Duds.

I'm a frustrated chicken keeper. I've had three chickens since the beginning of summer, and they haven't laid *ONE* egg. Well, I take that back. I first got my little Della from the pound, and she laid three eggs when I first got her. She's a bantam, which is chicken talk for a midget, and her eggs were so little! So cute! But then I got two more chickens in mid-June, two pullets, which is chicken talk for an adolescent. I wasn't expecting them to lay at first, because they hadn't hit chicken puberty yet. I don't know if there's a chicken word for puberty. So I wait. And wait and wait. In the meantime, Della is on strike from egg laying and has become the queen of the pecking order, quite the little beyotch! She pesters those sweet girls all day long!

So I've been waiting for almost four months now, and they still haven't laid any eggs. No eggs. None. I've given them several nesting boxes around the run (that's chicken talk for their yard). I've planted decoy eggs in the boxes to trick them into egg mode. I've put in fresh, new straw, and I've hidden one of the boxes in the brush for privacy. NADA! NOTHING! I think I have three duds.

As far as the coop goes, they've been very happy in the coop that Daniel and I built in June. But they've been in the exterior part the whole time - it's more like a screened in porch than a coop. A beach house, a summer home, a camper... the shed that is their coop-to-be still needs to be furnished inside with a roost - that's chicken talk for a perch - and some nesting boxes, and eventually I want to put in a window, paint the interior, etc. But for immediate purposes, I need to build the roost! If it doesn't rain on Sunday, that's my plan.

Here Chickie Chickie Chickie!

I GOT MY FIRST CHICKEN!!!!!  Meet Della, the "Delaware Mix"! Isn't she darling? I found her at the Burbank Animal Shelter, of all places! We have a local no-kill shelter that takes in mostly dogs, cats, and rabbits, and on occasion they'll have a range of less common animals. I happened to swerve into their parking lot on impulse the other day, and there she was. My new little girl.


There were two chickens, actually. And I debated taking them both. I really wanted to! But the other chicken, a rare breed called Black Sumatra, is a bit aggressive by nature, and I didn't want little Della to spend the rest of her life running for cover. 


(Sidebar: If anyone wants a beautiful Black Sumatra for 5 bucks, go get her! She's really pretty and is laying a LOT). 


At first I thought that Della was a "bantam". A bantam is a midget chicken. I'm learning all sorts of new chicken words... it's its own world, I'm tellin' ya. Anyhoo, turns out she's just a youngster, probably 8 or 9 weeks old (I also learned that chickens start laying after about 9 weeks). That's my estimate anyway, know why?


BECAUSE SHE LAID HER VERY FIRST EGG!!!!!!

Meet our first grandegg!!!!!!!! I'm so proud!!!!! So proud, that I don't mind posting this really unflattering picture of myself. Well, I kind of mind. Whose arm is that?

Anyhoo (I said anyhoo twice), look how petite this her first egg is! It's the most beautiful egg I've ever seen. It's light tan in color and reminds me of a Victorian lass with porcelain skin and a rosy blush. It looks bigger than it is by the tape - in actuality it's just longer than an inch. And it's just the littlest, lovable egg in the world! I might just have to blow out the insides (hello breakfast) and keep the shell forever. Maybe make it a Christmas tree ornament or hang it in my kitchen.

Poor Della is lonely though. So come Thursday, I'll have my full flock fathomed! I'm going to place my order from Dare 2 Dream Farms in Lompoc, CA today for 3 or 4 more chickens. An Americauna, a Salmon Faverolle if they have one, and maybe a Buff Orpington. There are SO many choices for awesome chickens.... I really want a white Silkie, but I'm not sure that they have them. Or a white Frizzle. What's better than a truly ridiculous chicken....


So there ya have it! The latest of my chicken adventures! I'll post more pictures of chickens and the coop in my next blog, after the girls arrive. Sneak peek: my mom had to cut down a dead walnut tree and I got a great branch that I put in the coop for a roost. Little Della loves to sleep up high and really likes her new branch. 


Life rocks. And chickens make it better. 


B'GOK!

The Construction of Orpington Abbey

We did it! We built the coop!

My friend Daniel came over and we did it together. I call him my friend now, but he was just a worker before we built the coop together. I met him through my brother's tree guy, Salvador, who came over several weeks ago with Daniel and one other guy and planted some trees for us. Daniel does construction too, so I asked him to help me build a coop. We got along great and we had so much fun, that now he and I are buds. 

See how we framed in a lean-to? That was the first step, of course. All it took was 2x4's, a tape measure, a pencil, and a saw. With the two of us working, it went up in a jiffy. 

