Paradise in Disguise Hobby Farm Blog

After my previous post that was on the "heavy" side, I thought I'd share a few photos from the end of April 2017. The first group is of the PA/DC group during their free-range time on the side lawn, while waiting for the grass paddocks to grow. turkey hen sunbathing Truck Cap Coop main rooster & hens Leaves just budding out Rooster pen - the big boy in the middle is just that. The rooster to his left is a Bielefelder cross, so also  a big rooster. The one to the right is like 1/4  bantam cochin, 1/4 Swedish Flower Hen, 1/2 Catskill Homesteader - so he's small, but good-sized for being a "little rooster".    Leaf Vacuum / Wood Chipper Trailer at DCHA clean-up day The pile of leaves we got - one very full load!

You've heard that chickens are dumb, right?  Well, over the past 8 years of raising chickens, I can attest that they are actually quite smart. Granted, they have their "moments" that they do things that make you think they're dumb. But, overall, when you take time to observe their behaviors, they display more intelligence or, at least, smarter instincts than what we've been told for so long. I have many stories that hopefully I'll be able to share with you, but today, this one features the Appenzeller Spitzhauben breed. This past May I bought 2 Spitzhauben hens at the BYC "members-only" Chickenstock. One was broody & came with "dummy" eggs. (a whole other story) Even though I didn't NEED any more hens, this is how chicken math works. Plus, I did find homes for some of my chickens at Chickenstock, so in the end, I still had less chickens!   Above - the one hen in pasture pen;  below - broody hen sitting o...