The Chickens and Ducks So Far
The chickens and ducks have been fun, hilarious and, at times, a little stressful. This is a little run down of what I've learnt so far, for interests sake, and in case you thought you wanted chickens and/or ducks too!
CHOOSING WHERE TO GET THEM: THE DRAMA
Finding a farm that I felt comfortable buying poultry from was honestly hard. The internet doesn't really give you an easy list of places, let alone many that look ethical and trustworthy. In writing this now, perhaps that says something about the true nature of poultry farming. I thought that I had found a safe farm to purchase from when I came across a daggy looking website for the Wagners business. I arranged a day of pick up, got our carry boxes ready, planned all of our schedules - Alex, and my girlfriends planning to come along for the adventure too - and then the night before I realised that it might be a good idea to check some reviews online. Why I hadn't already thought of that beats me, but thank god I did before it was too late! The reviews were horrific. I quickly realised the Wagners business was all about intensive farming where the chickens were seen as a vehicle for profit and nothing else. I panicked. The images on the internet were unbearable to look at. Three years ago a vegan activist group that I follow had gone into the farm and rescued appallingly sick birds, photographed them and shown the world what went on behind closed doors and I remember seeing those images and having them tattooed across my memory as if it were yesterday. Fast forward these three years and here I was looking at them again, having arranged to go to that very same farm to purchase my own birds the next morning. My stomach fell. I contacted everyone; the chicken morning was off, and I had to find another supplier.
Fast forward to a few days later and my neighbour, the queen of loving chickens, gave me the number of a woman she trusted in St Andrews. I should have asked her for help in the first place! This time we had a wonderful experience. I contacted Mandy and told her of my dilemma with buying from Wagners. She understood, explained her set up and invited us out to have a look. Then if we were comfortable, we could buy our chickens and ducks from her. Her farm was wonderful. Much, much smaller, far more cared for, and the birds had wonderful pens as they grew from babies to "teenagers" before going to their new homes. Mandy's flock of ducks lived on her dam completely free-ranged. We walked over to an enclosure with five beautiful chickens and decided that since they were already friends, we would get these five. The ducks were called up to the barn so we could choose a couple and once inside, Mandy said that since she had too many males, she would give us one for free and that is how we ended up with Alfred!
This is Many's website if you are interested in purchasing from her https://chloespoultry.com.au
BRINGING THEM HOME/MAKING ADJUSTMENTS
As soon as we got home we let everyone out into their new home. Instantly the ducks escaped through a hole in the fence under a vine that we had failed to see and started to dash down the driveway. Cold sweat instantly ran over my body. We panicked, quickly got them back in and closed up the hole in the fence. Looking at each other I began to think 'were we really ready for this?!'
The first week we had them Melbourne was hit with the February heat wave - over 40 degrees daily for about 5 days in a row. We quickly had to extend the neat run Glenys and Alex had erected to give the birds access to relief in the shade of the big fig tree. Another moment of panic that we weren't prepared for this. The fence line hasn't moved since we extended it because the fig tree quickly became everyone's favourite hang out spot - safe and sheltered. The orange 'temporary' fencing around the fig tree is a bit of an eyesore and access to the veggie beds out the back, as well as the compost, has become far less convenient but the birds come first in this little operation, and so it stays. Our plan is to get some of the permanent fencing and fix things up over the next few months. We didn't plan for any of this. I guess this is like the panic that people have when they first have a child. You think you're prepared - you've read the books, the blogs, you think you've purchased everything and when it finally happens you realise you really don't have a clue what you're doing! It's all learning by doing, and whilst I've panicked a few times, the birds have been so much more fun and rewarding than I thought they would be, so they are worth any panic I have!
