I switched to a silicone wedding ring awhile ago to help prevent injuries. But there is something about the gray band on my finger that is irresistible to the chickens and they frequently try to take it. (Once one even succeeded and I had to chase her down to get it back!) This is the first time I’ve sustained injury from a ring stealing attempt though. I think I will try a different band and see if a different color holds less appeal. Because this HURT.
My chickens ate a pumpkin down to the stem. I’m most impressed that the stem was still tied to the branch. They have eaten other pumpkin stems enough to drop the pumpkin off the cord. This pumpkin had a soft spot on the side of the bottom that I cut out, and thus provided access to the pumpkin flesh. This method was so successful, I cut the next pumpkin in a similar manner.
The chickens don’t consume pumpkin as fast as red cabbage, so I do check for mold growth. After about a week I usually remove the remains.
We were a little late on our monthly chicken health checks, but we got them done! The most surprising event is Navi’s recovery. She no longer has a pendulous crop, her comb is now red and getting larger, she is back in the flock weight wise, and she has started laying. Wha? I’m just going to take it and be glad we didn’t lose her. I don’t think Cockatrice is laying yet, which is interesting. Her vent still looks like a pullet vent. And it is easy to tell. I need to reweigh Cloud. Her weight is down over 200 grams. She has never been the biggest chicken, but that seems drastic. Or I could have written the number down wrong. However, the scale broke during weighing (the glass top popped off, probably because of the recent freeze). I have an idea how to not just fix it but make it better, but I actually have to implement my plan. Magic’s weight is back on track (it was down last check), which makes me hopeful for Cloud. I also need to keep an eye on Seashell’s foot. She has what looks like a healing wound and it is a little swollen, but it doesn’t effect her gait. We rinsed her foot well and put wound spray on it. We recently visited an alpaca farm and had some extra alpaca feed, so the chicken’s treat after checks was alpaca food. They loved it. (Apparently chickens can eat alpaca food, but alpacas shouldn’t eat chicken food. So there we go.)
Since it is winter, and the grass is not growing well in the coop, I decided to give sprouting grain inside a try. I found a couple posts on sprouting grain in mason jars, and since I have some empty jars with rings, and some extra aluminum window screen, I’m trying this method first.
I tried two types of grain: scratch and annual rye (again because that is what I had). I put 3-4 Tablespoons of seed in each jar and covered them with water. I fit a square of window screen to the top of the jar, folded over the edges so they wouldn’t be as pokey, and screwed down the lid. I let the seeds soak overnight, then tipped them over the sink to drain off the water. I rinsed the seeds twice a day and left the jars on their sides in a low tray to drain.
After three days the scratch was sprouted and I fed it to the chickens. They loved it!
After 5 days, the rye had formed a mat of roots with 2-3” blades of grass. The chickens were not so keen on this, but eventually ate it up.
I picked up a red cabbage at the store and hung it up for my chickens. They were dubious at first (of course, it is a new treat). I pulled off a leaf and they tried a bit, but I was not hopeful.
Apparently the red cabbage went over well, because when I went back out a couple hours later, half the cabbage was gone.
Interesting to note, that much cabbage turns their droppings teal. Huh.
Critters and Craft 