chickens Archives - Page 2 of 3 - View from the Front Porch

4 04, 2014

Expecting Weekend Chaos on Miller Farm

By judythemorgan|2014-04-04T06:00:57-05:00April 4th, 2014|Friday on the Miller Farm, Miller Farm Friday|0 Comments

A blog by Chicken Wrangler Sara

Jengo and Miller are staying with us through the weekend. Remember, they are our friend’s two daschunds and visit often. Jengo’s the puppy. We shared lots of fun times the last time he visited.

It’s always a fun time when dogs outnumber humans 6-4.

Then the neighbor texted last night asking if we could feed their two cats while they were gone for a couple of days. Okay, that’s doable. Mixing the cats and dogs under the same roof, not so much.

Since Beekeeper Brian and I were in Abilene at the time, the neighbors just left the cat food on the front porch. When our son Matt got home before we did, he simply moved the bag inside. He’s learned it is better sometimes not to even ask.

This brings the total number of four-legged animals under my care to eight — not counting chickens. We know from previous posts that we have more than 30 chickens including quail.

So this weekend, I’ll be keeping up with thirty-four or more animals if you count all the fowl. Let the fun begin!

I’m sure there will be some interesting stories for next week’s Miller Farm blog.

7 02, 2014

Winter on the Farm – Miller Farm Friday

By judythemorgan|2014-02-07T06:00:38-06:00February 7th, 2014|Friday on the Miller Farm, Miller Farm Friday|0 Comments

A Guest Blog by Chicken Wrangler Sara

In the past seven days, we have been under two different winter storm warnings.

While this may seem normal for those of you who actually have winter where you live, in Texas winter is anything below 60 degrees. Any chance of freezing precipitation causes great panic.

Last Thursday the weather began to get nasty and by Friday morning we awoke to what for us was a “Winter Wonderland.”

Now I have lived in the northeast and have actually been stranded in a blizzard in Deep Creek, Maryland, so I understand how silly this seems.

However, for the chickens, that have never seen a white ground, this was very disturbing.

They were much slower to exit the coop and some decided to wait it out in the safety of their nest boxes.

By afternoon, the snow was gone and the chickens were out pecking the ground as usual.

By Sunday, we were in short sleeves again making it hard to believe the weather forecast for Tuesday which was predicting up to 2 inches of snow.

Sure enough on Monday, the wind shifted and the temperature dropped.

I bought more chicken and quail food and made sure all feeders were full. I even filled the waterers knowing they would freeze. I planned to pour hot water over them in the morning to melt enough ice to prevent any bird from dying of thirst.

We have been watching a TV show called “Alaska: The Last Frontier.” I thought about how they prepared for their winter as I warned the chickens of the impending storm.

By the end of the day on Monday, the private school where I teach had cancelled classes for Tuesday. The public schools delayed opening for two hours. The pool even closed so we all slept in.

Tuesday morning arrived with no snow and little ice.

Children were disappointed, but I didn’t mind. I’ve seen enough snow.

The weatherman says it will be 70 degrees by Friday. Gotta love Texas :)

17 01, 2014

Under Construction – Miller Farm Friday

By judythemorgan|2014-01-17T06:00:29-06:00January 17th, 2014|Friday on the Miller Farm, Miller Farm Friday|2 Comments

A blog by Chicken Wrangler Sara

Our neighbors are moving. It is a good thing for them, but sad for us. It means their house is for sale and real estate agents get grumpy when they have to sell a house next door to chickens.

We’ve been through this with the neighbors on the other side. We prayed and prayed and God sent a single woman who loves the chickens. She even comes outside to watch them.

The new neighbors on the other side will not have that pleasure. A privacy fence is going up.

I don’t take it personally. Not everyone loves chickens the way we do.

The process is actually very stressful for the entire Miller farm. Strange people are walking around next door, which requires a certain amount of barking on the part of the dachshunds. Of course, some of the dachshunds (Bella) believe that life requires a certain amount of barking all the time.

Then there is the dreaded air compressor.

Fortunately, I have experience with air compressors. Experience being that there is one in the garage, which moves on the front porch when Bee Keeper Brian is building something.

I know that it randomly comes on and makes noise so I’m not startled. The chickens, on the other hand, have never seen the air compressor in our garage and so when the one next door started making noise, they all rushed to the opposite side of the yard.

The fence is finished now.

No more strange people or noises next door. We actually can’t tell what is next door. All we see is this beautiful fence.

Tucker is confused. He can’t see his friend Gus, the miniature schnauzer who lives next door, anymore.

Bella keeps barking at the fence hoping to scare it away.

The good news is the chickens won’t be flying into the neighbor’s yard on that side. They can’t see that the grass is greener.

As I stood in our back yard I couldn’t help but think of the show “Home Improvement” and wonder if our new neighbors will be named “Wilson.”

22 11, 2013

Chicken Feed Famine on the Farm – Miller Farm Friday

By judythemorgan|2013-11-22T05:00:52-06:00November 22nd, 2013|Miller Farm Friday|0 Comments

A guest blog by Chicken Wrangler Sara

Around the Miller Farm feeding the chickens is a multi-step process.

