Sunday, May 24, 2015

Answers

So, I'm a little embarrassed to admit how sad my family was to lose Mayzie this week, because after all, she was a chicken. :) I totally know it's ridiculous, but this is coming from the same person who, in fourth grade, was too upset to go to school the day my pet mouse died. Clearly, I'm a little sensitive when it comes to animals. I get very attached. And truly, Mayzie was special to us. (We have a few hens in our flock who really are just chickens...meaning while I definitely care about them, let's just say there might not be that special bond that can develop. I won't name names, because there's no need to be rude!) Anyway, sadly it seems that it's always the special ones that we lose first... Only the good die young type of thing. And when you own pets, you just need to know up front that there will be this sadness when they pass. So, of course, this is just the first of many losses to come. But clearly the joys of having pets makes it so worth the inevitable sadness.

With Mayzie, along with the sadness of losing her, came all the questions. Why did she die? What did I miss? Was there something I could have done to help her? Because I'm new to this, I enlisted the help of someone with much more experience than me. I took a chicken keeping class with Terry Golson before we got our own chickens. She has an wonderful blog (with lots of helpful articles and videos) called hencam.com which is an amazing resource for everyone with chickens. It covers just about every chicken topic you can think of and she has a few cameras set up on her farm, so you can watch her chickens and goats from your computer, if you don't have your own to enjoy! Because so few vets care for chickens, we are very lucky to have Terry so close by with all her chicken knowledge.

Terry came to Glen Hill Farm yesterday to help me figure out what went wrong with Mayzie, and to help me figure out what is still going wrong with Minerva Louise. What we determined was that the fact that these two hens got sick within days of each other, it was just coincidental. Their sicknesses, while similar, are not contagious. That was the biggest relief for me. She was also able to determine that there was nothing that I could have done to change Mayzie's outcome. Again, very comforting to hear as a newbie. Terry performed a necropsy (an autopsy for animals) on Mayzie to confirm these facts. I was desperate for answers, because I was afraid that my other hens were at risk, and performing a necropsy was the best way to get them. Because Mayzie died in my arms, I actually felt her spirit leave her body. (This was a first time experience for me and it was quite... 'traumatic' is not the right word, but something similar. Actually maybe 'incredibly sad, yet educational' is more accurate?) What that experience reconfirmed was that these bodies of ours are just things. They are just our vehicles for our spirits while we're here. The difference between alive-Mayzie and Mayzie's body after she died was palpable. And that is why I was okay with the necropsy. And, actually, not just okay with it, I wanted it. I wanted answers.

Terry finding answers for us.

What we discovered is that Mayzie's reproductive system had shut down, meaning her egg laying tract had malfunctioned. She had stopped producing shells. It also seemed that her digestive tract may have shut down as well. We couldn't determine why they shut down, but it was enough for me to know the reason of death. It was such a relief to know that it wasn't anything contagious, it wasn't worms, and it wasn't anything that would have been healed by medicine or treatment. Birds' have very fragile systems and there is just so much that can go wrong. Although it was sad for me to lose her so quickly, I'm glad that she didn't linger in pain.

Thanks to everyone who sent me a message when we lost Mayzie. It really meant so much to hear from you all! Thank you so much!

Minerva Louise is still hanging in there with us! She is noticeably healthier than last week, no longer hiding or limping. With that being said, Terry has warned us that it is likely that Minerva Louise may not be with us for much longer because of her unhealthy looking poops. Her best guess is that Minerva Louise is having an internal laying issue. But Minerva is still eating and drinking, so we are hoping for the best, and readying ourselves for the worst. Again, I'm relieved that her illness isn't contagious.

Going over Minerva Louise's recent health issues.

I love gaining knowledge.
(Can you see Jessie on the floor next to Terry? Clearly, she wanted answers, too.)

