Since it is too cold to sprout seed in the chicken runs, I put out a bucketful of straw and threw in some scratch to give the chickens something new to do. Oh did they have fun! By the end of the day, all straw was evenly distributed in the run.
I replaced the glass top of my scale with a short piece of 1×4 to make it easier to weigh the chickens. We were using a small piece of rubber shelf liner on the glass, which was functional, but still hard for the hens to stand on, then the glass popped off, so I needed a different solution. So I routed a circle in the middle of the board to fit the screw knob and glued the screw knob to the board. It is much easier for the chickens to stand on this to get their weight for health checks! They are still restless, though, so weights have a definite error factor.
Speaking of health checks, since I fixed the scale, we were able to finally do the monthly health check. Magic and Pooh’s weights are down, but Cloud and Navi’s weight is up. Navi’s pendulous crop is back, but doesn’t seem to bother her. There were many dirty bums, so I think I need to cut back on scratch and treats. The weather is honestly too warm for scratch anyway. We treated some foot injuries and are keeping an eye on them. Everyone is walking Ok, for Faverolle waddles. They are really cute when they run, though.
I was a little afraid after the summer when it was too hot for laps, and after the holidays when life was hectic, that I wouldn’t have anymore lap chickens, but I do! Magic is my girl, and if I sit down she will hop up and make herself comfortable. Some of the other hens will hop up and look for treats, but Magic settles in for a snooze. Ah.
I had some shredded Romaine lettuce left over from Taco Tuesday (it really needs the capitals in our house), and wanted to feed it to the chickens. My rope net bag’s holes were too big, and I really don’t like throwing it down on the ground. But I do have some scrap and stained lace doilies. I ran a ribbon through the edge of a stained doily and made a small bag. The holes in the tatted lace were small enough to hold the shredded lettuce, but large enough for the chickens to get pieces out.
They are French hens, it seems appropriate to have fancy feeders.
I bought a kitchen sprouter. The mason jars were working OK, but I had one go moldy so decided to upgrade.
I followed the directions, and put the sprouter by the LED grow lights. After about a week I had sprouts large enough to feed the chickens! I transferred some to a flat container and the chickens loved it.
The chickens have some competition for the sprouts, though. I forgot how good alfalfa sprouts taste!
Critters and Craft 