...and speaking of eggs.
A few weeks ago, I was watering the plants at my plantbox (my flat has a small plantbox just outside my window). Summer has arrived and the few scraggly plants living (barely) in that space looked like they needed a good soaking. I was so busy the past few weeks that I didn't had time to check their condition. There was a water valve connected to a perforated pipe that ran through its length so I just opened the valve and let the water spray the ground a couple of minutes. I purposely let the water flood the box a little bit so the water could really soak through the roots of the plants. Imagine my surprise when I was about to turn off the valve when I saw a floating chicken! It wasn't dead or anything like that. It was trying its best to sit still at the far corner of the plant box. Then I realized that it was a hen and she was trying to keep her eggs warm! I immediately turned off the valve and tried to shoo away the chicken to see if there really were eggs beneath her but she wouldn't budge. I really do not want any direct contact with live birds with the avian flu epidemic and all so I just let her be.
All throughout the following weeks, I would take a peek outside and look at the hen. She would be exactly where she was day after day seemingly not leaving the corner at all. I was feeling sad for the chicken thinking that the eggs probably died because of the "flash flood" I caused and that she probably wouldn't leave the eggs even if they would not ever hatch. I imagined the chicken eventually dying of hunger or something.
I woke up very early this morning due to an irritating intermittent chirping sound that I could not quite place. The first thing I checked was the chicken and I was pleased to discover cute little spotted yellow chicks huddling close to their mother hen. I whipped out my digital camera and the mother hen became so agitated that she tried to puff up her feathers to appear twice as large and I think she was ready to peck my finger off when I tried to get a close up shot.
With the cats, rabbits, turtles, chickens, and even a couple of deer wandering around the compound, the place is starting to look like a wildlife preserve.
By the way, the chirping sound that woke me up did not come from the chicks or the mother hen. I found out much later that it actually came from my low on power Motorola 2-way handheld radio. Stupid radio.
A few weeks ago, I was watering the plants at my plantbox (my flat has a small plantbox just outside my window). Summer has arrived and the few scraggly plants living (barely) in that space looked like they needed a good soaking. I was so busy the past few weeks that I didn't had time to check their condition. There was a water valve connected to a perforated pipe that ran through its length so I just opened the valve and let the water spray the ground a couple of minutes. I purposely let the water flood the box a little bit so the water could really soak through the roots of the plants. Imagine my surprise when I was about to turn off the valve when I saw a floating chicken! It wasn't dead or anything like that. It was trying its best to sit still at the far corner of the plant box. Then I realized that it was a hen and she was trying to keep her eggs warm! I immediately turned off the valve and tried to shoo away the chicken to see if there really were eggs beneath her but she wouldn't budge. I really do not want any direct contact with live birds with the avian flu epidemic and all so I just let her be.
All throughout the following weeks, I would take a peek outside and look at the hen. She would be exactly where she was day after day seemingly not leaving the corner at all. I was feeling sad for the chicken thinking that the eggs probably died because of the "flash flood" I caused and that she probably wouldn't leave the eggs even if they would not ever hatch. I imagined the chicken eventually dying of hunger or something.
By the way, the chirping sound that woke me up did not come from the chicks or the mother hen. I found out much later that it actually came from my low on power Motorola 2-way handheld radio. Stupid radio.
Comments
Free range chicken anyone? Although with cats around, those chicks may not live to see the cooking pot. And did you say you have deer? Hmm. Venison.