We have started Minerva Louise on Duramycin antibiotics. While it may not be able to save her, it certainly is worth trying. However, I am having quite a challenging time getting her to take it! Normally, you would add it to their drinking water, but I don't want the other hens to be unnecessarily medicated. I could separate her for the 10 days of treatment, but I really don't want to. If she's not going to be here much longer, I want her to be as happy as possible with her friends outside. So, I am trying to get the medicine into her by hand. Let's just say... Next to impossible! :) I tried giving her the medicated water by syringe last night, which was, well....comical. I think more medicine ended up all over me than in her. I tried again this morning. Again, wildly unsuccessful. I started putting mealworm treats into the medicated water, just to get her beak into the water. That was actually working, but she wasn't really drinking the water. That's when I thought of soaking some bread in the medicated water and feeding her the bread. Now that worked! So, I actually added more of the antibiotic powder to the water to make it more concentrated and continued to feed her the medicated bread. I have no idea if she's ingesting enough to do any help, but we shall see. She actually has been putting  herself to bed about an hour earlier than the other hens. It's sad to see, because it just confirms that she's not feeling 100%, but I'm hoping that the extra rest will help her heal. Other than her early bedtime--and her still yucky poop--she's acting mostly normal-- eating, free ranging and dust-bathing with her friends. It's nice to see.

Last week, after Minerva Louise stopped limping,
she started hiding.
Not a good sign.

Here she is last week, not hiding anymore, but clearly not feeling well.
This is what a sick chicken looks like. Very sad.

Minerva Louise soaking in a warm Epsom Salt bath in our barn sink.
This definitely helped her feel a bit better!
Amazing how something so simple seemed to help so much.

Toweling off with Ben after the bath.

Getting a little blow dry from the heater in the tack room.

My assembled tools to help Minerva Louise feel better.
Praying it will work.

She ate the antibiotic-water soaked bread!

She put herself to bed early last night. Good girl.

Please feel better soon, Minerva Louise!

Now onto some good new! This week, we had some landscapers come to help us get rid of the many vines (lots of poison ivy and some other vines) growing on our property. They did an amazing job and I am so thankful! Praying that it will make this summer much less itchy for me! There is still a ton of poison ivy around, but this is a significant start! I already have some poison ivy that popped up on my face this week, but I'm hoping that it may be the only spot for a while. Fingers crossed!


The baby/teenager chicks are doing great! They have become a cute foursome. Last night I had them all sleep together in the red barn coop. Everyone seemed to behave. I need to move them all into the big coop soon because they have become good flyers! This is the age where they have all their feathers, and are still light enough to actually take flight very well! They can easily escape the horse stall. So far they are just flying up onto the sides and back down, but it won't be long before they fly out of the stall altogether! And now that I know that I don't have to worry about Minerva Louise's health issues being contagious, I really should start this next transition sooner than later.



All four teenagers together in one coop.

Teenage rebels.
Up to no good, hanging out on the horse stall sides.

Matilda in flight! Yikes!


The dogs are just awesome these days. So adorably cute. Just what I need to balance out the worries of the hens right now.

Jessie girl.
Such a good pup.

Cooper stopping to smell the flowers.
Sweet boy.

Jessie, the boot stealer.
She steals the boots out of the barn. every. single. day.


Watering Can? Or water fountain for dogs?


Jessie wants a sip, too.
That's quite a dirty nose there, Coop.
Which flower pot did you get into this time?
Silly boy.

By the way, here's a link to Terry Golson's website: http://hencam.com/
Turns out she has chicken training experience, too! As well as dogs, horses and fish! Wow!


Friday, May 22, 2015

Hard Week

It's been a hard week here on Glen Hill Farm. Two of our hens became very sick, Minerva Louise and Mayzie. 

Happy to say that Minerva Louise, our amazing genius trick-learning hen responded well to some special care and seems to be recovering. 

But I am very sad to share that our sweet Mayzie, the Barred Rock hen who went broody and then adopted the two chicks, passed away last night. 

I'm not 100% sure what was wrong. I'm still new to this and there's only so much I can learn from Google and classes. I have an idea of a few reasons it could have been, but without the hands-on life experience I'm just not sure. And that's the hardest part. The not knowing if I could have helped her more. 

I feel fortunate that I was able to schedule a coop visit this weekend from a local chicken expert who is going to help me try to figure out what happened so I can keep the rest of my girls healthy.

I'll update you more after that to let you know if we figure it out. 

Rest in peace, sweet girl. I know you were just a chicken, but you sure were special to my family and gave us so many great learning experiences and memories.



Thursday, May 14, 2015

Mother's Day



Mayzie's babies aren't so little anymore

It felt kind of ironic that Mayzie decided she was all done with mothering as Mother's Day weekend approached. The day I posted my last blog speculating that Mayzie seemed to be ready to return to the big coop with the grown hens, was the last day Mayzie stayed all day in the horse stall with the younger chicks.

