Chicken Party!

Wow, what a party! I've never seen so many folks so excited about celebrating chickens. I love our chicken parties since I can talk about chickens as much as I want and no one rolls their eyes at me and says the obligatory "It all comes back to chickens again doesn't it Dawn." Well yes it does and on these nights...well that's okay if it's all about chickens. Before I go any further a huge THANK YOU is due to the host of the chicken party, Ram. I'm certain that all in attendance at this fine event will agree with me that he outdid himself at this winter chicken party. The decorations, the games, the prizes, the new label and the outfits...all displayed his creativity and love of chickens at there finest. Thank you Ram for making your home the Lucky Cluck clubhouse and for devoting so much time and energy into making the event fabulous. Big thanks are also due to Liz "chicken lady" fox for donating amazing chicken bling and more as prizes and to Alexis for original chicken decorations. I'll let the pictures tell most of the story of the night as it was six hours of jam packed fun. First all enjoyed a potluck dinner followed by the unveiling of the new label (certainly Becca's favorite). Then a primary was held to select the candidates for President of Lucky Cluck Farm. The two parties were Republican and Green. The Republican candidates discussed their ideas for turning Lucky Cluck into a factory farm and culling all hens that aren't high egg producers while the Green candidates spoke of maintaining the essence of what makes Lucky Cluck the best chicken co-op in Lincoln County...green pastures where the hens can run free all day, Tillamook Cheese as a mid-day snack for all hens, plenty of space to run and scratch and stretch, a diversity of breeds and a place for hens to finish out their days even when they don't lay the year round. The race was tough with Ram and Doug vying for the Republican nod and Dawn and Eli for Green. After the votes were tallied Doug came out as the Republican candidate of choice with his platform of crap and Dawn and Eli teamed up to run as President and Vice President respectively for the Green Party. Certainly one of the highlights of the night was the new Lucky Cluck video produced by Def Tech (aka Khem...owner of Pollita). You absolutely must check out this video with original music by The Bills (we can't get enough of this song at Lucky Cluck) on You Tube www.youtube.com/watch?v=fu1J49o5hYo. Khem, you truly did a kick ass job on this. Everyone put on their hen hats for an intense and competive game of Chicken Jeopardy designed and hosted by Ram. Three teams were challenged by some tough questions with the winners being the Scrambled Eggs. Personally, I can hardly wait for the next party.

What is the best part of being in school again?

Procrastination is my resounding answer. Check out this chicken word game, curiously called Chicktionary though more closely allied with Scrabble. I spent a full 27 minutes by clicking on the chicken's bellies to make them lay an egg and spelling out words in the process! And then I spent another 48 minutes trying to access my password for this blog and creating this post. Satisfying on so many levels. See how long you can put off your urgent tasks! http://club.live.com/chicktionary.aspx?icid=val_Chicktionary_offnet (This is not actually a functioning link, cut and paste baby!)

New Helper

Srivas, nephew of Lucky Clucker R"G"P, met the chickens today and quickly took a liking to them. The 2 year old feed our hens large amounts of corn and other treats. He showed initial caution in petting the chickens, since some of the hens are his size. Srivas also helped collect eggs from the coop. As a precaution, he was only allowed to collect fake eggs made of stone.

Becca and her Baby

With her chicken essay titled "Why I love chicken butts" Becca easily slid into place as the newest member of Lucky Cluck Farm. Writing a compelling and thoughtful essay was the easy part but picking a chicken from the flock of little girls awaiting adoption was a bit harder, or so I thought. One look at the silkie's butt and Becca was hooked. The two spent some quality time together and then had a mini photo shoot on a lovely spring day. But the photo shoot was not complete until the chair of the Lucky Cluck welcoming committee and its nosiest chicken, Beatriz, came by to say hello. Welcome to Lucky Cluck Becca!

Big Winner!

The big winner of our second Lucky Cluck Farms essay contest is Becca Schiewe, of the Oregon Schiewes. She is shown here in the center, sharing a rooster with her friends. Even though this year's contest featured a wonderful array of creative, engaging essays, Becca's sincere, direct and heart-felt expression of chicken love shined through as the favorite. The winner, of course, becomes a member and gets a chicken of her very own.

Up and Coming

I have to agree, the Silkie is one fine little chick - good luck saying no to that one, Becca (by the way, congratulations on getting in!) Her cotton-puff tail is irresistable. Of course, her flockmates have their share of attitude and looks. But, no matter the charms of the younglings, the old birds can't be outdone.

Silkie!

