Our new chooks

We are still relatively new to chook keeping (we got our first little flock not long after Miss 2 was born), but it is one of those "frugal" things I cannot recommend enough. We had a sad time about a month ago, where our dogs suddenly attacked and killed our 2 girls, Nugget and Icecream. We've since done some re-planning on our chicken set-up, and have decided our new girls won't have as much free-ranging time as the other two did, but they still have plenty of room in the safety of their coop and pen to safely forage about, peck at grass and make us some delicious eggs and compost for our garden! 

Introducing Elsa (white), Anna (black) and Ariel (brown). I will get some better photos, but this one was snapped the afternoon we bought them home.

I missed having chooks about when our old girls were suddenly gone. They really bring something extra to our garden. The kids adore them, and they are a source of endless entertainment. I find myself sitting watching them and talking to them.

Aside from thier physical presence in our lives, I really missed their eggs, especially when I realised to buy a dozen "free-range" eggs in a major supermarket chain in Australia is now about $6. I never really rationed eggs before, but since the price had jumped up so much in the past 2 years, I found myself almost second-guessing using them. Also, I now know I've become one of those people who cry, "They taste so much better fresh!".

Our first two new-chooks' eggs. We used to have just Isa Browns, and they both laid quite large eggs. Our new girls are 1 Isa and 2 leghorn bantams, whose eggs seem teeny by comparison! I'm not sure if I'll subsequently need to use more in baking, I guess we will see :) 

I wasn't sure how we would go keeping chickens. I worried they would take too much time. I would guess they need perhaps 5 minutes of time a day if we are just doing bare-minimum caring, but as we consider them sort-of pets and we like them, I take my time with them.

I was shocked in the month of being chickenless how much extra food wastage we had. Chooks eat so many more kinds of food scraps than I ever imagined before owning them.

I am so glad we have our new girls. I think I can officially say I'm a chicken-keeper-convert!