I was doing some morning chores, and I left the horse stall door open, as well as the door leading into the big coop. I had done this before, purposefully, to give Mayzie the opportunity to choose which coop she wanted to be in...with the big kids or little kids. And that morning, for the first time, Mayzie decidedly strutted out of the horse stall and right back into the big coop. Her babies did not follow her. Instead they stayed in the horse stall peeping very loudly as Mayzie walked out of their sight. (It was really kind of sad to witness.) I left the doors open for a long time in case Mayzie wanted to return to her babies, but she didn't, even though I know that she could hear them. Instead, she enjoyed the whole day outside in the fresh air, dust bathing to her heart's content. (By the way, Mayzie re-entered the big coop clutch without much drama, just a few pecks given and received to reaffirm her status among the original seven hens.)

They grow up so fast
Mayzie returning to the big coop

She headed right outside for a long dust bath

The chicks cried as Mayzie left, but eventually they settled down.  These chicks were 4 weeks old, so a bit young for their mother to leave, but certainly old enough to be just fine on their own, especially where they have most of their feathers in. And luckily, the timing of Mayzie leaving them and the weather cooperated, and I didn't have to worry about the chicks being too cold during the day without her that week.

That first evening I went out to check on everyone. The chicks had put themselves to bed in their usual spot.  Out in the big coop, all the grown hens had gone up to their roosting bars to settle in for the night... but not Mayzie. I found Mayzie in the big coop pacing around on the ground. I decided to take her back to her babies. It was a nice little reunion, and they quickly settled down to sleep together for the night, these teenagers still trying to fit under Mayzie's wings.

Trying to fit her babies under her wings


The next morning was a repeat of the day before. Mayzie escaped to the big coop first thing, for the whole day, even though her babies were peeping loudly for her as she left. That evening, when I went to check on them all, Mayzie had actually gone up to roost with the others. I decided to put Mayzie back in with the chicks anyway. I felt better knowing they would be together at night and Mayzie didn't seem to mind. This went on the same way the third day, Mayzie left at dawn and went to roost for the night in the big coop. That evening I didn't make her go back to the babies. Clearly, she had made her decision, and the weather was warm enough for the chicks to survive the night without her. The next morning I went out to check on them and everyone was fine. The chicks did fine on their own and Mayzie did fine on her own. It was Sunday: Mother's Day.

For some reason the timing made it seem a bit sadder for me. That on the day that we celebrate moms, it was the first day that this little family spent totally apart. But I suppose this is an important lesson of mothering for all of us. Instead of feeling disappointed that Mayzie didn't stay with her babies longer, maybe we should be celebrating that she felt it was time to let these chicks be more independent. Mayzie had done an amazing job adopting these two little chickies and she was a great momma to them. And then she knew her job was done there and she moved on.

"The babies" doing just fine on their own

As a mom of two middle school boys, it's crazy to know that my job with them is almost done, too. Yes, I'll always be their mom forever, but my actual job of mothering my babies, in its truest form, is starting to end. I can see it on the horizon. I'm going to blink and it'll be here. They will be graduating from high school, going off to college, finding jobs, getting apartments.... We'll no longer be this family of four all living under the same roof together. It's so sad to think about now. But it's supposed to happen. If they grow up and move out and become independent adults, that will mean that we parented them correctly. It will be a job well done.

Because I could keep mothering them the way I did when they were younger. Whenever they ask for a snack or drink, I could get it for them every time. But at this point, is that really helping them or hindering them? At this point, I hear myself saying more times than not, "I'm trying to get this (laundry folded, dishes cleaned, email sent) done right now, so if you can go get yourself some water/snack, that would be great." Well, truthfully, it's actually more like "Get it yourself, buddy" but you get the point. And sometimes, it feels like I'm being a bad mom, but then I remind myself that when I don't do everything for them, I'm actually teaching them to become more independent. And that's the whole point of mothering, right?

Thanks for the inspiration and reminders, Mayzie. Happy Mother's Day. And congratulations on a job well done.

Click on this link to see a video capturing Mayzie's mothering adventure that she shared with the rest of us. It may have only lasted a month, but it was full of sweet moments and lots of love.: Mayzie & Chicks 2015 video


The "teenagers" and "babies" mingling
now that the grown up is gone
The four chicks hanging out together now that Mayzie has left.
The "teenagers" boss around the "babies" a bit,
but it's actually more peaceful in the horse stall without Mayzie.

I actually love dandelions in my lawn.

Cooper daydreaming by the window.



The hens love to free-range along the edge of the property.


