A busy fall

Once again I find myself apologizing for the long time between postings. I guess the main thing that I can blame for my tardiness is that since late August I have been scrambling to learn a new job (which is really fun, by the way) and it is taking up quite a bit of what used to be extra time. I'm feeling fairly confident now and can focus on silly stuff like this blog!


Frank was out early one morning feeding apples to the horses and donkeys and saw this beautiful spider web covered with dew. I'm particularly curious about this one, as 1/2 of it is attached to the electic fence which is quite hot. Are spider webs not conductive? Or maybe they are and the spider is employing a little extra help? And what about that spider? Can't he feel the surge every second or so?


Then I saw this picture and the way Frank took it and thought of that spider thinking..."hmmmm, maybe I'll catch the BIG one!"


It is starting to feel a little bit like fall, especially with the chilly mornings. You can see here our inside pets doing what they do best on mornings like this. I swear they wait until Frank and I get up and they take over. With Sandy getting so old now, this is usually where she can be found most of the day after her walk with Frank in the morning.


How many new baby chickens can you fit in a nest box? Apparently only 4 with one cranky one stuck outside! It is hard to talk about, but we have had an illness going through our flock that is still really bringing some hens down, but we haven't lost anyone (yet). They are on some antibiotics in their water and hopefully we've turned the corner. The good news is that none of these new babies have been seriously affected. We're not getting any eggs now, and with the days getting shorter, we don't have much hope for eggs this winter until these new girls start laying in the spring. Good thing we have a new neighbor with 50 hens who is selling eggs. I just don't think I could ever buy store eggs again.

Well, I'm off for my annual trip to Grass Valley, California for a draft horse show. I have rented an RV so I can stay on the grounds and I am taking my new truck on its first road trip to Sacramento with all the stuff I need to have camping for almost a week. The forecast is for HOT, so I'm packing for that! I'm also taking my camera, so I should have lots of fodder for new blogs when I get home!

Five new girls!

Well, Frank and I had a little adventure today to go pick up a few new pullets (young female chickens that haven't laid eggs yet) to add to our aging flock. I found a lady on Craig's List who had some Barred Rocks, the same breed as the hens I lost this summer and wanted to replace, so we agreed to meet in the Seattle area for the hand-off. Of course, since we were down there anyway, we had to get some Dim Sum at our favorite place in the International District, but by 10:30 am we were at the designated spot to meet our new girls.


Well, we didn't actually get to see our new girls until we got home as they were in a cardboard box! So when we got home, we let all our existing chickens out to free-range, and we locked them out of their coop/run so we could let the new young girls out. They were happy to get out and eat some scratch and peck at the corn and cucumbers I put out for them. Shown below is one of the beautiful new girls! I really missed having barred rocks on the farm.


Lovely Laurel the chicken lady gave me an extra pullet!! The paler colored one is called a Cuckoo Maran and they lay chocolate colored eggs! I have always wanted one so this is a wonderful treat! In this picture you can see all five of the new girls (one is hidden behind the maran). They are already having a good time running around and pecking at stuff. It'll be interesting to see how the first time free-ranging goes! Hopefully they'll stay in the security of the coop and run for a few days when the others go out.


I just wanted to provide a little update on how much the baby chicks are growing! They are only 9 weeks old today and they look and act so mature already! Here is what I think is the only pullet on the left and a little rooster on the right. The little rooster pictured at the top of this post by my truck is a cocky little guy that we call "Neck Stretcher" because of how he challenges all the other chickens. We also refer to him as "Stew Pot" as that's where he's probably going to end up if he keeps up with his bullying behavior.


Luckily, there is another little rooster we call "The Peacemaker" who is so kind and intervenes any time he sees any of his hatch-mates acting agressively. I told him he can stay if he keeps up that nice behavior. He's the one at the top of the picture below. The chicken in front of him 'might' be a pullet because of some characteristics I'm NOT seeing on her. Keep your fingers crossed.


All in all it was a great day to get new chickens. We also brought up 10 pullets from this same farmer for another person in the Arlington area to save them a trip down. He got some buff orpingtons and some Rhode Island reds; both great layers of big brown eggs. So between us we increased the chicken population of Snohomish County by 15 new hens. May they all live long and produce many eggs!

Bad Jayne

I am so sorry that I have not posted to our blog lately! Things have been a little crazy, with going on vacation in San Diego, then coming home and having my mom visit for a week and then getting ready for school to start. Please be assured that everyone here on the farm is good and we are enjoying the end of our summer weather. Katie, below, is especially enjoying lounging around outside in spite of getting pecked once in a while by a baby chicken who doesn't know better!


The main thing that is taking up our time is the beginning of school for our online teaching jobs. I was hired by the same company (Insight Schools) that Frank worked for last year, to teach English. I was assigned to teach American Literature to Juniors, which is great, but I haven't taught literature for a while, so I am studying and preparing for the course as fast as I can so to stay ahead of them! On top of that is all the record keeping and student contact that needs to happen at the beginning of the school year. I have met so many really neat students so far; it's been wonderful! I think I'm really going to like this new way of teaching.


Blogs coming soon will feature our new chickens (that we are running down to Seattle tomorrow to get) that we need to replace the ones that died this summer; harvesting and putting up some of the bounty from our garden; and we will also be talking about our new bikes (that we bought after renting the same kind on vacation, twice!). So stay tuned for updates about the happenings at Red Pony Ranch, hopefully coming soon!