Yesterday morning I found a mixed roo not up to snuff. He was sitting behind the nest box area and didn't get up to run outside. He also had his eyes closed. I hate when any of my animals get sick, I always feel so helpless. Gingerly I picked him up; I didn't want to hurt him if he had a physical injury. He didn't even bother to try to get away from me, he kept his eyes closed and his head was drooping a bit; not good. The list of 'not goods' is getting longer and longer with this rooster.I checked him out and could find no wounds on the guy and his bottom looked fine. Holding a rooster upside down to check his netherlands is generally taken as a great affront to roosters. And this guy did convey his displeasure by clucking fairly adamantly. So now I have a bit of a list of good signs, which is also a good sign.
I secluded him and started calling him Micheal Moore, after the directer who makes documentaries including one about the American medicare crisis called "Sicko". Well, I had to call the roo something, and I already have about thirty chickens called "Hey You". I watched him all day and he just sat with his eyes closed. I think he might have drank a little but his food remained untouched. I wasn't feeling all that hopeful. You can never tell with chickens; it could have been something he ate, it could be a number of ailments chickens can get. All I can do is watch and if I find something specific, like wheezing or a wound, I can treat it with home remedies. Basically, I just watched him do nothing and hope he wasn't about to fade away.At bed check, Micheal Moore had eaten some of his food, but was still really quiet and lying down. This morning when I went in, he was standing up and both eyes were open. His eyes were bright and he had eaten more food. He was also clucking at me. So there is a pretty big improvement. I let him out of the cage. While he did walk around and seem interested in his surroundings, he didn't seem much inclined to go into the main coop area and mix with the other chickens. So I'm going to leaving him walking around in the storage area today, getting a little fresh air and some exercise and see how it goes. Hopefully it was just something he ate. Chickens can get botulism very easily from something as innocuous as a moldy leaf. They do tend to get over it if it's just a mild case. Hopefully that's the case with Micheal Moore.
The little chicks hatched out last January have started laying eggs. I recognise the eggs from the new hens because the eggs are so small, just a little bigger than Mandellas'. I found the first one last Sunday. When I went into the coop that morning, I did find a new hen sitting in an actual nest box. At the time,I doubted that she was actually laying an egg. I figured she was practicing for the big event or may-be just pretending to be a big girl. Later in the day, I found a little roundish brown egg where she had been setting. I guess she showed me. I was a little surprised because I didn't expect then to be laying much before June. Since then, I have been finding the little eggs mostly behind the nest boxes in wee little nests the hens build. It's a very cramped space but I suppose the hens felt secure and comfortable there. As long as they're happy and laying, I'm happy.
The weekend, while fairly cool, was sunny and breezy. So, of course, I spent most of it outside doing gardening preparations. I've decided to dismantle my herb garden. Since I'm doing so much companion planting, the herb garden is redundant not to mention quite sparse. One less garden to weed is always a perk. I began work on the herb garden by transplanting the big, bushy mint plants to line the dog pen fence. They look quite nice there, with my moms' peonies nestled in between them. Mint has a habit of overtaking a garden, yard, neighbourhood, etc. Now the lawn mower will be able to keep the invading mint army in check. I've moved my sage, comfrey and oregano into the butterfly garden. With the exception of planting Calendula, the butterfly garden is completely perennial now. The butterfly garden has a couple of other changes as well. I gave up on the stone path and covered it with wood shavings in the hopes that the weeds will finally give up. Hanging above the garden is a humming bird feeder. Suspended above the garden, it's a bright red beacon bobbing gently on its branch. The hummingbirds are steadfastly ignoring it. I'll give it a bit. I was very happy to see that my lavender plants made it through the winter again. Lavender is one of my favorite herbs; whenever I weed in my lavender patch, the plants thank me by perfuming the air with a scent that is both calming and reminiscent of my paternal grandmother's house. Nanny liked her lavender. I'm debating whether to put the parsley in the butterfly garden or just plant it in the veggie garden. I will likely do both. Parsley can come back every year but in the veggie garden it is an iffy proposition because of the roto-tilling in the spring. So if I have a bit in the butterfly garden, I know it will survive.Now to start on the main gardens! Whoot.