Can you see what startled these girls?
Look on the right hand side....(Cooper's nose)

Good guarding, Jess.

Everybody loves watermelon




Cooper watching Jess guard the hens in the background
from the shady spot under the trampoline.


Got some herbs into the garden


Please eat up all the ticks, ladies!


Daffodil smiling for the camera.
(Photobombed by Buttercup)


Found this bell at the Brimfield Fair,
and since we don't have a doorbell,
I thought it was perfect here.
And I can use it as a dinner bell.
Or when someone gives me a really big tip.


Wednesday, May 6, 2015

A Busy Start to Spring


Happy hens free ranging.
Jessie's on clean up duty.
Lots going on, so I'll get right into it...

HENS

During our hens' first year with us, their large run was fully grassed, so really, they didn't need to free-range because they had everything they could want right inside their very safe fenced-in run full of grass and bugs. However, this year, as I had suspected, the grass is not coming back inside their run. Between the chickens and the pine needles, it just didn't grow. So now is the time that I bite the bullet and let them actually free-range. It scares me a bit to do it because we have so many hawks and other predators around and I just want to keep them safe. It reminds me of when I adopted my first cat after college. I was planning to keep him as an indoor cat because statistics say that indoor cats generally live healthier and longer lives. When my sister heard this, she said to me, "How can you do that? Wouldn't you rather he have an exciting, interesting, shorter life, than a boring longer life?" She had a good point and ended up convincing me to let him be an outdoor cat. And she was totally right. (The funny thing is that years later, she got a cat of her own. And of course, he's....an indoor cat. :) )

Anyway, I feel like the same reasoning needs to be applied to my chickens. A shorter, interesting life is better than a longer, boring life, right? So, my kids and I are working hard at trying to let our worries go and let our hens free-range for real. The good news is that it's been going well! We actually have been letting our dogs out with the hens. I'm happy to say that the dogs have been awesome! They love hanging out with the hens. Cooper seems to be guarding them from afar. (When the neighbor's dog started barking, Cooper ran over, it seemed, to keep him at bay.) On the other hand, Jessie follows the hens around very closely. It looks like she's trying to herd them all together, and maybe she is. But I have a sneaking suspicion that she's really just following them around so she can eat any poop they drop along the way. So gross. But hey, it's a win/win.... Jessie earns a "treat" every once in a while and her presence is totally going to keep the foxes and hawks away. Here's video to see her in action. Is she herding Daffodil back to the other hens? Or just waiting for a "treat"? Jury's still out. She reminds me of the clean up crew that follows behind the horses in the parades..... Jessie Herding Daffodil

The hens & dogs.

You're a great lifeguard, Jess!

Classic farm scene


black, white, and black & white

Chicken parade
 with clean up committee following

Fluffy chicken butts


TEENAGERS

Next up, our "teenagers". Ruby and Matilda are doing great. They adjusted nicely to Pearl's leaving, and have become a very cute twosome. (Pearl --maybe we should call him Earl now?-- is doing great at his new home at the Hillside School, by the way.) Ruby and Matilda are almost totally feathered out at 6-and 5-weeks old, and with this warmer weather I've been shutting off their heat lamp during the day, and just turning it on at night. I've been trying to merge Ruby and Pearl with Mayzie and her babies, but it isn't going very well. They have been in separate coops in the same horse stall for 2 weeks now and when I let them mingle, Mayzie is just as mean to these teenagers now as she was the first day. Lots of Mayzie charging at them for no reason at all. Matilda did get a cut on her beak after Mayzie chased her, but it was a small cut and is healing quickly. So, my hopes of Mayzie taking all four of the younger ones "under her wing" (like that?) before they all go into the big coop just isn't going to happen. Oh well.
My sweet teenagers, Matilda & Ruby
Mayzie antagonizing the teens,
as they cower in the corner away from her.
Poor Matilda with a tiny cut on her beak,
after being chased by Mayzie


MAYZIE & THE CHICKS (Fern & Charlotte)

Here is what's happening with Mayzie and the chicks. Yesterday morning, I walked into the horse stall where they are, and I heard Mayzie cooing at me. Which got my attention because before Mayzie went broody, she had the sweetest little coo. She never sounded like a chicken, her voice was always more like a dove cooing. But when she went broody, her voice changed. While she was broody and mothering these chicks, she took on making that classic "cluck-cluck" sound that you think of when you're thinking of chickens. (If you ever think of chickens, that is! Just me? LOL) Her voice became totally different than her normal coo. Anyway, I thought it was really strange to hear Mayzie's coo yesterday, since she hadn't made that noise in almost 2 months!

