Thursday, August 27, 2009

Little Red Hen

We have a couple of bonus hens in our laying flock-- a few of the 200 male broiler chicks that Cadence ordered were mis-sexed and grew up to be hens rather than roosters. A few days ago, a pretty red speckled hen began laying eggs. She had laid two eggs in the hay stack in the barn, which we discovered because she was so proud of herself that she couldn't stop bragging loudly about her accomplishment. When we took those eggs away she found a new spot--a cardboard box full of feathers from the roosters we had harvested! Kind of gruesome, but a pretty soft nest.
Her eggs are large and a deep brown color, darker than they look in this photo.
Several roosters have been vying for her affection and she seems fond of this handsome Rhode Island Red. I am considering keeping him because Chagall is a great protector of the 5 Aracaunas but doesn't seem interested in protecting any of my new young hens.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

What a nice surprise. :) She lays beautifully.