Thanksgiving

I celebrate Thanksgiving every evening when I put our chickens to bed. I thank them for all the wonderful eggs they have given me and I tell them how pleased I am with them.

Our ten chickens are now laying between 5 and 8 eggs a day. The Ameraucanas started laying two days ago when they turned six months old. I recognize their eggs because they are green in color. Even one of the two Bobbsey Twins is laying eggs. The twins are a month younger than the rest of the chickens. They are finally acting more like they are part of the flock.

Paula has been selling the eggs to her friends at church and in her book club group. These eggs are extra special because I feed the chickens organic chicken feed and supplement their diet daily with ground flax meal. For a while I was also feeding them 'dumpster' produce but I cut that out when I realized this was creating havoc with their reproductive system. A few chickens started laying rubbery eggs and in some cases they laid eggs with no egg shell at all. The birds were also suffering from diarrhea. So, despite the fact that chickens can and do eat pretty much everything, not every food is good for them.