From left-front to right-rear: FF, Princess, and Moses

February 5, 2002

Last night the stout small rooster Hans was harassing the chickens in the medium chicken coop, acting like he was the toughest chicken that ever lived. So I tossed him in with the big roosters -- knowing they'd teach him a few lessons about proper rooster behavior. This morning I opened the coop, expecting to see a thoroughly beaten but humbler Hans to emerge. Instead, Hans pranced forth, and the other roosters stumbled out behind, having the dickens whipped out of them by little Hans. Looks like we'll have to eat Hans next.

February 3, 2002

A few months back, we put a rusty old empty 50 gallon drum of fuel oil that had been used for burning things in the hen pen. The drum had no top or bottom and was basically a tube. The chickens were cautiously aware of it for a great while but never went inside it until one hen discovered she could stand out in the rain and not get wet. It must have been an interesting sound inside of the rain pounding on the tube and the effect of not getting wet. Gradually, the chickens all explored the properties of that strange monolith that had appeared mysteriously in their yard. They eventually developed a protocol -- only one chicken at a time would be allowed inside the tube. That chicken would stand quietly there, or perhaps preen herself, expecting total privacy. Sometimes chickens need privacy and the other chickens respect that. If someone looked inside the tube, she would glare at them until they left. Other chickens wanting to use the tube stand outside it, in a line, waiting patiently for their turn. The tube has become some sort of temple for the chickens. Perhaps they are drawn to its unique acoustic properties and perhaps they are drawn to the grounding effect of the cool metal on their feet, a sensation unavailable elsewhere. We now call it the 'meditation tube' and say 'Regina's out in the meditation tube today.'

January 8, 2002

The younger chickens have started hanging out in the neighbor's yard. I wonder where the neighbors roosters have got to that usually chase them off.

January 6-7, 2002

The younger chickens are trying to get used to the recent snow now.

Copyright 2002 X. J. Scott, Red Barn Goat Farm (nonoctave.com)