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Subscriber Letters

Crista : Just wanted to share an experience that we recently had. I have chickens 20+ weeks old in a 10x10 dog pen inside a barn shed. For three consecutive mornings when I went to feed I had a dead chicken laying in a large water trough that we had in the pen, on its side, for them to have to get out of the weather/sun. There was no apparent signs of stress the previous days and no markings on the dead birds. We immediately cleaned out all the water sources and added meds and let the birds out to free range. When we went to close up the pen that evening we found birds crowded into the trough and not using all the perches for sleeping and realized that they had actually smothered the three chickens that we had found. I knew this could happen to little peeps but never thought about full grown chickens smothering each other. Trough removed immediately and added another perch, so there was no excuse for anyone not to have a place to roost. Beware, so this doesn't happen to you. Crista Johnson of Chicken Lips Farm. Cuzzart, West Virginia

Sue : Hello from Australia. I have a public annoucement!! On the 2nd August 2011 I was very proud to present my first egg layed by my black and white Anconca spotty chicken Madame De Cluck. I am glad to say that both mother and egg are doing well though I had to laugh as the egg was quite elongated in shape!! It was seriously such an education.

This particular chicken is young and her head comb has recently just grown, dropping as it does to one side of her face, she has always appeared wary of people. But as time has passed she has followed in her chickensisters claw prints and became trusting of me. The other chicken, a little reddish Isa Brown both sit trembling slightly as they wait for us to stroke and caress them, telling them what good girls they are. The younger of the two had not yet layed an egg and was making a real curfuffle as she strolled around the garden earlier in the day. I put her back into her coop and she took herself upstairs to the nesting quarters. The little red hen was most curious and followed her, standing with her tail feathers peeping out of the door. She stood there like a little chicken statue for 45 MINUTES not uttering a sound until the black chicken had layed her first egg, announced it to the world with a loud cluck and they both vacated "the premises" in search of hidden delights in the garden.

These creatures bring so much delight to an otherwise very ordinary surburban garden here in Melbourne, Australia. They are so worth having, not just for the lovely brown eggs the ISA lays daily but for their most delightful personalities. Strolling around the garden as if they own the place, often sharing food with the rabbit who also lives freely out there..their only problem is the forever wagging tail of my cocker spaniel!!!! Best wishes, Sue Ostroff

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