Keeping chickens

The nasty death of a naughty chicken

July 4, 2011
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If you ever thought keeping chickens was an idyllic life of waking to their gently clucking and collecting fresh eggs for breakfast – and nothing more – then think again. Chickens are well-known cannibals. If any other bird in the flock has a prolapse and you don’t get to it quick enough they’ll peck at [...]

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Curing the pecking hens

May 2, 2011
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The chickens have had a tough few months. They’ve taken to pecking each other – not in the friendly, gentle way they do when they’re mutually grooming, but in a quite vicious manner. Some of them have lost a serious number of feathers and are starting to get sunburned. There’s a ringleader – one of [...]

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We return from holiday to find Hitler Hen has died

February 27, 2011

We return from a week away to discover that one of our favourite chickens has died and another has a prolapse. It’s been a tough few months for our flock.

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Gabby the chicken heads for the coop in the clouds

January 23, 2011

Our favourite chicken was puffed up and sleepy, so we were pretty sure she didn’t have much longer to live, but her death was still cause for sadness in the coop.

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The smallest egg we’ve ever seen

January 10, 2011
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One of our chickens has laid the smallest egg either of us have seen. It’s about the size of a pound coin and has a very tiny yolk indeed.

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Another chicken pops out… from behind

January 8, 2011

No sooner had we cured one chicken of its prolapsed bum and felt rather proud of ourselves for reintroducing her to the flock than another one succumbed to the same fate. This one wasn’t so easy to deal with.

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2010 with the chickens

January 1, 2011
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A prolapsed chicken, a dead chicken, almost 1500 eggs… 2010 has been an interesting year to keep hens, and a rewarding one, too. Here’s to chicken success in 2011.

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The prolapsed chicken is getting better

December 28, 2010

Our hen with the prolapsed vent is making good progress after four days of TLC and regular applications of Germoloids.

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One chicken, one prolapse, one tube of Germoloids… ugh.

December 24, 2010
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One of our chickens has had a prolapse after becoming egg-bound. We’ve had to push her insides back in the vent and apply Germoloids. Fingers crossed.

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The chickens have a new favourite thing

November 29, 2010
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Buying the wrong chicken food was a lucky accident as our chickens seem to have found a new, untapped appetite.

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