Those Darn Chickens

Nov
10

Every afternoon, I head over to the chicken house to get my eggs. I always thought chickens laid in the morning, but that’s not true. They lay eggs whenever they feel like it, and wherever they feel like it. My chickens, at least for now, seem to be in the habit of laying in the afternoon. The roosters greet me with suspicion. They get all up close and start pecking at me. I’m here to steal.

Daily, I usually find one brown egg and one pale blue egg right here.

And, yep, there’s the brown one. I came too early. I’ll have to come back later for the blue one.

There’s also one brown egg laid per day in one of the nesting boxes.

I want to reward the darling, well-behaved hen laying here, so I leave this nest alone.

Not that this makes the roosters like me any better. They don’t like me being here.

Roosters are a little scary-looking. Check out the comb on this one. It could be a lethal weapon.

This one’s particularly upset with me.

A few days ago, he ran out when I opened the door of the chicken house. I screamed, then grabbed his tail and threw all his tail feathers out of whack. Then I grabbbed one leg and from there managed to pick him up and throw him back inside.

Just so you know, you can’t pick up a rooster by the tail. But you can make him really mad.

I don’t think he’s ever going to forgive me for that.

I don’t know what to say about this one. I call him Floppy. He looks like he has some kind of comb deformity.

He hates being called Floppy.

Can he even see???

And then there’s this one. Proud Spartacus, lord and master of his chicken kingdom.

Except, you know, there’s that short thing. He can’t quite cut it with the other roosters.

Prepare to die.

:whisper: “Spartacus, you don’t really look that scary.”

Never mind. I didn’t say that!!! You don’t have to get all up close and everything–

Waitaminute. What are those two doing over there?

That’s the corner where they lay eggs. “Leave her alone! Maybe she’s going to lay an egg!”

Maybe I have finally discovered at least one of the hens doing the laying! Maybe she’ll lay an egg right in front of me! How exciting!

She sat there…..

….and rustled around, moving straw and feathers. Feathering her nest!

Then….

….she got up and ran out of there so fast I could barely get a picture of her.

And she left behind…..

….the same brown egg that was there when she arrived.

Half an hour later, I went back and found my daily pale blue egg sitting there. Did she come back and lay that one? Or did she lay the brown one and she just likes to visit her egg after she lays it and fiddle with her nest? Or was she not responsible for either egg and she is just some kind of stalker psycho hen who obsesses over other girls’ eggs?

Those darn chickens still aren’t talking.

Comments

  1. ML says:

    The chickens are so beautiful, especially Spartacus! I mean handsome for Spartacus. So are you going to let all those eggs in the nest hatch? And the mystery blue egg…I doubt the hen who laid the brown egg laid the blue one too, that’s just too fast for 2 eggs in a row…unless she’s a super chicken. :chicken:

  2. Alicia says:

    I would love to have chickens! It’s on my list of things to do in life. Who knew they could be so stealthy though?

  3. CathyBendzunas says:

    How do you know if the eggs you are collecting (or leaving there) are fertilized? I certainly don’t want to eat a fertilized egg! :chicken:

  4. Suzanne McMinn says:

    Cathy, there’s no way to know if an egg is fertilized or not, unless you have no rooster–then there’s no chance, LOL. Otherwise, there’s a good chance any egg might be fertilized. There’s nothing wrong with eating fertilized eggs. You can’t tell any difference.

    • susan says:

      actually, you can tell if an egg has been fertilized. they have a microscopic red dot on the yolk, i never eat those ones, it’s practically chicken abortion….lol i’m twelve years old and have 27 chickens, we sold 3 roosters so we have 1 left. my faves are Noodle(my rooster),Doodle, Nut & Olive!

  5. Heidi says:

    Sparticus is gorgeous – in a true ‘cock fight’ I would put my $$ on Sparticus. We have had bantie’s for years and they always seem to get the best of the big roosters. They go for the oponents eyes right away – they are so FAST and light…. But I see he is a well behaved Gladiator!! LOL

  6. Cathy J. says:

    I think floppy needs some type of chicken Viagra for that comb issue, lol.

  7. The Jillybean says:

    If you look up the different breeds of chicks you have you should be able to narrow down which are laying the blue eggs. I know that your black and white dominickers lay brown eggs. The ones that I know lay blue eggs are called Araucana or something like that. Here is a great site that I use:
    https://www.ansi.okstate.edu/poultry/chickens/
    Hopefully it will help you to.

