Friday, May 31, 2019

The Song of the Laying Girls

Most mornings, if you stroll outside on our farm, you'll hear a clamor, din, and racket coming from the chicken run. This morning I recorded it for you to enjoy:
I do get a kick out of my hens. And now I don't have a rooster to fend off with a stick, life is much more calm for all of us girls in the chicken yard. Here's photos of the snake I mentioned. He is dead.


I've learned not to scream, jump, and grab a shovel when I see a snake. Now I just jump and grab the shovel. Still, I feel sorry for the two snakes now that have been caught and died in our bird netting. I think this second one was probably after the water that I put out for my hens. It's outrageously dry here lately; every critter is thirsty. I've never seen a venomous snake on our farm, and I think I've seen about ten snakes over the years -- all black snakes or some sort of brown rat snake. One red-bellied water snake. They know now to stay in all the parts of the farm where Ned cannot go.

6 comments:

Lisa Richards said...

Oh, chickens. They always want the same nest. :)

Granny Marigold said...

My but those girls can make a racket!! If only hens didn't do that we'd be getting a few for our yard in spite of the silly by-law prohibiting them. No one would be able to actually see them but definitely would hear them and in no time at all someone would report us.
I love the way they sing.

Una said...

I enjoyed listening to your hens. As for the snake, I would scream. We simply don't get them here, so it would be like something out of a horror movie if one appeared!

M.K. said...

Una, I've never really gotten used to seeing snakes. This year, after the hurricane and with our drought now, it's been a bit worse. Usually, just one or two each year? ugh. I wish I lived in a place like you do!

sage said...

I’ve chuckled over your comment about not having a rooster to chase away. In Rick Bragg’s book, “The World’s Greatest Cook” about his mother and grandmother’s cooking, he tells how his grandmother kept tabs on which rooster pecked her and it often became Sunday dinner.

www.thepulpitandthepen.com

GretchenJoanna said...

I absolutely loved walking around the hen yard with you, meeting your girls and hearing what seems like the most healthy sound coming from a farm. I didn't even get dusty feet :-)