It's been a week since the last post. All was going well with our Bohemian chicken lifestyle, until the neighbor dog came in our yard. We love dogs.

We just don't like a dog that chases our chickens. But that's what happened to our little chickens and ducks yesterday afternoon.

It was a beautiful day and we were keeping a close on the chickens and ducks and came inside for about ten minutes. I glanced out the window and saw a tail of what I thought was a beagle. It was not. It was a pit bull. This breed of dog is considered vicious. We have the pit bull on surveillance chasing the chickens and ducks into hiding. He actually got one of the chickens but it got away. We weren't sure if she was hurt or not. We couldn't find any of the chickens.

Two ducks were safely hiding behind our tractor. And then ran to the coop.

We found Eleanor first. She hightailed it to the hen house immediately and hid on a perch. Penny was huddled in a corner in the hen house as well. JoJo and the third duck ran for the coop when they saw us. We got them safely inside. We had all three ducks and three chickens. Now to find the other six chickens.

We searched the Department of Natural Resource tree study field next to our house. Very timidly a head poked out of the weeds. It was Merida. She was scared and panting. We coaxed her along gently to the coop. She was extremely skiddish and nervous. And now to find her best friend Belle. 

While we were looking for more chickens, Zoey had found her way to hide under the tractor. She was so shaken that she let us pick her right up without any fuss. She has been nervous since Joey moved away. If a chicken could possibly miss someone and be depressed, it would be Zoey. The dog chasing left her with a few feathers on her underside a bit ruffled. We saw the third rhode island red by the garage bushes. We coaxed her to the coop because she was too nervous to be picked up and carried. Now we just needed to find Hark, Beaker and Sassy.

Then I thought to get the tin feeding can that I put scraps in throughout the day to feed to the chickens. they always come running when i tap the can. So with can in hand we headed along the creek. I tapped and tapped and it wasn't long and we heard the clucking of a hen. It was Hark on the other side of the creek.

My husband finally worked his way down the creek to where Hark was hiding.

He had no other choice but to coax her into the water because she would not come to him or let him pick her up.

A friend had sent a video of a Plymouth Rock hen swimming in a pool. I had never seen such a thing. I'm so glad that she sent that. Chickens aren't typically a swimming kind of creature. But it was nice to know that if need be a chicken could swim. And so Hark swam across the creek with my husband staying close by.

 I don't know if you can tell by the photo. But, this is Hark immediately upon coming out of the creek. She is drenched. We got Hark to coop. She looked very relieved to be back with the other chickens. Now we just needed to find Beaker and Sassy.

I get so irritated at the hens for coming on the porch and wanting to sit in the window. It's something Beaker and Sassy do nearly every day.

But for once I was glad to see Beaker in the window. We knew that the dog had gotten one but we didn't know if she was still alive. We searched for quite a while. Then my husband watched the surveillance camera to see if we could find which direction they ran. While we were looking at the footage, I heard a gentle trill at the dining room window. It was Beaker. She is always sitting up high on the porch bench. We were thrilled to see her still bold and brave and sitting in the window calling for us to come get her. Sassy was still missing. We searched until we didn't know where to look anymore.

We decided to go get something to eat and hopefully she would find her way home. The first restaurant we went to had this sign hanging on it's door.
 

 But the banner on the front of the restaurant said, "Now Open!" We looked for another restaurant and vowed that we would check this one out once they got they story straight. We found a place to eat and then quickly got back home in case Sassy found her way to the coop.

When we came home and pulled into our driveway there was Sassy sitting in the bushes peeking out at us. My husband went right over and scooped her up. True to her name she still had her sass and vigor. But she sure was glad to be safe in her owner's arms. 

 

Sassy was caught by the dog. But true to her name she held her own and survived. 

All ducks and chickens are now all present and accounted for!

Our new order of business on our free ranging chicken farm...teach the chickens to chase dogs come rain, sleet, snow or hail.

It's been a month since the last posting. The chicks have changed a lot. We got three ducks a few weeks after getting the chicks. As you can see the ducks and chicks get along swimmingly. The chicks are exactly 3 months old at the time of this posting.

At first the ducks were afraid of the chickens. But it didn't take long and the ducks started getting bigger than the chicks. The chicks suddenly liked the ducks.

               

                       

 The ducks didn't get as much human contact with the weather turning warmer when we got them. They went outside pretty quickly. The female mallard is the leader of the ducks. The Pekins seem to be male and female but the verdict is still out on that one. The top photo the ducks are a few weeks old. The photo below the ducks swimming, the ducks are three months old. They are hiding by the concrete peacocks. They learned from the chicks to try to blend in with the concrete peacocks when humans come around.

JoJo at one week and at three months. She is completely white now.

 Penny at one week old and again at 3 months old. He/She has a robust chest. Still not sure if Penny is a hen or rooster.

Merida at one week old and at 3 months old. Belle really likes Merida. They are besties.

 Belle at one week and then Belle at three months. Belle is on the left, like I said Belle and Merida are besties.

And this is our prima donna, Eleanor. Who would have ever guessed that she would have grown into such a beautiful hen. We believe she is a blue wheaton. This type of hen is a bit unusual. She is a perfect "Regina George" and could be cast as such in the chicken version of that movie about mean girls. She is one week and then three months in the photos.

Beaker is fierce. She would always want to be up higher than the other chicks and she isn't afraid of anyone. This is Beaker at one week and at three months. There is nothing wrong with her foot, she is just getting ready to take a step.

Sassy is still the sweetest of the bunch. She loves people and will be the first to come greet you when you come to our house. She loves pecking at nail polish, so watch your toes! This is Sassy at one week and at three months.

Zoey has been the same girl since Joey moved away. She is stand offish now and doesn't care to be friendly with humans anymore. The oddest thing happened after Joey left. She began grow blue spots on her wings. I suppose is carrying her mood on her wing. Much like we human tend to want to carry our hearts on our sleeves. This is Zoey at one week and again at three months.

Hark hasn't really changed too much as far as color. She is a pretty hen but Eleanor let's her know that she pales in comparison to her. Hark just minds her own business and is quite capable of holding her own. This is Hark at one week and three months.

It just amazes at how well the ducks and chicks get along. They share their food, water and space. There hasn't been a minute of a day that we have regretted getting our feathered friends.

The Chicks Are Moving On Out

At nearly nine weeks old, it is time to turn the chicks outside. Grandpa has been working on the hen house and coop for many days and it's ready to be a home to the nine chicks.

Here is where the chicks first started out.

And then they were moved to a brooder and we lessened the heat lamp as they grew and grew. Pretty soon they were big enough to tolerate the cooler nights that the spring season brings.

Grandpa found a great hen house and coop plan on Pinterest. It had easy to follow directions. That's all it took, off Grandpa went to build the perfect home for the chicks. 

It's been slow going trying to get the chicks' home built. The weather has not always cooperated and other little snafus have kept us from getting the project done quickly.

We all kept busy...

 and we have lots of work to still to do. 

But the chicks will officially move into their new home TODAY!
 

Time to go fill in the coop with the gravel. Let's hope we get it secure enough all the way around. We don't want no raccoons, opossums or foxes to get the chickens.