Looking out the window and what did I see.....

Hey, what kind of humming-bird is this on my feeder!?!

Also viewed --  a Downy Woodpecker, Amercian Golden Finches, Tufted Titmouse, Chickadee, House Wren, a song sparrow and a CAT!

Guess who is getting chased off!

The Hard Part of Homesteading: The Loss

The ducks completely refused to get locked up last night... We went out there 4 times at least and every time they swam out to the middle of the pond and laughed at us.... We finally gave up. This morning, there are two missing ;/

Damn Ducks.....

Cockadoodledoo......

Oh no! 

The little chic that I was very positively reenforcing into being a HEN start crowing this morning 

We wanted more EEs

So EGGciting! We put some  Easter  Egger eggs in the incubator. There are blue hued and olive hued. We especially wanted  the olive hued babies and they started hatching this morning.

By 5 pm this evening, the first one emerged! And looks like at least two more are breaking through.

9/19 UPDATE: This morning, we woke up to three more who hatched overnight. Still waiting to see if any more of the 15 eggs we put in the incubator will produce. We had a power outage last week, we we very surprised and happy with the 4 we have thus far.

New Arrivals

The baby ducks came in today from Meyer Hatchery.  We are guessing... Pekins (Would love is there was a Crested in here), 2 Blues and not sure about the last... Rouen or Khaki Campbell.... Guess we'll know soon enough.

We lost Blue Today....

So sad here this morning..,, Something took our sweet "Blue" (Swedish Blue) over night. We imagine it was a coon. She was so very special. A duck on display for Easter that parents let their kids play with and did not surprise very much.... She ended up with broken wings. But that never slowed her down... she could keep up with everyone in the flock. Her loss breaks our hearts and Dex's heart too as that leaves the Cayuga all alone.

Live traps are back out, coop  has been reenforced.... Now we must find Dex a companion.

The Feathered Flock's Groggy Gruel

Fermented grains with deWormer and Milk Kefir

This concoction that we have dubbed 'Groggy Gruel'.  To create this the grains soak in Water Kefir for 48  hours. I then strain them, pour them in a feeding dish, add 1 quart of Milk Kefir, 1/4 cup Thorvin Kelp, about one tablespoon of Vitalerbs or Herbal deWormer, depending on which day of the routine we are on and they love it.

The Grains soaking in Water  Kefir

The first three days with the new hens here, I put a herbal deWormer in it instead of the herbal vitamins/mineral mix. Routinely, I will give them the Herbal deWormer in the Groggy Gruel once a week and  the Vitalerbs Groggy Gruel the rest of the week

Five New Ladies in the Feathered Flock

We got five new ladies last night from a friend who offered them to us as he was tired of  watching them die off one by one.  Seems he started with 60 and he's been slowly losing them one by one.  They got in late last night so we put them inside the garage. This morning they were wide awake, stress free and ready to be turned loose.

So far, our five girls are doing pretty good with them. The ducks, however, seem to scare the new ladies, especially when they try to herd them around the range area.

First Ever Duck Egg!

We got our first ever duck egg this morning.

We believe this is from Dex, our  lovely Cayuga.

Chicken Killer Caught!!!

We were expecting to find another cat in the trap this morning.... not a juvenile raccoon.

Case of the Murdered Fowl

Well, we discovered it wasn't a raccoon. This morning when we went out to check our trap, there was a feral cat laying next to it, carefully eating the drumstick (bait) we had put inside, without getting in to eat it. I think I saw another one dash off. So, the chickens are not getting to free range today... because those darn cats will attack day and night.

Our First Loses

We lost one of our Red Comets which was already laying and our Mag Pie Duck over night. When I went out to take care of the critters first thing this morning, I noticed the dead body of the  hen, but did not notice the duck was missing until later that morning.  Do to the fact that the hen was ripped up and only small amounts were eaten, we assume it was a raccoon or one of the feral cats within the park. Maggie's body was missing, we found drag marks where the killer had dug out under the fence and absconded with her.   With sadness, Devlin and I cleaned up the mess and buried the hen under one of the trees she enjoyed dirt baths under.                       

The Chics Are Laying!!!

We got our first eggs! 

Our girls are all grown up! 

6 Chics... 5 eggs. 

Not bad for the first laying!

Completed: Fable Haven's Nest Egg Resort

Our Ladies checking out the Nesting Boxes.

Vents for breezes to pass through next to their roasts and 

a hatch to be able to open up for easy cleaning.

Progress Update: Fable Haven's Nest Egg Resort

I'm not the best freehand painter when it comes to lettering . 

The ladies are already checking it out.

Progress Update: Fable Haven's Nest Egg Resort

Nesting Boxes built and ready to be painted. They got Dyson's Seal of Approval!

Progress Update: Fable Haven's Nest Egg Resort

Chicken Feed Schedule

Progress Update: Fable Haven's Nest Egg Resort

All I want for Mother's Day is a.... Chicken Coop!

The Beginning of a Chicken Coop