Laying Hens, Growing Baby Chicks, and Fireworks!

Our family has had a very busy few weeks here on the coast! There is much sports activities for the kids –scheduled during the week in these fun-packed summer months, along with endeavours on weekends to which my oldest has happily committed her time. Despite a growingly busy summer for this family, the renovation work and planning continues — each day, even on weekends!

Spring time and summer are the two busiest seasons for construction and growth. Much like flowers preparing to blossom in due time — as the misty fog covered shores begin to dissipate under the beams of the dry, arid sun. The hustle and bustle of our family increases to the same degree of activity present outdoors — with new life blooming at every square inch of sight, our desire to sow seeds today is motivated by the yearning to bear fruit, and at a timely fashion — to reap the harvest.

We have been withholding raising chickens for some time, for a few practical reasons. Firstly, we would like to travel back to Ontario to visit family and friends for a longer period of time. Having a large flock to care for during our time away would be cumbersome. The darker days when we leave to see our friends and family also means less egg production by our hens. As our main purpose for raising chickens is to supplement our family’s daily protein consumption, it made sense to cull them before going on our trip, and to start anew when the time seemed right to do so.

Secondly, we have juggled raising animals while renovating our home, and it has proven to be a little more overwhelming than we would like it to be. Perhaps our minds are too preoccupied with the finer details of living off-the-grid while doing the renovations — a synchronized effort requiring regular thorough planning and hands-on work.

We are so grateful to have found our own personal chicken doula (yes, a doula for chickens!) to help with the care of our wonderful four hens. Our youngest — Florence, has taken upon herself the responsibility of letting them in and out of their coop every morning and evening, as well as collecting eggs when the hens have graciously laid them in their neat nests.

Since chickens are so personable and often times friendly, we decided to give them names (we don’t plan to cull them when we leave to visit Ontario). The names given to each beautiful hen are: Shita (she is the alpha female), Rosa (the lightest brown one and the shyest), Moana (due to her tendency to explore), and Chikorita (a Pokemon character named by our son).

This time around, we have found the hens to be much less overwhelming to care for. Having only a flock of four to start was a good number. However, we have discovered over the first few weeks that we would ideally like a few more eggs a day, to satisfy our breakfast appetite!

As we were visiting friends a few hours away, we noticed they had baby chicks for sale. We considered bringing a few little ones home — maybe just the right amount for each of our kids to name one chick. So, off to home we came with four more baby chicks in a box, with a hot water bottle to keep them warm, and plenty of food and water on our trip home.

These rambunctious birds have reached a stage our kids like to call “the ugly stage”. It is an unavoidable stage where their fuzzy, baby fur start to fall out, and the stiffer, thicker feathers start to pierce through. These lovely birds are still as adorable as when we first got them. We are certain that at least one of them (possibly two) are roosters — the size of their comb, their physical size, and their behaviour point at this deduction.

The summer started for our community with a fun week of family activities, ending with an enthralling bang of just-after-dusk fireworks! We are off to a great start of a new season – though very hot mid-week in the soaring temperatures of 30 degrees Celcius — with a humidity level bringing the feel of heat closer to high 30s (not at all a typical summer day on the coast).

We hope you have a wonderful rest of your week, enjoying the hot weather we’re having. Good night dear friends and family!