"Ladies"

The weather has turned here and the ladies have finally moved into their new digs. The first few days, we put them out in the coop in the daytime and let them wander, but brought them back in at night because they seemed so shell-shocked. On the third night, the air was a bit warmer and they didn't want to leave the coop to return to their stinky, moldy, damp cardboard box. They quickly understood that the coop was, indeed, the place to be.



The coop is great for us as well. Not just because our house no longer smells like a barnyard, but because the food and water only needs to be dealt with every three or four days now. The ladies can just go about their clucky business and we don't need to pay them any mind, really. Of course, at any given moment, MB and Ollie are sitting up there watching them, or I'm bringing them kitchen scraps, or folks in the neighborhood are stopping by on their bikes, or our young neighbors Natalie and Nicholas (who have been given an all areas pass) are sitting quietly chatting with them. These are very social creatures.



I'm thoroughly enjoying the placement of the coop now that it's warm outside and the window above my kitchen sink is open. While I'm standing at the sink (oh, so often), I watch people constantly ride and walk by and gesture to the coop. Often, I say hello and get questions about where the coop came from and about how much work the flock takes. It's great--and surprising-- to be able to say that the flock takes almost no work at all.

Tomorrow, our coop builder John Bake returns to build a chicken run for the gals that will allow them access to the backyard. Madness will ensue.

xo.
ht