Finally a sunny day. I know it’s early but it feels like spring. I treated the hens to their first watermelon and they loved it.
I tried getting pictures of them but when I am in the coop they are preoccupied with me and would not go to the melon.
These pictures I took while watching them on the iMac. Those silly hens!
The rind was all that was left when I visited them later in the day.
We are featured in an article in the local newspaper.
I enjoy and appreciate all the positive feedback that my endeavor has received.
Best regards.
Overnight we had wind driven snow fall of about 18″ and it is still coming down. I watch the hens on the in-house cam as they paced about and wondered where I was. By late morning there was a path shoveled out to the coop. I bring out their fresh vegetables and greens. I open the door (they normally fly out) but they won’t come out. They look about and wonder what that white stuff is. With the roof on the coop there’s just a dusting on the ground in the run. They won’t come out.
I put their greens in the hen house, close the door and continue to monitor them on the hen cam. Maybe they will venture out later.
They did not come out at all on Sunday. Why should they? They have all the comforts of home in that henhouse!
The hens had to make adjustments and now I am hearing from friends who also have to make adjustments. The earlier sunset tells the girls to go in for the night about 4:30pm. Unfortunately, friends who work full time and cannot access the website at work (due to blocks) are missing them altogether.
Therefore, they only see the chickens on weekends. So not only are the hens adapting to the shorter days but their fans are as well. I’ve attached this picture for you folks!
The change in time will have an affect on both me and the hens. Up until today, the routine has been let the hens out between 7 and 7:30am. Today, daylight was at 6:15am. That’s a little early for me and I need to stay on my time schedule, so I waited and watched the hens on my in-house hen cam. They were up and about. There is food and fresh water in the hen house so they were fine. But, I could tell they were anxious to get released. I let them out at 7:15am, set the feed trays, refresh the water supply and cleaned up. All is well.
Back in the house, I continued to watch them on the in-house cam. I guess it is the first time I really watched what happens inside the house. The hen named Guy (because we mistakenly feared may be a rooster), gets into the nest box and sits comfortably for the longest time. Other hens will periodically come in and out, not yet ready to lay I suppose. It is so endearing to watch.
Suddenly, Guy stands up in the nest box, squats, strains and then I saw the egg drop. Amazing! She bent her head down, rolls the egg around, wiggles her breast and butt and then snuggles onto the egg. The whole process is slow and methodical. She rest there for the longest time. Yet, my hens are not broody, meaning want to incubate their eggs. I can collect the eggs with no problem.
Eventually she leaves the nest, clucking about. Then Red, the biggest, bossiest hen gets into the same nest with the existing egg even though there are two empty nest boxes. Maybe it has to do with the warmth of the nest created by Guy. I watched Red and the process was just about that same. Truly the wonders of nature.
The leaves are fallen in abundance and the coop is taking on a whole new look. The trees in the background are almost bare and leaves are collecting in piles around the coop. This is our first autumn together, the hens and I.
And so, by days end, the dogs followed me around for an hour wondering why they were not being feed and the hens were walking up the ramp at 4:45pm thinking this day went by fast!
We found another great purpose of the coop cam. Our dear friend is fighting synovial sarcoma and going through her first bout of intensive chemotherapy. While lying in her hospital bed, she finds it relaxing and therapeutic to go onto the cam and watch the chickens.
What a surprise and great way to show our love and well wishes with this message poster. My niece researched and found that blue is the ribbon color of hope for this type of cancer.
So rest easy Boo, we are all her cheering you on. And keep watching the hens for comfort and entertainment!
The indoor coop cam has been installed. Although the henhouse is small and therefore, the camera is stationary, it is really neat to watch the hens inside the house. It will be very helpful during the winter when I assume they will be spending more time indoors.
Right now the camera is not able to send images to this blog but hopefully soon that will be the case. Keep checking back for the indoor cam and you may see, a hen in the nest box or a freshly laid egg in the nest. A hen on the roost or I could be collecting eggs and/or cleaning out the henhouse. Enjoy!
I love my coop cam (thanks Russell). I like that when I am in the basement, on the treadmill, I can watch my chickens. When I am in the kitchen, with my Mac nearby, I can watch my chickens. Of course, I can always look out the window. Or better yet, walk out to the coop. But I love my coop cam!