DUCKS LOVE WATER
I quickly felt awful that the ducks had lived on a dam their whole lives and now were confined to our backyard. What on earth had I been thinking??! I decided to get them a blow up pool to see if that would help. This was not a success. The ducks did not want to swim in it at all. Ducks, I have learnt, like smaller frequently changed water sources, rather than big pools...apparently? Ours at least always favour bathing in their drinking tub rather than their bigger swimming shell. Go figure. The pool was quickly deflated and instead we gave them baby baths and black tubs and they are much happier! If I'm honest, I didn't really think about the water bill either. Ducks love water. Ducks love clean water...and they love mud. So that means frequent water changes where we tip the water across the ground under the fig tree (making use of the 'waste' by watering the thirsty tree). The ducks have the most wonderful time foraging in the mud as we clean the centimetres thick silt that has accumulated at the bottom of their bathing tubs after just a few days and then they have a wonderful time slashing in their fresh water, turning it brown in seconds! Alex has looked at the water bills and they're hardly different to this same time last year meaning that despite the extreme drought our country is in, water prices have gone down?! I won't start to talk about how much this enrages me here, that is a conversation for another post. As a tiny plus, this means that we can give the ducks the water they need without feeling the cost.
If saving mains water and money on mains water is your thing, ducks are probably not the pet for you. But if you love seeing animals in heaven, having the absolute best time playing in mud and water, I would recommend getting them in a heartbeat.
THE COOP
The coop ended up being shorter in height than is ideal, meaning that I am the only one who can get in there to properly clean everything out (lucky me!). If we just had chickens, it wouldn't be a problem (I find myself saying that about a lot of things!), but as always, the ducks like to keep things interesting and make a mess of their water bowl each night meaning the floor of the coop in winter is always a muddy mess. For the first few weeks, everyone slept in the downstairs area which was very crammed. The ducks literally slept sitting on top of the chickens which was alarming, as often you couldn't even see the chicken being squashed underneath. Then slowly the chickens started to roost upstairs but by this time Glenys had already started to build a new coop behind the original coop. It's much taller, much easier to access and clean and the ducks like building their nests in this coop which is a positive. Of course, the chickens still prefer the roost of the old coop. I guess the exciting thing is we now have room for more birds if we want!
LETTING THEM IN/OUT
What a pain in the ass this turned out to be. Obviously another thing that we should have, but didn't, consider properly. With the changes in sunlight throughout the year, making sure we are always at home at night to put them away is very tricky. We're not 9-5 workers like a lot of people. In fact, we both most frequently work evenings. Life as a personal trainer just works out that way and although that works perfectly for my studies, it means I only have 3 nights a week where I could be the one putting the birds in. Alex also works the same nights as me.
If we could put everyone in the coop early a few nights a week that would be great but they hate being chased to do anything (fair enough!) and the chickens put themselves to bed according to the sunset each night if they are left alone so all we have to do is close the door behind them. Allowing them to do this instead of chasing them is obviously the more desirable option. So again, I say, THANK GOD FOR GLENYS! She has happily helped out by stopping by to put everyone to bed each night more times than I can count. A few months in and she installed an automatic door for the coop which would have revolutionised our lives had we only got chickens. The ducks...or should I say fucks...think that night time is the best time to run around the garden literally laughing at us as we tell them its time for bed. So, there still has to be someone home each night to shut the door until we figure out how to get the ducks to go to bed themselves.
The ducks are definitely the cheeky ones with outgoing personalities. Whereas the chickens are very relaxed most of the time.
EGG LAYING
We chose a breed that lays less eggs over their lifespan than commercial chickens meaning that they will live longer and have more natural lives. The girls are meant to lay about 2-3 eggs daily from the 8 possible birds. Thats 17 eggs roughly a week. So far, the chickens don't lay. The ducks on the other hand have been laying 2-6 eggs a day now that they have settled in. It's taken 5 months though. I don't know if the chickens will ever lay? I'm hoping the will in summer but who knows? This is the biggest joke of the whole experience but regardless, they are the most wonderful and fun pets. They each have their own distinct personalities, they are wonderful to watch and Eileen is my little best friend who follows me everywhere when I'm out there with them. They are also very worthwhile for a backyard veggie operation like we are starting to set up. So, despite everyone joking that we should eat them, we will lovingly have these girls until they die naturally, no matter how many eggs they lay.