First, I go to the feed store and buy 50-pound sacks of lay pellets.

Then I bring the sacks home and move them into 5-gallon buckets. This prevents non-chickens (i.e. rats) from getting into the food in the shed. Most of the buckets have lids that snap on and are difficult to remove. Beekeeper Brian was kind enough to purchase special screw-top lids to make life easier for me.

I fill two screw top buckets with feed and the rest goes into regular buckets. I move the feed from bucket to bucket as needed. It is all quite efficient when I am paying attention.

Monday I was not paying attention. I went out to move feed from a regular bucket to an empty screw top bucket.

The regular bucket was empty.

In fact, all the buckets were empty. The poor chickens had no food. Their feeder was empty.

It was a chicken feed famine on Miller Farm.

So I closed up the shed and headed to the feed store. I went up to the counter and asked for two sacks of lay pellets.

The woman behind the counter informed me they were out of lay pellets. She said they’d run out about an hour ago before I arrived.

I was speechless.

She asked if I had enough to make it until their delivery arrived on Tuesday. I was embarrassed to admit we had no lay pellets at all.

She offered to sell me a 10-pound sack to get me through. Since I knew Tuesday would be a busy day, I bought a second 10-pound sacks to last until Wednesday when I could make another trip to the feed store and purchased a 50-pound bag.

On Wednesday, when I returned from the feed store, the chickens obviously recognized the larger sack and anxiously waited the arrival of feed in their feeder. I scattered some around the yard and filled the feeder.

The remainder I put into the appropriate buckets thus ending the famine on Miller Farm.

Last week I learned that 30 chickens are not the same as 46 chickens. This week I learned that 10-pounds of feed does not go as far as 50 pounds.

Even the chickens recognized the larger feed bag.

Math is a very useful subject.

15 11, 2013

Numbering Chickens – Miller Farm Friday

By judythemorgan|2013-11-15T06:00:41-06:00November 15th, 2013|Friday on the Miller Farm, Miller Farm Friday|2 Comments

A Guest Blog by Chicken Wrangler Sara

When people ask how many chickens we have, I usually say 30.

I hadn’t officially counted them, as they don’t stand still in the yard making it very difficult. It is like counting preschoolers.

However, one evening last week, as I closed the coop, I counted them. They were all roosting on various spots in the coop and were settled down for the night.

It was then that I made a shocking discovery.

We have 40 chickens not counting the bantams in the little yard.

There are six bantams so that makes 46 chickens on the Miller Farm.

I’m not really good at math but I know that 30 does not equal to 46.

This means that I have been misrepresenting our flock for months. Some might even call it lying although my son assures me that I was only saying what I believed to be true.

It’s still a disturbing thought.

Some might considered 46 chickens over population, but the chickens don’t seem to mind. As long as they have food, I suppose they would rather be crowded than be dinner.

Knowing the exact count does explain something, though. When I go into the yard, I feel like I am struggling not to trip over chickens.

Now I know why – there are 40 chickens in the yard.

I could let Bella into the chicken yard. She would gladly dispatch several. However, I’m somewhat attached to the lot and would feel sad to lose even one.

So I guess I’ll just keep walking carefully through the chicken yard. And when people ask how many chickens we have, I can honestly say – not 30.

1 11, 2013

Wandering Hen – Miller Farm Friday

By judythemorgan|2013-11-01T06:00:24-05:00November 1st, 2013|Miller Farm Friday|0 Comments

A Guest Blog by Chicken Wrangler Sara

One afternoon this week, I heard a great ruckus out back.

I ignored the barking dogs and cackling chickens for a while but then decided to see what was happening and looked out the kitchen window and saw Sadie (one of the dachshunds) barking at the front of the shed. The chickens were all standing in the middle of the chicken yard fussing at her.

That was all well and good until I heard Bella barking from an undisclosed location. This was not good because she has recently taken to going under the shed .

I headed outside to find her.

Before I saw Bella, I spotted the infamous white hen under the shed.

I’m not sure how she got there as we have put chicken wire around the bottom facing the chicken yard to prevent this.

I figured Bella was approaching from the other side of the shed so the race was on – who would get to the hen first, me or Bella?

I quickly stepped into the chicken yard and reached over the chicken wire for the wayward hen. Success!

Chicken Wrangler 1, Bella 0.

Next I had to coax Bella out from under the shed – a much harder job.

When I went out later to check eggs this is what I found:

That silly chicken had laid an egg under the shed. This is the same chicken who regularly lays eggs in the abandoned beehive.

Fortunately, the chicken wire is only about two feet high so I was able to reach over it and under the shed to retrieve the egg.

Today when I went to check eggs the white chicken was actually in the nest box. I wish I’d had my camera!

I reached under hoping to find an egg but no luck. Oh well, at least she knows where the nest box is now.

20 09, 2013

Miller Farm Friday: Bella – 1, Chicken Wrangler Sara – 0

By judythemorgan|2013-09-20T06:15:51-05:00September 20th, 2013|Friday on the Miller Farm, Miller Farm Friday|0 Comments

A guest blog by Chicken Wrangler Sara

Monday was a little hectic on Miller Farm. I didn’t have time to get the chickens food and water before I had to be at school to play for Chapel so I just let them out.