  8. Shari C says:

    You have a mystery to solve of who is laying the eggs…a real chicken suspense thriller. You are certainly getting on the wrong side of the roosters…keep alert when they are around for your safety I think.

  9. beth says:

    I’m so glad you have a chicken post today! We got our chickens on Saturday. I was NOT going to get any Roosters!! NO ROOS!! I wanted 6 pullets. No more, no less. Well, I got less and 2 of those are roos!

    I do like them though. We have our own little Sparacus. He’s a barred rock we’ve named Tiny T. (T for either Terror or T-Rex) He thinks his is much bigger and meaner than the Sussex Rooster (Rocky). Who, is a sweetheart and let’s his gal (Ginger) take food right from his beak.

    So, maybe this spring we’ll try to hatch some sussex and barred rock bantam chicks. (of course I’ll have to separate the birds. Otherwise, I suspect Tiny will try to win over Rocky’s lady!

  10. TeresaH says:

    I think there is a conspiracy between Clover and the chickens to see who can drive you bonkers the quickest!

  11. Stacia says:

    Maybe floppy is a skater dude and he’s making a fashion statement!

  12. Will says:

    I had to leave a comment on today’s post. I’m a daily stalker, I mean reader, but today drove me to comment on the rooster with the floppy comb. It’s [drum roll please] a “comb over”. And we thought only insecure middle aged men did that!

  13. FringeGirl says:

    I love chickens. I just recently realized that you didn’t need a rooster to get eggs…ya, I know I’m a bit slow on the whole farming thing. I did have 10 chickens once, but they never got to the egg-laying point. A nearby dog attacked and well, that ended my chicken adventure.

  14. Becky says:

    Spartacus has certainly grown into a beautiful Rooster.
    Has the egg laying been able to keep up with the demand by the family. Too many, too little? Just curious.
    I’m planning to get chickens. But I think I’m gonna have to get more than I really wanted in order to keep up with the demand from friends and family. Oh, well. They will help feed them, so I won’t complain.

  15. Traci in GA says:

    Aww, Spartus all grown up is quite the handsome rooster!

  16. jane says:

    Yes Will – what is up with that combover thing anyway? Poor floppy – I feel for him you know. you have your hands full if it is not the chickens getting out, it is the goats not to mention the cats and the dogs too – never a dull moment though. Just say your temp 23 and high 49. wow i am envious

  17. Barb J. says:

    This was a hilarious post that had me rolling in laughter (yes, I am easily amused). Our chickens certainly have personalities, but you really made the personalities of yours shine!

  18. Lucy says:

    Chickens are just pretty little guys, aren’t they. And gals. Gotta keep it even.

  19. Lena says:

    I love the remark about the “comb-over”. Hillarious. I’ve got a good rooster story for you. True story about me when I was just a kid and my Mom’s rooster. https://mahvalicious.diaryland.com/070321_49.html

  20. Donna says:

    I cannot get over how PRETTY those Roosters are!! Now Floppy, is another story, bless his heart. LOL But, they are such pretty colors! THat was a HUGE box of eggs or nest of eggs!!! It’s exciting they are laying eggs now!!! I would LOVE to gather eggs. LOL :mrgreen:

  21. Amy says:

    :rotfl:

    You can’t grab a rooster by his tail?

    :rotfl:

    ::wipes tears from eyes::

    Thanks for a morning laugh. Totally puts me in the right frame of mind today.

  22. Abiga/karen says:

    We got five hens and one rooster. I was terrified of that rooster at first as we unloaded them from a transport cage to the coop. He was flying up and yelling at us as we tried to get the last stubborn chicken out of the cage. I also remember my son having a mean rooster attacking him and his wife after a hawk had terrified the rooster. They got rid of him then, so mean. Well it turns out this rooster we have now is the most “chicken” out of all the hens. He acts tough but then runs for his life. The dog decided to play with the hens one day so he ran all the way back to the coop and hid his head in a cement block cringing for quite awhile. Not kidding! Blessings.

  23. megan says:

    Poor Floppy. He’s obviously going through some tough teenage years and trying to make himself unique. It’s that whole emo thing, I’m told… 🙂

  24. Nancy M. says:

    Very funny! :butterfly: I love chickens!