Alex and I early on were discussing how the amount of eggs we get isn't the same amount that we were eating before we got the girls. I suggested that maybe, if they naturally don't produce that many eggs, that we naturally should be eating less and so that's what we've done.
DUCKLINGS
Duck sex is frequent. Another thing we just didn't plan for! (Because we never planned to get a male duck!) We have decided that if the girls start sitting on eggs that we will let them have ducklings. We have room for a few more birds and enough people to give the extras good homes. How can you say no to ducklings if you're presented with such an easy opportunity to have them??
I imagine this:
Which will then turn into this very funny, slightly alarming but fantastic problem:
DEEP MULCH
The run, before we got the chickens was filled with long grasses and weeds that I thought would sustain everyone for foraging. Well, that was a mistake because their yard quickly turned into bare compacted dirt! Because chickens love digging and dust baths and because I didn't want the soil to be further compacted, we got a trailer load of mulch from Glenys' friend who has a chipper and we spread this over most of the run. I will hopefully get another load to fill the rest of the space. As the mulch breaks down it will mix with the chicken and duck manure and turn into lovely soil, that once broken down enough, we can move onto the veggie beds and then get everyone a fresh load of mulch. As the mulch breaks down it will attract bugs that the chickens can dig for for extra protein. I'm excited to see if this deep mulch system works, but I don't see why it wouldn't. A lot of people who keep chickens create a deep mulch system for the same reasons we have.
THE NEIGHBOURHOOD/EXTRA BIRDS
Our chickens and ducks have friends that sleepover. Most of our poultry food expenses goes to feeding every single other bird that lives in our suburb. This is a problem we are yet to rectify. At any one time we will have 10-30 birds hanging out with the chickens and ducks; in the branches of the surrounding trees, along the fence line and in the coop. We have become the meeting place, soup kitchen and general safe place for way too many "extra" birds. I have no idea how we will fix this. We laugh about this problem, but it is definitely something we need to get on top of.
THE FUTURE
So, six months into our duck and chicken project I have looked up the average lifespan for khaki Campbell ducks and the internet says 10-15 years. We're in this for the long haul! My next project for my little family over this second half of the year is to get them some plants that they love and can nibble on. We will put these plants in wire cages so that everyone can only nibble on a plant as it grows through the cage, rather than demolish it like they did with our kale!
I also want to get some plants that are good for mites that we can sprinkle in their nesting boxes such as wormwood. Thinking ahed for summer, a quick growing vine that can ramble along their fence would be fantastic as well to give them some shade other than the fig tree. I'm currently thinking a passionfruit or grape vine. A grape vine would be good because they lose their leaves in winter which would allow the sun into their run when its cold and block it out when its hot. Any plants that are good for them, the bees/beneficial insects and us, will go into the garden over the next few months!
WHO IS WHO:
Just in case you wanted to know more, here is a quick run down of everyone...
EILEEN:
Eileen is notably the bravest of the flock. She will eat out of your hand, isn't scared of humans and lets me pat her pretty happily. She follows me everywhere, especially when I'm digging so that I give her the grubs and bugs that I find. When I go and collect the eggs she is right at my heel because eggs are her absolute favourite food and I always crack a couple for her (and everyone else) before going inside.
HEN:
A bit of a bitch and definitely the boss. The odd one out because for some reason she's not a brahma hen. Hen is always talking and loves to strut around. She is friendly, but doesn't like being patted and she is HEAVY! When we got her I had to carry her up to the car from their pen and she weighed a tonne!! I was shocked by how heavy she was. Hen loves dust baths whilst lying completely on her side in the sun with her eyes closed in pleasure.