The Blue Silkie chick is shaping up to be quite a charmer! Timid at first, she is emerging as a leader of the group of smaller chicks. Silkies as adults are known to be very tame and friendly. Remember "Florida Lady" in "The Natural History of Chickens." What was her chicken's name? Snowball? Anyway, that shows how silkies can be the definition of a lap chicken. Silkies are unusual in several other ways. They have fluffy, hair-like plumage and as adults develop a stunning turquoise lobe. The five-toed, feather-footed, crested breed was well-developed in China by the time of Marco Polo's exploration of that exotic land. Silkies are also known as one of the broodiest breeds. This combination of unique characteristics has made Silkies very popular. They are so popular that we at Lucky Cluck didn't want to order one! But now we are happy to have her in the flock.

Down to One

Sadly, one of Penny's chicks has vanished. The remaining chick is doing fine, however, and is starting to get her flight feathers.

Contest of the Century

The essays are in and, once again, they show the creativity and sincerity of the fine people who wish to be part of Lucky Cluck Farms. This is the second essay contest at Lucky Cluck. Unfortunately only one essay can win its author a co-op membership. We, as voting members, are grateful for the high level of interest and effort put into these writings. A winner will be announced at the end of the week. The lucky winner will be able to choose one of several fabulous chickens.

The Departed

Well, they are not departed yet. Here are a couple shots of near-pullets that will be moving from Lucky Cluck to Todd's coop. He has proposed setting up a coop that will be a satellite of Lucky Cluck Farms. Such behavior is, or course, encouraged. The chick above is a sharp-looking silver-penciled Wyandotte. This Barnevelder is very friendly (or hungry) and will lay handsome dark brown eggs someday.

Chicken Party Revisited

That's right. I am finally getting around to posting pictures from the first chicken party for 2007. The evening started with visits from some very special friends. Becca was quite enamoured of this Old English Crele bantie rooster. Tala leaves a gift on Matt's lap. A combination of the classic games Marco Polo and Pin the Tail on the Donkey, Pin the Cock on the Hen had comical results. Contestants attempted to pin the tiny bantie roosters in optimal mating position on the large Jersey Giant even as she tried to allude their advances. Linda-directed "Giant" proved very elusive as Khem attempts to apply his rooster. We all attempted to transition from egg to Super Chicken as the evening came to a close.

Venturing Forth

Penny, our banty partridge wyandotte, successfully hatched two beautiful chicks in early April. Today was their first real adventure out of the nest box. Their primary feathers are just coming in through the fuzzy down that covers the remainder of their bodies. Penny had to fluff up and growl at the other hens that were very curious about the biddies.

WOW! Check out these chicks!

Penny has hatched two adorable chicks! One hatched today and the other just yesterday. She is sitting tight on them but the chicks are happy to come out and enjoy a meal worm or kernel corn.

Those awkward teenage years

No, I am not talking about Kent. It is the chicks that are at the awkward stage. But they are also very lively, entertaining and ready to jump up on your arm! They have grown A LOT since last week!

Portraits of Near-Pullets

Ah the time of chickdome is brief. In just a scant period of a couple weeks our chicks are already feathering out and bouncing, like over-heated popcorn, to the top lip of their brood box. I had a chance to shoot a few protrait shots before they lose the downy chick-ness of thier heads in favor of a more adult plumage. A Quail Belgian Bearded D'Anvers and Appenzeller Spitzhauben are shown above. A silver-laced Wyandotte. An Appenzeller Spitzhauben.

Ask Beatriz

I know that many Lucky Cluckers and their friends face challenging questions about love, friendship, happiness, work, fashion, gardening, and pop culture. Questions like "Will Brittany get full custody of her and K-Fed's boys in the divorce settlement" or "Should I apply two or three loads of chicken manure in my raised bed." If these questions keep you awake at night searching for the answer, well say hello to some sound ZZZZZ's because our friendliest, smartest, most gossipy and in-the-know chicken at Lucky Cluck is starting her own advice column. Inspired and encouraged by her owner, Khem, Beatriz is stepping out of the flock to converse about matters of the heart and head with troubled Lucky Cluckers in the spring edition of the Coop Scoop. Submit your questions to Beatriz at luckycluckfarm@yahoo.com. She'll tackle the toughest ones in the first edition and if the column is popular, she'll keep on going for the year.

Spring Chickens!

It's spring again, Fall used to be my favorite season but with home ownership somehow Spring has worked it's magic on me and now can be called my favorite time of the year. Violet-green and Tree swallows are back and have been checking out the nest boxes at Lucky Cluck. They are important to have around to keep the fly population down what with all of the chicken poop creating favorable fly conditions. Rufous hummingbird are also back giving all of our overwintering Anna's the boot. And the garden is ready for planting. But the best part of spring, lots of eggs from our seasoned hens and new chicks! This year we have added an Appenzeller Spitzhauben, Brabanter, Belgian D'anver, Blue Silkie, Silver-winged Dorking and Cuckoo Maran. Check out their pics at two weeks of age.