  25. Tori Lennox says:

    Your chickens are SCARY! :rotfl:

  26. Carolyn A. says:

    Floppy looks like he’s wearing earmuffs. How funny is that! Maybe he needs a comb transplant. Do they have a comb club for roosters? *Tee Hee* xxoo

  27. catslady says:

    What a great blog! Hearing about all your animals is so much fun! My mother always tells me how much she hated having to go and get the eggs because of their rooster (they only had one but I guess he took his job very seriously lol).

  28. Susan says:

    You try using a ‘Nanny Cam’ to outsmart them! :flying:

  29. Estella says:

    Can’t wait for another installment of the Mystery Eggs!
    Spartacus is a gorgrous rooster.

  30. Suzette says:

    I take it the HENS don’t get upset about your taking the eggs??? I remember being scared of the roosters as a kid. Haven’t been around any since I’ve been a grownup…but the memory makes me wary of ’em. Of course, I was scared of the cows, too! LOL!

  31. Brandy says:

    I think Floppy is cute and Spartacus is misunderstood. *G*

  32. maddie says:

    I love Sparticus. He reminds me of this guy I used to work with…

  33. Lola-Dawn says:

    :wave: Love your chicken pix and stories … but what on earth are you keeping all those roosters for???

  34. DeeBee says:

    I think you need to install cameras in the hen house. And by the way, those roosters up close have creepy eyes. I was a little scared. 🙂

  35. Julie says:

    Why are you saving all those eggs in that one nest? Won’t they go rotten if no one is sitting on them? And if someone is sitting on them isn’t this a bad time of year to have baby chicks?

  36. Linda in San Diego says:

    The pullets with the greenish legs, EasterEggers, lay the green to blue colored eggs.

    We get 3 green eggs most days along with brown eggs, for a total of 9 to 11 eggs each day with a 12 egg day thrown in every once and a while. We have about 6 dozen eggs in the fridge right now. LOL

    Enjoy those darn chickens. :yes:

  37. Tressa says:

    Okay, who’s ready to sign a petition for a hidden “Chicken Coop Cam”? Operation Triple C! All those in favor, let Ms. Suzanne know we want a live web cam in the chicken coop. We’ll help you get to the bottom of the blue egg mystery.

  38. Kacey says:

    I foresee a video camera in the chicken coop soon so you can figure out the mystery!

  39. Cheryl says:

    I love the chicken stories because they sound so much like my own. I sometimes wonder if I’m normal to be so attached to and interested in all the chicken drama at my place. And you’re so right about the roosters…they are such suspicious fellows and don’t seem at all appreciative of the food and drink I supply. I must confess that my relationship with them is not as close as the one I have with the hens. It’s a girl thing, I guess.

  40. Crystal says:

    You have beautiful birds! These roosters look so handsome, which makes me want to raise some roosters next year. :mrgreen:

  41. Eric "Speedcat Hollydale" says:

    You really have a lot of chicken posts! … I do chicken Tuesdays, and am adding the link to this post. Awesome!!!!

    Hello from Speedcat Hollydale 🙂

  42. Taryn says:

    I have 9 hens, no roosters, and they are semi-free range. They all lay in the same place in the coop. One Rhode Island Red will find a laying coop-mate and lift the mate literally off the nest, to see if the mate has laid that egg, already. She is Chicken On Patrol. Another one, a Barred Rock, will scream with indignation if I show up while she is laying. “Do you MIND, I’m OVULATING!”

    I never knew chickens were so funny.

  43. Kelsi says:

    :chicken: Hey,
    I was wondering if you could have more than one rooster in the same pen or enclosure? :chicken:

    • Suzanne says:

      I had more than one rooster in my pen back when I had them penned, without any trouble, but I’ve heard other people say otherwise, so I suppose it just depends on your particular roosters!

  44. susan says:

    i’m 12 and i love my chickens… Doodle, Noodle, Nut and Olive. Doodle and Olive are Aracaunas, they lay blue or green eggs daily. btw- my moms chicken, Faith will NOT get off of her eggs! what do we do? we don’t want chicks and she’s big and mean! everyday i try to get her off the eggs, but she won’t move no matter how much i push! help any1?

  45. Diane says:

    My hens seem to be laying later. And later. And later every day. The ones that haven’t quit for the winter, that is.

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