The Giant Egg and Chicken Misc.

Having our own chickens we get a nice egg color variety. When we only had 4 chickens I could tell which one laid each egg because the colors were slightly different. Now that there are 5 chickens that lay brown/tan eggs it is harder to tell. Above is a photo of some of the color variety in a recent dozen. Gwen lays blue green, Athena lays olive green, the darkest brown is Hannah, and the tan/brown are Sylvie (small ones), Rosa, Sarah and Samantha - though Samantha is not laying yet after her recent illness.

Recently Gwen, who lays blue green eggs, laid a GIANT egg. It's the biggest chicken egg I've ever seen! It ended up having a double yolk. Above is a photo of it compared to some of the others.

Tonight I dewormed the chickens, which involves a pill given to them. That is a bit tricky as I have to catch them all and administer the pill, which they are not keen on, but I have gotten the hang of it. It makes giving pills to cats look way easy! I have to do it again in two weeks, but it is an annual thing - 2 pills twice a year I can handle.

Hope, the chick who came at Christmas and went missing June 20, has never been located nor any remains of her, thought I searched all three acres several times. Something must have taken her off the property. I hope her death was quick with a minimum of pain and suffering. I was glad to know her and provide her with a good life and I'll always miss her.

Samantha appears to have made a full recovery from her recent illness. It took two antibiotics, no small amount in vet bills, and two dewormer pills but she began to eat, drink, play and gain weight again. I am optimistic it is all behind her - good because I want her strong before the weather turns cold.

Supposedly there is an increase in urban chickens in the recession. I think that is probably a plus. I have really enjoyed having chickens and although I am still on the learning curve about 18 months into it, I love them!