Sawing 2-by's under the olive tree

That's me, framing doors inside the run

Daniel did most of the work, because *SOMEONE* had to take the pictures. 

Daniel was really great at knowing how to do things like making the slope of the roof the same on both sides. We initially thought we'd make a wire ceiling, then decided it was better to make it covered. We considered a real roof (too much trouble), or that plastic, corrugated stuff which I actually really like, but Daniel didn't (hey, I'm really good with allowing artistic license), so we opted for particle board, which we already had (free is king), and I also had a roll of tar roofing paper (God knows why) to make it somewhat water proof for the one-and-a-half-days-a-year that it rains here. 

Ever wonder how to cut a hole in a wall and make a drop-down chicken ladder? Well have I got some valuable information for you! 

First, locate the center between the studs with a tape measure. Put a nail or a screw through it from the inside. Do the same where you want the bottom corners to be.

Next, mark the bottom with a pencil from the outside, then mark the sides and top using your tape measure and a level. 

We cut ours with a circular saw called a Skil Saw. Since it's circular, it doesn't cut all the way to the corners. That has to be done with a straight blade. 

Daniel laughed at me when I handed him my rusty saw. 

But it worked! Who's laughing now!!!!!!!!!!!!  

 TAA-DAAAA!

I like to shop at the American Cancer Society thrift store in Burbank (we call it The Cancer Store). Sometimes I find some really cool stuff.








But one day I found really practical stuff. There was a whole table of Stanley hardware, and everything was a dollar. I bought these hinges, as well as a bunch of other pieces that I'll probably never use.

See the ramp??! It latches at the top. We nailed a few strips of 1x1 (that's the measurement of the wood) to the ramp for little chicken feet to grab onto as they waltz into their house. 

See the roof? We ended up putting one more 2x4 across the ceiling so it won't start to sag. 

This view is actually from the front door. There's a back door, as you can see, which opens to a little enclosure where I'm going to plant "chicken salad" - a seed mix of greens that chickies really like. A Chick Pic! 

We realized that we needed to proof the open eaves from predators, so we nailed up some chicken wire.  We nailed it to the top edge of the roof, then to the wall. We used a long piece of 1x3 to cover the edge and scoot it up to the edge of the beams. I know that rats and mice are small enough to get through chicken wire, but at least it'll keep out the possums and raccoons.

YAY DANIEL! YOU'RE MY HERO!!

When we landscape the backyard, this is where the fountain will go. But that's another story.

I LOVE MY CHICKEN COOP!

And there ya have it. Next step: the interior of Orpington Abbey. Thanks for reading! B-GOK!

Clucky Me

It's Saturday morning, finally a day off! It's only 5:45 and I should be still asleep. But when I drifted slightly out of my slumber a few minutes ago, I was feeling so peacefully happy and in love with my life that I wanted to get up and start my day, sitting up in bed with a cup of hot coffee and my phone for a few rounds of Words With Friends. But I chose my laptop instead, because I want to tell someone.

My husband was offered a few hours of overtime at work, so he got up early, and that's why I woke up. He came to kiss me goodbye, like he does every morning. And like every morning, after he left, I could smell his cologne on me, and that always makes me feel happy. I love that. Sitting here in bed, smelling my darling's cologne on me. 

I opened up the curtains and felt a gush of happiness looking at my backyard and the gray, overcast morning. The view from my bedroom probably wouldn't do much for most people, but I love it. It takes me back to a time when life was really simple, whether it was in my childhood or someone else's. It's basically a big dirt lot with some immature trees, the old tool shed that's about to be the new chicken coop, and some basic paddock fencing. I can't explain it... it just fills me with happiness. 

In a couple of hours, my daughter Toluca is picking me up to go hiking. We're also swinging by my mom's house and grabbing her. If this gray weather lasts, it'll be perfect for hiking. We live in a valley surrounded by small mountains and have our choice of hiking trails. I normally go to Wildwood Canyon, which is near my house, but my daughter likes Griffith Park, so today we're going there. I'm really looking forward to yak-yak-yaking it up the mountain, just us hens! 

I'm really lucky. I know I am. I'm happy and fulfilled and excited for what lies ahead. And I wanted to acknowledge that luck by proclaiming it to you.

Coffee's ready, and I'm done writing for today. Thanks for being my friend!

Why did the punk rocker cross the road?

HE WAS STAPLED TO THE CHICKEN!!!!!!!!!!

Blogging along on the bottom of the beautiful briiiney sea...

Mornin! 


I just read a few blogs for the first time ever. I'm a little intimidated by the formatting and stuff. In fact, when I post this ...post, I have no idea if it will show up as part of my chicken blog or in a new section or what. Will I need to have "sections"? 


