We have been planning to get hens for a long time now, and have been slowly gathering all the bits and bobs we need. The first job was to demolish the old sheepdog kennels in the farmyard, to make space for a new coop.
Here are the old kennels:
We did first consider renovating them, but they were rotten in places and it turns out chicken coops are quite complicated things. They seem to need vents and hinges and roosting perches at precise heights relative to the nesting boxes, and turning the existing kennels into something like that seemed quite an impossible task. So, we ended up buying a small wooden coop, that will fit 6-8 chickens.
Here it is, before we painted it (with Willow in her very stylish tiger hat):
And here it is now, after a paint job, in situ!
So now, all we need is hens...but unfortunately, travelling to buy hens from a nearby breeder is unlikely to count as 'essential travel' during this COVID-19 lockdown, so our freshly-painted hen-house is waiting, clean and silent, for its new feathery inhabitants. Little Willow occasionally peers in, expecting eggs to suddenly appear for her breakfast, and is confused to see it still empty.
We are going to start off with four hens. Start slow, just in case we suddenly have a fox epidemic or turn out to be allergic to omelettes (perish the thought). After spending many hours reading about different breeds, how broody each one is, whether one tends to be stand-offish (Whitestars) or 'annoyingly friendly' (Warrens, apparently...), I decided that Silkies were my absolute favourite hens. Until, of course, I read that they were very unsuitable for wet, muddy and cold climates. On reflection, it was obvious that their puffy feathery bloomers and ridiculous bouffant hairdos were not going to fare well in our often dramatic Snowdonia weather.
However, all the rumination on breeds became a little irrelevant as given the lockdown situation right now, we can't go to the breeders we were planning to go to. A local farmer across the valley said he was putting in an order for some hens, so has ordered an extra four for us! Aside from knowing they are 'hens', I have no idea what they are, where they are from or when they will come. So, at some point, we will have generic hens arriving!
Obviously, the most important decision now is the names of the hens. Three are already decided: Wendy, Pecky-Sue, and Henrietta (don't ask). Any suggestions for the fourth?
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