Ballad of the broody hen – Part 3

December 26, 2009

Chook house overlooking the olive grove

Read Part 1 and Part 2 first.

In the three weeks leading up to our Thanksgiving party, I checked Ethel every day to make sure she was still sitting on those six precious, mail-ordered eggs.

When she stepped on one egg and broke it, we were suddenly down to five.

And then, around two weeks into the 21-day incubation period, our dominant hen Henrietta did something which complicated everything.

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Ballad of the broody hen – Part 2

December 19, 2009
Broody chicken in the chicken house

Ethel broody on the chook house floor

Read Part 1 first.

“There are two main ways to get a hen off the cluck,” Aussie Bronwyn said over the phone. “For the first way, you need a bucket, and for the second way you need a trap…”

Get a large bucket. Fill it with cold water (but not too cold). Pick up the offending chicken – holding her tight and making sure her wings are pinned. Now, very quickly, stick her backside in the bucket.

“Once her backside’s wet,” Aussie Bronwyn said, “she won’t want to sit down on any eggs, and she’ll forget the whole thing.”

“If she’s still broody after that, you can use the trap. But I think it’s even more cruel than the first.”

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Ballad of the broody hen – Part 1

December 12, 2009
Broody hen in the nesting box

Ethel in the nesting box

About two months ago now, I walked out to the chook house one morning to find that overnight one of our chickens had transformed into a growling, rabid beast.

She’d taken command of the nesting box, and every time I went near her she let out a threatening growl, puffed herself up, and tried to bite me.

It was Ethel, one of the two Light Sussex chickens that Rick refers to as ‘the fat English ladies.’

“Ethel,” I said. “You’re a chicken, not a dog. Stop that.”

She growled again. It was clearly some kind of identity crisis. I scratched my head. What do you do when your chicken thinks she’s a dog?

Then it dawned on me. This was worse than an identity crisis. This was the day I’d been dreading.

We had our first broody chicken on our hands.

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Kiwi country Thanksgiving

December 5, 2009
Roast turkey

Our roast turkey

Rick called me at work on Thursday morning in a panic.

“Did you see the weather forecast for Saturday?” he said. “It’s horrible. Rain all day. Should we cancel Thanksgiving?”

For most people, the idea of canceling Thanksgiving on account of a little bit of rain would seem a ridiculous idea, but they’ve never been to one of our Thanksgiving parties.

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Moon’s an ONYA finalist

December 4, 2009
onya logo

Great news. I’ve just learned that ‘Moon over Martinborough’ is a finalist in the very exciting ONYA awards!

The ONYAs celebrate those who design, develop and create New Zealand’s best websites and applications.

One of the judges said, “Jared’s blog is engaging and entertaining; he is taking the Wairarapa to the World and doing so with aplomb…”

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