Anyhoo, I hope I don't disappoint anyone as I learn this new world of Blogging!


I haven't made any advances toward my goal of getting chickens since last week. My husband and I are still changing our minds everyday about the design of the new, California drought-resistant backyard, and my chickies are part of the overall project. For now, I'm just dreaming about their comical beauty and imagining their whines and clucks filling my backyard. And picking them up and scratching their necks and getting that weird, powdery stuff on my fingers. If anyone knows what that is and it's gross, DON'T TELL ME! 


My mom just called and said that I don't need to know anything about "blogging", and to just do it. Thanks mom! 


Until the next one...


B'GOK!


(i'm trying to find the "post" button. Or the "publish" button. Or however you finish this thing)

B-gok! bok bok!

It's Mothers' Day. I woke up thinking about my old chickens.

I had two Rhode Island Reds back in the early '90s that were given to me by a friend making a movie, so they were "movie chickens". I had no idea how to take care of chickens, and I figured (correctly) that they'd do fine just thrown into the yard. I introduced them to my Golden Retriever, Paco, who was more than delighted to follow them around, sniffing their butts. The chickens didn't really care either way. Did you know that chickens actually have personalities? Not great ones, like Golden Retrievers, but distinct nonetheless. One of my chickens was really nice, and liked to be held and petted. The other one was an ol' biddy, kind of snotty, not very friendly. Attitude, table for one! We lived in North Hollywood in a little guest house with a private yard, and they were a great little addition to the place. It was fun finding eggs here and there, and it was particularly funny when I would leave the back door open and they'd come in. It's really weird to see chickens walking around inside the house.

Because of their personalities, I named them after my then-husband's two aunts in the south of Italy... Zia Marina (the sweet one) and Zia Serafina (the ....other one).

When we moved to Burbank, we took our chickies with us. We had a much bigger back yard, had a daughter (my darling Toluca), and added another Golden and a cat to the mix. Everyone got along great, except that Zia Serafina once attacked Toluca and scared the bejeezus out of her. Little shit!

What ultimately happened to Zia Marina and Zia Serafina? Well, one day, my best friend Jennifer came over to play. Her dog Joe, a chocolate lab, was pals with my dogs. We let them play in the back yard while Jen and I hung out with Toluca. We were sitting on the steps when Joe came up, full of love, offering a present to Jennifer. Zia Marina! Oh nooo! Not the nice one! That was that for her.... and we were left with tough Zia Serafina. I was sadder than I'd let on about Zia Marina because Jennifer was horrified and I didn't want her to feel any worse than she already did. I eventually gave tough Zia Serafina to my friends, Alex and Merdy. I think they gave her a good home.... either that, or threw her in the menudo.

FAST FORWARD!

It's 2012 and I'm ready for more CHICKEEEENNNNSSS!!!! My backyard is about to be transformed into a California-scaped paradise, with a chicken yard in the back. Our house was built in the 1930's and there's an old tool shed that I think was built at the same time. It's old and weathered with peeling paint and rusty hardware, and therefore my favorite backyard treasure. I refuse to tear it down! Instead, I just hired a few meaty boys to move it to the back of the property, making room for the new backyard and converting it to a chicken coop at the same time. I AM SO EXCITED!

And that's why I'm starting this blog. I want to tell you allll about it. Not so sure you want to *hear* allll about it, but that'll be up to you.

Here's what I'm thinking: I'll have to first come up with a design for the inside of my coop. It's an 8' x 8' box with a solid roof and a plank floor. I plan on cutting a square hole in the side and reattaching it with two bottom hinges and a sliding lock on the top, so that it'll fall open and be it's own ramp, like in the cartoons. I'll nail a few 1 x 1's on it for steps. I also have a really expensive window left over from our house renovation a few years back, so maybe I'll install that on the back wall... for the purpose of shoveling out poo to the future compost pile.

I want awesome chickens. I want amazing, flavorful eggs like the ones they have in Italy. I want the chickens to be pretty and/or freaky looking, friendly if possible, and -why not- blue eggs! Did you know that there are chickens that lay colored eggs? There are these lightly tinted blue and green eggs, as well as the browns, and speckled eggs, too. Don't worry, they're all the same on the inside. I want them to graze and be friends with my dogs, and I want to feed them delicious, organic food and table scraps so that their eggs will have rich, orange yolks. And I want to share fresh eggs with my neighbors, family, and friends. Doesn't that sound great???

So welcome to my first blog. I hope you come back to read more, and I hope you enjoy reading about my Chicken Adventures.

And I hope I remember to keep blogging.

Wish me CLUCK!