The Chickens & A Major Update

With the garage being cleaned out to create a work-out area, many of the "to do"s also got checked off the list. Hub donated our old king-size mattress & end tables to Goodwill (we didn't have any takers on Craigslist) and he's finally agreed to donate my old loveseat as well. Beyond that a few other things got donated and taken care of......and the chickens got relegated to a new home........out to the shed in back they went! ;)

Now if this was our house and not a rental, we'd probably just cut an entry hole in the side of the shed with a little ladder there on the right side. There are already shelves that line the right side that would be PERFECT for two little brooding boxes and we could enclose the right side off the shed with a built in chicken run area with wire, etc. However it's not our house and I'm pretty sure our landlords don't want chicken poop all over the floor of a corner of their shed nor do they probably want a hole in the side.....so instead, we just moved the kennel itself into one side of the shed.  

 This means the chicken poop is still contained and there's still electricity to plug in the heat lamp, but we can also open the kennel & shed door and more easily toss the chickens out. (If you can't tell the dogs are oh so intrigued btw!). I stood there for about 15 minutes hoping the chickens would figure out that if they hopped over the cardboard they could get to the outside oh.so.easily.....well they don't call chickens dumb for nothing....although I did stand there for 15 minutes, so I don't know what that says about my mental state today either (and ironically today I'm working from home.) ;) However, eventually, I reached back into the kennel and tossed each chicken out.

 The dogs were stoked to have their old friends outside and the chickens happily pecked around for about 15 minutes........with the dogs "cleaning up" after them.

Pure beauties aren't they? At this point I'm pretty sure they're full grown and they appear to be mid-sized birds. And while I don't have a picture of it, after about 15 minutes, the chickens are just like the dogs and start standing on the patio thinking they want in........sigh. Hopefully they'll just start being chickens and do a bit more clucking around the backyard!

 Major showed up inside at the backdoor looking out once I'd let the chickens out........

....but not to worry, so far he doesn't seem to want to eat them, instead he's just mad that he's still on a diet and his food bowl is empty. ;) Even though the cats survived off 1-2 small bowls of food a day while in Louisiana, they don't seem to be adjusting too happily to our attempt to return to daily food rationing!

Lady is giving her hunting meow out the back door as she watches the chickens, although anytime she's actually been around them she runs scared in the opposite direction!....And she's just now resigned herself to getting a piece of her own dry food daily ration. ;)

What's up with the animals in your neck of the woods?