Mrs

[BeckyBoo]

......it's a very long story but yesterday my OH took the children to Perfect Poultry in Ligh"Ooops, word censored!"er to have a look around (to keep them occupied whilst I was sleeping after a night shift) and to my horror came back with one cream legbar chick. She's about 11-12 weeks old I'd guess and he'd got her to replace a cream legbar that we gave away out of our first hatch. He was under the impression that she could go in with our current batch of "chicks" in the yellow Eglu. However, not only are there four of them, plus a very BIG Speckled mum, one of them is a cockerel and they are all 16 weeks old. So with my "alternative" housing already occupied with them there was nowhere to put her He meant well but for goodness sakes! Anyway, she went in with the chicks last night to sleep and I've let the chicks out today to free range so she can have the Eglu to herself. That means I've got to let the REST of the hens out so they can start to integrate with the chicks so that Bumble 2 (the new legbar) can have the yellow eglu to herself. Then later I've got to go out and get her a friend as she's stuck inside the Eglu in the corner all by herself. God! Men!

The upside is that the yellow Eglu that I was renting from Ian Bell at Perfect Poultry is now mine, OH managed to buy it for an absolute bargain.

 

I suppose I should be over the moon but yesterday he was anything but a Christian as I wondered what on EARTH I was supposed to do with ONE NEW HEN!

 

Mrs B

[Egluntyne]

erm....congratulations.

 

Have you got a dog crate that she could go in temporarily?

 

Great news about the yellow Eglu.

 

Welcome to the exclusive club.

[Purplemaniacs]

Ahhhhh! Good luck with your new arrival, hope you find a friend for the little one. Is there anyone who lives close to you that could lend you some temporary accomodation until you get the others integrated.

 

Chrissie

[BeckyBoo]

In fact ALL the hens (not the new legbar obviously) are currently free ranging together and basically I'm going to shut them all in together later on - the "chicks" are 16 weeks so fairly well able to stand up to each other, that means that Bumble2 and her new friend can have the yellow Eglu to themselves.

Honestly, the chicken juggling that's been going on here for the last 24 hours

 

Mrs B

[chelsea]

they do mean well im sure (OH came home with 2 hens from work! - unsure if male or female )

 

I think its one of those occasions where we have to smile but be seething on the inside!

 

Congrats on the yellow eglu by the way....what a result.

 

Would love some pics

Edited December 28, 2008 by Guest

[Cooks]

I had to smile at your Chicken juggling. I agree I would love to see some pics when your settled. I always thought that you should buy that yellow eglu...

[BeckyBoo]

As an update, Bumble now has a new friend - Honey a brown fluffy chicken of unknown descent - possibly a Brahma chick, maybe a big Cochin type fluffy thing, but anyway she's very pretty. If she turns out to be a boy I think I can swap her but in any case she was free as, once he starts becoming a nuisance Mr Bell at Perfect Poultry is going to have Scruff the gorgeous Brahma cockerel for us. So everyone's happy especially middle daughter who didn't want Scruff to end up in the pot!

Honey hasn't gone to be tonight, she's outside but she'll be fine (hopefully) the other chicks all seem to have gone to be with the big girls so fingers crossed for the morning.

 

Mrs B

[Olly]

I did chuckle at your OH ... would love to know what you said when he came home - 'Darling! guess what I've got!'

 

I sympathise about the chicken-juggling, I've just had to herd five chickens round the lawn to catch the new-comer to put her in the separate run, and then get the other four back inside ... and all this before 8.00 am. Thank heavens I'm not at work this week. Glad to hear Bumble has a friend, and you seem to have a great arrangement with Perfect Poultry!

[MedusA]

Am I alone in wishing my OH would "surprise" me in the same way?

 

I am forbidden from having any more hens until either nature makes a space or I can work on him very hard!

 

I hope Bumble2 and Honey settle in with their new friends. Congratulations on the bonus yellow eglu, Mrs B.

[skye]

Well done Mrs Bertie and good luck with your new (unexpected) addition! (Most jealous)

 

We've got a green eglu you could borrow if you have ongoing logistical problems.

 

Skye

(Pirbright)