New Spring Chickens

Spring is here at Foothill Country Farm... and with spring comes new spring chickens. At least that's what we're calling them. The new ladies have been with us for a few months now and are growing (and eating!) like crazy, much to the dismay of the older hens who are now sharing their coop with them.



Year after year our sweet hens have lovingly been supplying our small family with enough eggs to enjoy for breakfast and household cooking, but this past year, they have dropped off to only giving about 3 to 4 eggs a day total. Are we chicken farmers? Not in the least! Did we know that as chickens age they stop laying as many eggs? Heck no... but after some searching and asking around we found out that at about age 4 or 5 hens just don't lay like they used to, if at all. Of the seven old hens that we still have, only about 5 of them are laying any eggs, as far as we can tell, and not every day.

So one early spring morning in March we packed up the family and drove to the local farm supply to find our new chicken recruits. Oh how delightful they were, all golden and white and fuzzy and chirping and hopping about saying "Me! me! me! Pick me!" It was a hard choice, but we narrowed it down to a good collection of birds both prized as heritage hens, as well as some that were more productive egg-layers.



We came home with 3 Barred Rock (Plymouth Rock), 3 Aracuna, 3 Black Star, 3 California White, 2 Buff Orphington, 2 Silver-Laced Wyandottes, 4 Rhode Island Reds, and 6 White Leghorns. Now... we wait and watch and see how they grow and how many of them end up being roosters rather than hens. Hopefully not too many as we already have two good roosters.

Here's to the joys of spring, and to new life... and the yummiest eggs you ever tasted... fresh from barn to table here at Foothill Country Farm.

See you next time!
Foothill CountryGirl