ALFRED
Sex pest. Thinks he's in charge but really isn't. Is the "alarm duck" if danger is around, quacking like mad whilst the girls don't pay him any attention. He has only just started to eat the treats we give everyone and normally just watches everyone else with a look of suspicion the whole time. We realised he was a baby when we got him - have a look at his 6 month transformation from the day we got him to now...
photo - before and after
DUCK:
Snow white when bathing, but otherwise always covered in mud. Loves standing on the upturned pot in the tub (that they use to get out of their tubs) to clean herself and just generally be the queen of the castle. About the same size as Alfred - big, beautiful and heavy!
GUS:
Tiny. Must have been the runt in her nest. Generally quiet and doesn't fuss about anything. Prefers to just follow the leaders. Has recently learnt that she loves eating egg shells.
PETUNIA:
More a chicken than a duck (because she grew up with chickens rather than ducks). Very brave and happily independent whilst the other ducks are locked at the hip. Petunia loves pear...and loves eating anything really, especially egg shells, fussing to get them before Gus or Duck. The only one out of our 8 girls who consistently lays eggs. Because she didn't grow up with access to swimming water (I don't think) she isn't obsessed with swimming like the other ducks are. She just stands at the side of the tub and puts her head in which breaks my heart to watch.
CLUCK:
Cluck is timid and was bullied by everyone else for a long time, missing the feathers on her back where they were pecked out which broke my heart. Now no longer bullied her feathers are a beautiful apparent black, but in the sun they are a gleaming emerald green. She also always looks a little crazy, which I think I captured in her photo below!
JENNY:
So damn lazy. Often still asleep when everyones up in the morning and always asleep in a puddle of feathers in the corner during the day whilst everyone else is busy with 'jobs'.
AMELIA:
The forgotten chicken. Honestly nothing notable about her personality\ which sounds terrible but she's always in the shadow of everyone else. Often I will think everyone is there and then do a head count and realise she (or Jenny) is missing. Amelia is absolutely stunning though and definitely the most beautiful of the flock.
Love,
Liza
CHOOSING WHERE TO GET THEM: THE DRAMA
Finding a farm that I felt comfortable buying poultry from was honestly hard. The internet doesn't really give you an easy list of places, let alone many that look ethical and trustworthy. In writing this now, perhaps that says something about the true nature of poultry farming. I thought that I had found a safe farm to purchase from when I came across a daggy looking website for the Wagners business. I arranged a day of pick up, got our carry boxes ready, planned all of our schedules - Alex, and my girlfriends planning to come along for the adventure too - and then the night before I realised that it might be a good idea to check some reviews online. Why I hadn't already thought of that beats me, but thank god I did before it was too late! The reviews were horrific. I quickly realised the Wagners business was all about intensive farming where the chickens were seen as a vehicle for profit and nothing else. I panicked. The images on the internet were unbearable to look at. Three years ago a vegan activist group that I follow had gone into the farm and rescued appallingly sick birds, photographed them and shown the world what went on behind closed doors and I remember seeing those images and having them tattooed across my memory as if it were yesterday. Fast forward these three years and here I was looking at them again, having arranged to go to that very same farm to purchase my own birds the next morning. My stomach fell. I contacted everyone; the chicken morning was off, and I had to find another supplier.
https://www.alv.org.au/the-horrific-conditions-inside-an-australian-poultry-farm-revealed/
Here is the website article and further photos if you wish to learn more.
Fast forward to a few days later and my neighbour, the queen of loving chickens, gave me the number of a woman she trusted in St Andrews. I should have asked her for help in the first place! This time we had a wonderful experience. I contacted Mandy and told her of my dilemma with buying from Wagners. She understood, explained her set up and invited us out to have a look. Then if we were comfortable, we could buy our chickens and ducks from her. Her farm was wonderful. Much, much smaller, far more cared for, and the birds had wonderful pens as they grew from babies to "teenagers" before going to their new homes. Mandy's flock of ducks lived on her dam completely free-ranged. We walked over to an enclosure with five beautiful chickens and decided that since they were already friends, we would get these five. The ducks were called up to the barn so we could choose a couple and once inside, Mandy said that since she had too many males, she would give us one for free and that is how we ended up with Alfred!
