Wednesday 6 July 2016

Oh not more chickens......

Yahoooo!
Another hen has just presented us with eleven black chicks,
which would be good news if we were wanting expand the flock,
but we don't.

And then a little while ago another hen presented us with nine black chicks,
seven of which are definitely cockerels.
 
It's just that we are already over run with chickens in the courtyard,
and I would so like to have flowers and a table and chairs out there,
but the chickens would eat the flowers and poo all over the garden furniture.
Ah well, perhaps next year the chickens will be in their proper chicken run,
and I can take back ownership of that space.

I am not having a moan,
just saying that it would be good to be able to walk out of the front door,
and not be immediately mobbed by chickens,
or stand in chicken poo.


Lester brought the cows in to the barn this morning
so they can spend the day away from flies.
It is late evening here, and he has just taken them back out to the field,
so they can eat over night and not be bitten to pieces by flies.
I have made a solution of cider vinegar and neem oil,
which he has sprayed on the cows,
so hopefully that will act as a fly repellent.
It is not nice to see the cows smothered in flies,
especially their faces,
but I don't think they would like wearing fly masks like the horses do.
I think they would horn them off as soon as they were put on.


Boolie, our Springer Spaniel, is still with us.
He still has his tumour, but it does not seem to bother him,
although he does not like having it washed.
It smells of stale blood, made worse by the weather being warmer,
so I have to clean it up,
then give it a spray with disinfectant.
I find it amazing that he is still managing to stay in good spirits.
I am sure that if I had a similar large growth hanging off one of my ears,
that I would definitely not be so upbeat about it.
He is sixteen years old.
I am hoping that he will die in his sleep.
I would like to wake up one morning and see him gone.
I would not like a vet to finish him off,
because he does not like vets,
and would definitely not be happy about having one anywhere near him.


And on the subject of that most wonderful of vegetables, the courgette.
So far I have made:

Courgette fritters
Courgettes stir fry
Courgette Chocolate Cakes
Lemon Courgette Cakes
Courgette and cheese pizza
Roast courgettes
Grated carrot and courgette salad
Courgette and pork curry soup (now canned)
Chicken and courgette stir fry

....and I still have a good supply waiting to be used in the back kitchen!

The biggest surprise, though, was those cakes.
They are soft and yummy and could be eaten as a cake or as a dessert.

Just off to get another slice of the chocolate courgette cake,
so
bye for now,

Vx
 
 
 
 


6 comments:

Cro Magnon said...

I chop my excess Courgettes into inch lengths and freeze. They make a good addition to 'smooth' winter soups.

Talking of Chicken poo in the courtyard, we used to have Peacocks which was similar to having a horse around.

Vera said...

CRO MAGNON, my freezers are full of meat, but I was going to do the same as you do but can them. Peacocks? Glad we don't have them then!

Dawn said...

Lots of chicken dinners on the horizon, I am not raising more this year, we have had an increase of 10 plenty for the time being :-)

Vera said...

DAWN, we didn't want any more this year either, but the hens thought otherwise, took themselves off into hidden corners and we now have 21 extras!

PioneerPreppy said...

As far as I know we only have the one broody hen but since I don't bother with any type of head count anymore there maybe more. U don't think chicks will last long here right now though.

Vera said...

PIONEER PREPPY, we don't count numbers either, and unfortunately the hens find hidden places in the middle barn which are hard to find, and that is where the broodies are sitting on their eggs. Hopefully we shall not anymore chicks hatching. It is getting a bit much!