Mayzie also has started to "fly the coop" a bit. She's been flying up to land on the horse stall door and peeking back into the big chicken coop (it's right next door and the door was open so she could see in.) I thought that she was going to fly down and go visit her old friends, but she didn't. I could tell that she was literally "on the fence". She totally wanted to go back into the big coop, maybe just for a little while, but in the end, she went back down to her babies.

Mayzie "on the fence"

Mayzie almost ready to "fly the coop",
(or technically, fly back into the big coop.)

Later that day, I offered Mayzie some kale and she did another thing that surprised me. For the first time since the babies arrived, she just gobbled up that kale. She ate the whole thing herself, and fast. Her babies were at her side and she didn't drop one piece down for them, even though they were peeping cutely below her. And you know what? I totally understood you, Mayzie. Once in a while, as a mom, you just want that one treat all to yourself. Kind of like the mint-frosted-chocolate-chip-brownies that were in my fridge. There were only two left, and really, I should have saved them for my kids after school, but good lord, I couldn't not eat them. I ate them both and they were so good. And when Ben came home and said, "Can I have a mint frosted brownie?" I had to say, "Um, they're all gone." "Gone?" he said confused. "Yes. Gone." I said quietly. Because, like you, Mayzie, sometimes the mom just needs to take the treat just for herself, right? Can I get an Amen? Granted you've only been mothering for four weeks, and I've been at it for 13 years, but I got your back, lady! You keep that kale all for yourself this once, you've earned it! :)

And then, when I was cleaning their coop a bit, I found another surprise, which kind of helped to explain Mayzie's change in behavior. It turned out that for the first time in two months, Ms. Mayzie had laid an egg. When hens go broody and are mothering, they stop laying eggs altogether. It's a hormonal thing. Well, clearly, Mayzie's hormones are starting to return to normal. She's no longer broody and she's easing up on her mothering, right as the chicks turn one month. It's a bit on the early side for her to let go of her mothering responsibilities, but not too bad. (Ideally, that happens around 6 weeks old.) She's not totally done with her babies quite yet, but I can see the progression starting.

My guess is that she's going to be done mothering before the babies are big enough to go into the big coop with her. Which actually may work out great. If Mayzie returns back to the big coop without her babies, then the four younger ones will have a better chance of bonding as a group (without Mayzie interfering with her bullying the older two.) I think that might actually work out better: to send in the four younger ones in together as a group. Instead of sending back Mayzie with her two babies, and having the two teenagers fend for themselves. A group of four sounds safer to me. We shall see. Time will tell, and Mayzie's behavior will ultimately make the decision for all of them.

By the way, these Welsummer chicks finally have names! The more cautious of the two is named Charlotte and the more adventurous of the two is named Fern. (Anyone recognize the names? Tipping my hat to the girls of "Charlotte's Web".)


Mayzie and Charlotte
(Look how big the babies are now!)

Say hello to Fern
Didn't they grow up so fast?

Fern & Charlotte
4 weeks old
Old enough to nap without their mom on a warm day.



Mayzie's unexpected egg!
AROUND THE FARM

So pretty! Blossoms blooming!

Jessie has the cowboy boot.
Cooper wants the cowboy boot.
It doesn't belong to either of them.

NASTY. NASTY. NAST-TEEE.
I saw Cooper rolling in the grass out in our back pasture.
That's never a good sign... Usually it means he's found something gross
that for some ridiculous reason he wants to get that smell onto him (like horse poop.) Yuck.
I went to investigate and I found this lovely carcass.
THANK GOD it was just beyond the dog's electric fence so he couldn't touch it.
Instead, he was rolling around as close to this as he could get without getting zapped.
My guess is it was a skunk at one time? Maybe a fisher cat? Blech.

And the picture below is even nastier than the one above, in my opinion! 
My nemesis has made an appearance....
Leaves of three? Shiny red leaves?
Not totally sure if it's poison ivy, but I'm not touching it, that's for sure!
This popped up right outside my front door.
This year, we're hiring professionals to help us get rid of it.

Someone on our street had some trees cut down and was giving away the stumps.
How could I not grab this heart shaped piece?
Pretty sure it weighs twice as much as I do, but I did it!
I loaded it into my car all by myself.
Where there's a will there's a way!