When I got home an hour later, I went out to fill water jugs and check on the food status. Of course, all the dachshunds went out with me.

Tucker brings his ball out for me to throw as I carry water. Sadie looks for lizards and Coco just follows me around. Bella, on the other hand, finds other ways to occupy herself.

I caught her “playing” with one of our Dr. Seuss birds, but alas, I was too late to rescue it.

As I disposed of the body, I couldn’t really fuss at Bella. The chickens have been warned not to come over the fence.

I went in to start laundry. I guess Bella felt a little guilty. She decided to “help” me.

How could I be mad at that face!

I sent the picture to Rachel and told her about the reduction in the chicken flock. Her response was “Well it shouldn’t have flown over the fence. Plus this means I can hatch more!”

I told her we still had a billion. She reminded me of chicken math – where for every chicken you lose you have to have at least four more to replace it in case one or more dies or turns out to be a rooster.

I texted her “I’m not listening nananana.” Fortunately, she is off at college and can’t really hatch chickens right now anyway.

Our flock will remain as is unless, of course, some other chicken who didn’t witness the demise of the gray Dr. Seuss bird and decides to fly over the fence.

23 08, 2013

Family Resemblance – Miller Farm Friday

By judythemorgan|2013-08-23T05:47:16-05:00August 23rd, 2013|Friday on the Miller Farm, Miller Farm Friday|2 Comments

A blog by Chicken Wrangler Sara

We have several friends who have new babies in their family. One is a first born and she looks like her father. The other is the fourth girl, and she looks just like her sisters.

In our family, the two girls look like my husband and the boy looks like me.

When my parents and I arrived at their new home in Colorado, their neighbor came up to me and started to give me a hug then stopped short. He thought I was my mother. I assured him it was ok to hug me anyway.

Besides the fact we are all making fish faces, there are definite physical similarities.

It is usually pretty easy to find the family resemblance in humans. Recently, though, I’ve noticed it in our chickens. (Perhaps I spend too much time in the coop.)

See what you think…here are pictures of Crooked neck and her child, Samson and his child and a nameless barred rock and her child.

Can you tell who is related to whom?

16 08, 2013

Fully Dressed – Miller Farm Friday

By judythemorgan|2013-08-16T06:05:00-05:00August 16th, 2013|Friday on the Miller Farm, Miller Farm Friday|2 Comments

A blog by Chicken Wrangler Sara

My summer routine has been to get up at 5:00, put on my swimsuit, go to the pool, swim, shower, get dressed, then come home to feed the humans and animals. It has worked pretty well most of the time.

Occasionally I get in the flight path of chickens exiting the coop and end up with chicken footprints on my shirt.

This is not a problem on Monday or Friday when I have no piano students or places to be. However, on Thursdays, I volunteer at a children’s Bible club where we wear a particular shirt.

I’ve learned that I should wait until just before I leave to put on the shirt to avoid evidence of chickens on it.

Another option is to wear an apron over my shirt. I have done this, especially during the school year when I have to go to work in the mornings. I must be careful when choosing my apron, though. The one with red dots on it is particularly attractive to the chickens and the peck at it.

My shoes are another issue. I have a pair of duck shoes that I wear only in the chicken coop. That way whatever gets on them stays outside.

I had to rename them “muck” shoes because the chickens were offended at the use of the word duck. Besides, “muck” is a polite way to describe what gets on the shoes.

If I am just throwing something to the chickens without actually entering the coop, I wear my sneakers.

I looked down yesterday as I was teaching lessons and found a feather on my sneaker. I guess it had made its way into the back yard, and I had to smile.

It reminded me of when my children were infants. I didn’t feel fully dressed unless I had a little bit of spit up on my shoulder.

Now I am a chicken wrangler, and I’m only dressed when I have feathers on my shoes.

9 08, 2013

UCR Mystery – Miller Farm Friday

By judythemorgan|2013-08-09T06:10:01-05:00August 9th, 2013|Friday on the Miller Farm, Miller Farm Friday|0 Comments

A blog by Chicken Wrangler Sara

For the past week and a half, each morning, I have experienced a UCR – unidentified crowing rooster.

Now you may wonder how I could tell this was an “unidentified” crowing rooster and not one of the many in our back yard.

Crows are distinctive. The direction of the crowing is also distinguishable.

Each morning, at about 5:00 I would hear an unfamiliar rooster crow and it sounded like it was next door.

I was most concerned. While our neighbors enjoy our farm, I’m not sure they want it in their own back yard.

Each morning I would take stock of our roosters to see who was wandering next door. Alas, all the roosters were accounted for.

Now I was truly befuddled.

Then yesterday morning I walked by my son’s room at 5:00 and heard the URC once again.

It was then that I remembered Matthew had set his new phone alarm to sound like a rooster. It sounded very life-like, but not very effective.

I had to wake Matthew myself.

I chose to speak to him and not crow like a rooster, which obviously did no good!

Mystery solved.