Moving the Coop

Because of my run-in with the business end of a skunk the other day - and the fact that our henhouse was kind of a disaster allowing said skunk to get in way too easily - I enlisted the help of our intrepid nanny (aka 'the muscles') to help me clean out/move the coop. Since I'm still recovering from the c-section and can't lift/push/whatever more than 10 lbs it's been a little frustrating trying to keep up on chores around here. So, stuff like moving coops that's been on my list forever hasn't gotten done - until today. :D

Now to just worm/de-louse/de-mite these hens and we'll be in business. The muscles will be helping me with that one too!

Skunk in the henhouse

Yup. We've got skunks. Again. Can I say I don't like skunks? Nope. I dislike them with a passion. We had another skunk casualty last week - one of our RIR hens was attacked and killed by one. Last year we had a skunk kill our other RIR hen. I think this skunk must just like RIR chickens. How do I know it's a skunk? I caught it red handed going after my hens. I see hens scrambling outside in the dark, very upset. So I tell my husband something is after our hens and head out to see what was going on, thinking MAYBE it wasn't a skunk (but knowing it probably was...). I look in the coop and see a BIG skunk eating 2 eggs. After he couldn't catch a hen he decided eggs were the next best meal. Stupid, stinky skunks.

Meanie pants rooster

He's GONE! A couple of very nice people came and picked him up on Friday, so no more picking on my rooster. Mr. Roo is still in hiding and a little leary of being in the coop, but hopefully that goes away. The other two roos are letting him eat and not picking on him, so I'm hoping he'll get over his exile soon. YAY!

Today I get to strip cloth diapers (lucky me). I usually buy the Rockin' Green ammonia detergent, but since I'm out and don't feel like buying another bag I'm going to try boiling them with a little dawn dish soap. I heard it works pretty well. We haven't been using the cloth diapers as much because our inserts just stink. Here goes nothin'...

Mr. Roo

Today was it. I have had enough. Our new rooster, the big Buff one, has been placed up for sale. He's a beautiful boy, but he's been so mean to my Mr. Roo! It's either him or Mr. Roo. Hubby and I picked Mr. Roo. The other roos are being absolute gentlemen. No issues whatsoever, but this one...damn. He hunts my poor bird. Prevents him from eating all day, so he's starting to lose weight.The poor thing is completely emasculated and actually whimpers. Ever heard a rooster whimper? It tears at your heart strings. Mr. Roo won't roost in the coop anymore, so he's been roosting outside until I can find him to put him up. Between the not eating and roosting alone in the cold, in 20 degree or lower temps that's basically a death sentence if it goes on any longer.

Tonight we're having freezing rain, which means cold, and in the morning ICE. Not looking forward to tomorrow. But, hopefully, tomorrow someone will come get this rooster. I need my Mr. Roo back to his old self.

On the brighter side, I found a bunch of eggs! I think the girls we took in are starting to lay again. 6 eggs! Our latest daily tally for eggs has been 2-3. Yippee!

O, Christmas Tree

Right now is one of my absolute favorite times of the year. I love everything about it. Christmas lights. Feasts. Christmas Tree. And since we've lived in Utah, the snow. That's one of the things we didn't have on near the coast was snow, at least not anywhere near our home.

I put the tree up a couple of days ago. It's a beautiful tree, but unfortunately it's also big and unlit. It's a 7.5 ft artificial fir with little pinecones and berries scattered all over. Most of the berries have long been pulled off by curious kids or fallen off with yearly set-up/take-down routines. It took me about 6 hours to set up the tree and cover it in lights. My arms were completely ripped up from the fake needles by the end. My 3 yr old and I are decorating it tonight for Daddy. She's been so excited about Christmas ornaments that it's been keeping her up at night. I just brought up the ornaments from outside, so we're gonna have a fun night. The thick fog has rolled in again for the evening. I can't see past our barn anymore. And we're gonna have a decked out house tonight. Yup, Christmas-time, yule-tide, winter-time, winter solstice...take your pick... they all happen at the same time of the year, and they're ALL my favorite, FAVORITE time of year.