and we stayed there for 3 nights and went to a fun party on Friday evening. On Saturday Rosie and I went to see her 86 year old Uncle Ron, near Devizes, and my Uncle Grenville and Aunt Georgina in Salisbury.
On Sunday we went to Newark Park, a National Trust place in Wotton, which was very interesting and kept us there until about 4.00pm. Then we drove home to north Wales via La Dolce Vita restaurant in Rhos on Sea, arriving home at about 10.00pm.
Today, Monday, we collected Hermione, Harriet and Hepzibah hens from a farm near Rhyl and they are now settling into their Eglu. They are all pullets, although it may be a little while before they start to lay eggs, with the youngest being 16 weeks and the oldest at 19 weeks. We shall see.

Greenwood Forest Park

Today Jennie and I went to Greenwood Forest Park, where we linked up with Kathy Beard, Mike Forbes-Buthlay (married to each other), their children Matthew and Erin, and some pleasant friends of theirs from Penmaenmawr. We have had a great day on the roller coaster, firing arrows, building dens, drifting on a boat around a water circuit and other entertaining simple outdoor activities. We were only showered on a couple of times, otherwise the sky was blue.
A welcome surprise was bumping into a muddy footed Bryan Collis, the WCVA Senior Research Officer, who was at Greenwood with his daughter. They had just completed the new barefoot trail.
The Eglu is scheduled to arrive tomorrow.

entertaining weekend

Busy weekend - entertained next door to dinner on Friday evening, which was successful.
We spent Saturday morning lazing, followed by Jennie's ballet and she went off to a friend's house until 10pm while I had the garage doors repaired. They now work like a dream. Then Rosie and I entertained Julie, another friend, to supper, a tasty spag bol.
Today we joined friends in Pantasaph for lunch and a healthy stroll around the Franciscan Friary. Jennie fell off a tree branch into a holly bush (ouch!) which led to tears, but they were soon forgotten.
On our way to Pantasaph we dropped in to a farm store, at Rhuddlan, and bought chicken feed and some grit. It won't be long now before we have chickens.

Eggcited about hens

The Eglu is ordered and will arrive next Wednesday. I have also found a 'layers mash' supplier (chicken feed) and someone phoned me today to say that she has some point of lay (POL) pullets available, albeit they are only 14 weeks old. They are a Light Sussex/Isa Brown hybrid.
I hope I am sounding very technical and knowledgeable about hens, because I am actually anything but that. However, I am eggcited, as is my daughter. We are committed to being farmers now, well on a very very small scale.

Farmers' Market

On Thursday, my colleagues Francesca Hughes, Eirian James and I shared a hire car to Llandinam in mid Wales for a meeting of the policy staff in WCVA. Afterwards we went to a little farmers' market in the village hall and I bought some eggs, sausages (yum) and cheese. I told the woman selling the eggs that I was going to keep hens and she advised me to light the hen coop at night in winter to encourage the laying of extra eggs. I didn't tell her I was only going to have a little Eglu and a couple of hens. She obviously thought I was setting up a whole barn for mass production. Not yet!

Hens - eggs and pets

Keeping hens, that's what we've been considering. Maybe only two to four birds in an Eglu, which provides an attractive and modern home for them. The eglu is pretty secure against foxes too, though I am not sure about bears. But we don't have bears.
Also, we need pullets at point of lay. Pullets are hens which are under a year old - see, I'm learning! Anyone any ideas as to where to get them in North Wales? We don't need pretty hens, we need productive ones.
No cocks wanted. They would rub our neighbours up the wrong way.