Very exciting time for us but a scary time for the birds.
This is Many's website if you are interested in purchasing from her https://chloespoultry.com.au
BRINGING THEM HOME/MAKING ADJUSTMENTS
As soon as we got home we let everyone out into their new home. Instantly the ducks escaped through a hole in the fence under a vine that we had failed to see and started to dash down the driveway. Cold sweat instantly ran over my body. We panicked, quickly got them back in and closed up the hole in the fence. Looking at each other I began to think 'were we really ready for this?!'
The first week we had them Melbourne was hit with the February heat wave - over 40 degrees daily for about 5 days in a row. We quickly had to extend the neat run Glenys and Alex had erected to give the birds access to relief in the shade of the big fig tree. Another moment of panic that we weren't prepared for this. The fence line hasn't moved since we extended it because the fig tree quickly became everyone's favourite hang out spot - safe and sheltered. The orange 'temporary' fencing around the fig tree is a bit of an eyesore and access to the veggie beds out the back, as well as the compost, has become far less convenient but the birds come first in this little operation, and so it stays. Our plan is to get some of the permanent fencing and fix things up over the next few months. We didn't plan for any of this. I guess this is like the panic that people have when they first have a child. You think you're prepared - you've read the books, the blogs, you think you've purchased everything and when it finally happens you realise you really don't have a clue what you're doing! It's all learning by doing, and whilst I've panicked a few times, the birds have been so much more fun and rewarding than I thought they would be, so they are worth any panic I have!
Escaping the summer heat
DUCKS LOVE WATER
I quickly felt awful that the ducks had lived on a dam their whole lives and now were confined to our backyard. What on earth had I been thinking??! I decided to get them a blow up pool to see if that would help. This was not a success. The ducks did not want to swim in it at all. Ducks, I have learnt, like smaller frequently changed water sources, rather than big pools...apparently? Ours at least always favour bathing in their drinking tub rather than their bigger swimming shell. Go figure. The pool was quickly deflated and instead we gave them baby baths and black tubs and they are much happier! If I'm honest, I didn't really think about the water bill either. Ducks love water. Ducks love clean water...and they love mud. So that means frequent water changes where we tip the water across the ground under the fig tree (making use of the 'waste' by watering the thirsty tree). The ducks have the most wonderful time foraging in the mud as we clean the centimetres thick silt that has accumulated at the bottom of their bathing tubs after just a few days and then they have a wonderful time slashing in their fresh water, turning it brown in seconds! Alex has looked at the water bills and they're hardly different to this same time last year meaning that despite the extreme drought our country is in, water prices have gone down?! I won't start to talk about how much this enrages me here, that is a conversation for another post. As a tiny plus, this means that we can give the ducks the water they need without feeling the cost.
If saving mains water and money on mains water is your thing, ducks are probably not the pet for you. But if you love seeing animals in heaven, having the absolute best time playing in mud and water, I would recommend getting them in a heartbeat.
They love water and mud!
THE COOP
The coop ended up being shorter in height than is ideal, meaning that I am the only one who can get in there to properly clean everything out (lucky me!). If we just had chickens, it wouldn't be a problem (I find myself saying that about a lot of things!), but as always, the ducks like to keep things interesting and make a mess of their water bowl each night meaning the floor of the coop in winter is always a muddy mess. For the first few weeks, everyone slept in the downstairs area which was very crammed. The ducks literally slept sitting on top of the chickens which was alarming, as often you couldn't even see the chicken being squashed underneath. Then slowly the chickens started to roost upstairs but by this time Glenys had already started to build a new coop behind the original coop. It's much taller, much easier to access and clean and the ducks like building their nests in this coop which is a positive. Of course, the chickens still prefer the roost of the old coop. I guess the exciting thing is we now have room for more birds if we want!
Thank god for the help of friends!
Shorter than we imagined...
The new coop backing onto the old one - in progress.
