Chicken Pick-up ...NOT!

This week I got the call to pick up the new chickens that Daniel ordered in the aftermath of the Chicken Massacre in April. 

So, for the past couple of days I have been researching how I will go about introducing new chickens to the flock, as these 6 adolescents will be sharing living quarters with our 3 remaining 2-year-olds. The Backyard Chickens blog has been helpful, but some of the stories scare me! Besides the fact that I am supposed to be quarantining the new hens to protect the old hens from horrible pathogens (which is out of the question space-wise), I have been led to believe that managing dynamics of inter-chicken relations will test my mettle. From what I've read, there will be squabbles, pecking, hen-fights, possibly blood ... and the dreaded "stink-eye" (which surfers use on someone drop'n in on someone else's wave because, of course, the surfer closest to the break owns the wave, dude.)

chicken giving the stink-eye

Last night, in preparation, I hauled the chicken cage out of the garage, tossed it on the back of the truck, and bungee-chorded it in place. When I closed up the coop, I broke it to the old girls that this would be their last peaceful night for awhile and asked them to be accepting of their new flockmates. I think they gave me the stink-eye.

This morning I got gussied up in the closest thing I have to a chicken farmer outfit (so as not to repeat the embarrassment of being so inappropriately dressed as we were at the livestock auction in Truro a few years ago where we stood out like sore thumbs in clean shorts and flip-flops) and drove the chickenmobile to work. I called the Holna farm supply store in the afternoon to confirm the arrival time of the birdies only to find out that they won't be in until tomorrow due to mechanical issues with the truck. Shortly afterwards, a friend texted me from the highway between Antigonish and New Glasgow to say there were dead chickens on the road! I sure hope those aren't the aforementioned mechanical issues.

chicken farmer on the chickenmobile

So, chicken pick-up is delayed until tomorrow morning. And here I am with my chickenmobile ready and all dressed in my chicken farmer finery. But not to disappoint, here is a chicken-related video from my files ... enjoy! I'll let you know how chicken pick-up goes tomorrow.