Chicken Corner
During 2010 and to peruse our 'good life' ways we decided to purchase two Pekin bantams to add to our growing number of animals we currently have. This page shows the learning curve that we had with having chickens in an urban environment.
Egg's Eggs and more Eggs
As with owning any hen the main outcome is for them to produce eggs, although Pekin Bantams are smaller chickens that the common hybrids they still do produce a large number of eggs a year with around 150 per hen per annum.
With the hen's settled in and plumping up nicely we awaited the first egg from them, and they kept us waiting with the first egg not being produced for nearly 8 weeks, but believe me if you think home grown veg tastes good then try a home made egg. :-)
The eggs continued to come and come and we were starting think if and when they would stop.
The Brood
Unfortunately with bantams the breed is well known for being broody and ultimately going off of the lay, but we thought that as young birds and having no cock that this would occur for us. Oh how wrong were we.... With at least three separate broody sessions during the year meant we lost nearly three months worth of eggs.
Yes being broody is a natural process for the birds and it is what god designed them to do; the problems come when they pluck their feathers for their nests, or stop eating and drinking altogether. We tried everything to try and combat the brood to try and make the girls lay again. Methods include separation, closing the next box, bathing, but the clever girls found ways around this until the creation of the brood chamber.... A separate 'pet carrier' designed to be placed on a cold floor and solitary confinement, four days in there has no managed to break the brood, but for how long.
Chicken Holidays
As with human's having holidays we thought that the chickens might like a little holiday too, so with the acquisition of a cheap hutch from a family member we packed the girls up and sent them (and us) on a three day detox from urban living and lived wild in Kenilworth. The chickens at first didn’t know what do with all the grass or even the clay soil but soon came round to the idea and seemed happier and left with redder wattle and fuller chests.
Knitting
With the colder nights approaching, the girls had plucked their chest feathers out whilst being broody, we decided that they might need a nice jumper to see them through these colder nights, so we knitted them individual jumpers for each other, as you can see from the photo, we don’t think they really appreciated them.