LETTING THEM IN/OUT
What a pain in the ass this turned out to be. Obviously another thing that we should have, but didn't, consider properly. With the changes in sunlight throughout the year, making sure we are always at home at night to put them away is very tricky. We're not 9-5 workers like a lot of people. In fact, we both most frequently work evenings. Life as a personal trainer just works out that way and although that works perfectly for my studies, it means I only have 3 nights a week where I could be the one putting the birds in. Alex also works the same nights as me.
If we could put everyone in the coop early a few nights a week that would be great but they hate being chased to do anything (fair enough!) and the chickens put themselves to bed according to the sunset each night if they are left alone so all we have to do is close the door behind them. Allowing them to do this instead of chasing them is obviously the more desirable option. So again, I say, THANK GOD FOR GLENYS! She has happily helped out by stopping by to put everyone to bed each night more times than I can count. A few months in and she installed an automatic door for the coop which would have revolutionised our lives had we only got chickens. The ducks...or should I say fucks...think that night time is the best time to run around the garden literally laughing at us as we tell them its time for bed. So, there still has to be someone home each night to shut the door until we figure out how to get the ducks to go to bed themselves.
The ducks are definitely the cheeky ones with outgoing personalities. Whereas the chickens are very relaxed most of the time.
EGG LAYING
We chose a breed that lays less eggs over their lifespan than commercial chickens meaning that they will live longer and have more natural lives. The girls are meant to lay about 2-3 eggs daily from the 8 possible birds. Thats 17 eggs roughly a week. So far, the chickens don't lay. The ducks on the other hand have been laying 2-6 eggs a day now that they have settled in. It's taken 5 months though. I don't know if the chickens will ever lay? I'm hoping the will in summer but who knows? This is the biggest joke of the whole experience but regardless, they are the most wonderful and fun pets. They each have their own distinct personalities, they are wonderful to watch and Eileen is my little best friend who follows me everywhere when I'm out there with them. They are also very worthwhile for a backyard veggie operation like we are starting to set up. So, despite everyone joking that we should eat them, we will lovingly have these girls until they die naturally, no matter how many eggs they lay.
Alex and I early on were discussing how the amount of eggs we get isn't the same amount that we were eating before we got the girls. I suggested that maybe, if they naturally don't produce that many eggs, that we naturally should be eating less and so that's what we've done.
DUCKLINGS
Duck sex is frequent. Another thing we just didn't plan for! (Because we never planned to get a male duck!) We have decided that if the girls start sitting on eggs that we will let them have ducklings. We have room for a few more birds and enough people to give the extras good homes. How can you say no to ducklings if you're presented with such an easy opportunity to have them??
I imagine this:
Which will then turn into this very funny, slightly alarming but fantastic problem:
The run, before we got the chickens was filled with long grasses and weeds that I thought would sustain everyone for foraging. Well, that was a mistake because their yard quickly turned into bare compacted dirt! Because chickens love digging and dust baths and because I didn't want the soil to be further compacted, we got a trailer load of mulch from Glenys' friend who has a chipper and we spread this over most of the run. I will hopefully get another load to fill the rest of the space. As the mulch breaks down it will mix with the chicken and duck manure and turn into lovely soil, that once broken down enough, we can move onto the veggie beds and then get everyone a fresh load of mulch. As the mulch breaks down it will attract bugs that the chickens can dig for for extra protein. I'm excited to see if this deep mulch system works, but I don't see why it wouldn't. A lot of people who keep chickens create a deep mulch system for the same reasons we have.
THE NEIGHBOURHOOD/EXTRA BIRDS
Our chickens and ducks have friends that sleepover. Most of our poultry food expenses goes to feeding every single other bird that lives in our suburb. This is a problem we are yet to rectify. At any one time we will have 10-30 birds hanging out with the chickens and ducks; in the branches of the surrounding trees, along the fence line and in the coop. We have become the meeting place, soup kitchen and general safe place for way too many "extra" birds. I have no idea how we will fix this. We laugh about this problem, but it is definitely something we need to get on top of.
