The Circle of Life

by Rachel KennerlyFebruary 21, 20213 min read

Today started out great. I slept in a bit then got a hold of Oncor to have them come repair the downed line then I stepped outside to enjoy the beautiful day. As I made my way to the coop to check on the chickens I noticed some snow had not melted under the pine tree limbs. I thought that was a bit odd because the temps were high enough to melt the snow, but sometimes in the shade the snow hadn’t melted. As I approached the chicken yard I was dismayed to see a bunch of black & white feathers. I knew from the pattern that something had gotten one of my favorite hens – a mottled java I got at Tractor Supply a couple of years ago. She went broody one me last year and hatched out every one of her chicks. Really quite a devastating loss. Then I noticed more orangey feathers which could only be my little New Hampshire hen who was pretty personable. Then my stomach sank when I realized that the “snow” I saw under the pine trees was not snow after all – it was the white feathers of my splash colored French Maran rooster. So in less than 24 hours after the chickens decided to once again brave the outside world I had lost 3 of them to predators. I guess they were hungry after 5 days of no food & freezing temperatures. I’ll sure miss those hens. 🙁

Despite my displeasure at losing several chickens I was thrilled to hear peeping sounds coming from the broody hen’s little red coop. I snuck over & saw three little chicks who had gotten out of the litter box & away from their mama & were none too happy about it. Ignoring the hen’s grousing I picked them up & set them back in the box with her. They quickly scurried under her for warmth, and I took a quick peak under here to see how many eggs had hatched. It looked like all but 1 of the 13 eggs I put under her had hatched. Not too shabby, little mama. Especially considering the harsh conditions of the last week! I try not to bother the mamas too much while eggs could still be hatching, and I have not yet alerted my son to their presence.

So despite losing 3 chickens (one of which was a good mama) I now have 12 to replace them. Roughly half of them will be roosters, but if I had add half a dozen new layers to my flock in a few months time I’ll be thrilled. So long as I can find a way to keep them safe from predators.