THE FUTURE
So, six months into our duck and chicken project I have looked up the average lifespan for khaki Campbell ducks and the internet says 10-15 years. We're in this for the long haul! My next project for my little family over this second half of the year is to get them some plants that they love and can nibble on. We will put these plants in wire cages so that everyone can only nibble on a plant as it grows through the cage, rather than demolish it like they did with our kale!
I also want to get some plants that are good for mites that we can sprinkle in their nesting boxes such as wormwood. Thinking ahed for summer, a quick growing vine that can ramble along their fence would be fantastic as well to give them some shade other than the fig tree. I'm currently thinking a passionfruit or grape vine. A grape vine would be good because they lose their leaves in winter which would allow the sun into their run when its cold and block it out when its hot. Any plants that are good for them, the bees/beneficial insects and us, will go into the garden over the next few months!
WHO IS WHO:
Just in case you wanted to know more, here is a quick run down of everyone...
EILEEN:
Eileen is notably the bravest of the flock. She will eat out of your hand, isn't scared of humans and lets me pat her pretty happily. She follows me everywhere, especially when I'm digging so that I give her the grubs and bugs that I find. When I go and collect the eggs she is right at my heel because eggs are her absolute favourite food and I always crack a couple for her (and everyone else) before going inside.
HEN:
A bit of a bitch and definitely the boss. The odd one out because for some reason she's not a brahma hen. Hen is always talking and loves to strut around. She is friendly, but doesn't like being patted and she is HEAVY! When we got her I had to carry her up to the car from their pen and she weighed a tonne!! I was shocked by how heavy she was. Hen loves dust baths whilst lying completely on her side in the sun with her eyes closed in pleasure.
ALFRED
Sex pest. Thinks he's in charge but really isn't. Is the "alarm duck" if danger is around, quacking like mad whilst the girls don't pay him any attention. He has only just started to eat the treats we give everyone and normally just watches everyone else with a look of suspicion the whole time. We realised he was a baby when we got him - have a look at his 6 month transformation from the day we got him to now...
photo - before and after
(I followed him (and everyone else!) around the yard all afternoon for an individual photo and this fleeting shot of him alone was the best I got!)
DUCK:
Snow white when bathing, but otherwise always covered in mud. Loves standing on the upturned pot in the tub (that they use to get out of their tubs) to clean herself and just generally be the queen of the castle. About the same size as Alfred - big, beautiful and heavy!
GUS:
Tiny. Must have been the runt in her nest. Generally quiet and doesn't fuss about anything. Prefers to just follow the leaders. Has recently learnt that she loves eating egg shells.
PETUNIA:
More a chicken than a duck (because she grew up with chickens rather than ducks). Very brave and happily independent whilst the other ducks are locked at the hip. Petunia loves pear...and loves eating anything really, especially egg shells, fussing to get them before Gus or Duck. The only one out of our 8 girls who consistently lays eggs. Because she didn't grow up with access to swimming water (I don't think) she isn't obsessed with swimming like the other ducks are. She just stands at the side of the tub and puts her head in which breaks my heart to watch.
CLUCK:
Cluck is timid and was bullied by everyone else for a long time, missing the feathers on her back where they were pecked out which broke my heart. Now no longer bullied her feathers are a beautiful apparent black, but in the sun they are a gleaming emerald green. She also always looks a little crazy, which I think I captured in her photo below!
JENNY:
So damn lazy. Often still asleep when everyones up in the morning and always asleep in a puddle of feathers in the corner during the day whilst everyone else is busy with 'jobs'.
AMELIA:
The forgotten chicken. Honestly nothing notable about her personality\ which sounds terrible but she's always in the shadow of everyone else. Often I will think everyone is there and then do a head count and realise she (or Jenny) is missing. Amelia is absolutely stunning though and definitely the most beautiful of the flock.
What a model!
I hope you've enjoyed learning about my new babies. As always, if you have any questions, I am always happy to chat. Until next time!Love,
Liza
Comments
Post a Comment