Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Teaching Old Chickens New Tricks


What's a golf ball doing in our chicken coop?  Actually, there are 3 golf balls currently in the nesting boxes of our coop. The golf balls are teaching our chickens where to lay their eggs.  It makes me laugh.

This year's group of Gals were all about 1 year old and laying daily when they arrived on the Little Farm.  As you can imagine, moving from one "farm" to another can be a bit discombobulating for a poor hen.  That is a big change, especially for a less than genius chicken.

I mean...when, early in our marriage, I moved the laundry hamper from one side of a door to another it took The Big Guy about a year to get used such a monumental change.  I moved the silverware drawer (it moved from the top drawer to the one directly below) about 5 years ago.  The males in my house are still getting used to that one...but I digress.  (I love the differences between boys and girls!)

Anyway, when the Gals moved in, they weren't sure where their eggs were supposed to go.  For the first couple of days, we found them all over the ground under their coop.  This wasn't the end of the world, we still found them easily and such.  However, a few of them were broken. 

Broken eggs!  That's like throwing away a treasure!

So, Farmer Ron stuck one golf ball in each of the nesting boxes on the top of the coop.   Ta Da!  The next day, we had 4 eggs laid IN the nesting boxes.  All they needed was a good example.  Good thinking Farmer Ron!  The Gals sure are quick learners.

At this juncture, I could point out that the Gals are, in fact, GIRLS and that said girls adjusted to this change quite speedily.  And this stands in stark contrast to how the males on the Little Farm seem adjust to things moving around, but I won't...

3 comments:

  1. I can totally relate! Not to the egg-laying chickens bit, but the gender differences sure hit home :). Hugs to you all!

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  2. Ha ha ha ha ha!!! Joe hates it when I switch around kitchen drawers! (:

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  3. Hi Wendy,

    I work for the company that produces Mutual of Omaha’s “Aha Moment” campaign; visit www.mutualofomaha.com/aha to see what an aha moment is and the incredible stories we’ve filmed over the last two years. As I came across your website, I couldn’t help but think that you might have an aha moment to share.

    We’re taking our 34-foot Airstream mobile film studio to 25 cities to capture inspirational, life-changing aha moments from folks all over the country. We are headed to Green Bay, WI on August 8th and 9th, and would love to invite you to share an aha moment! You would just have to step into the Airstream studio for a few minutes and tell your story on film to our tour manager. Your video will then be posted to www.mutualofomaha.com/aha, where you will be able to share it with your friends and family via email, Facebook and Twitter!

    For the second year in a row, our tour manager is Jessica Henry. Hailing from Athens, GA, Jessica is an outdoor enthusiast and self-proclaimed "foodie" who enjoys talking about powerful life moments with people just like you all over the country. You can read Jessica’s bio (and meet the rest of the crew) at www.ahamoment.com/tour/about

    We will be parked at Hotel Sierra Green Bay at 333 Main Street, on August 8th and 9th from 11am to 7pm.

    Let me know as soon as possible and I can reserve some time for you.

    Many thanks!

    Olivia Lasky
    olivia@skadaddlemedia.com

    View aha moment videos: www.mutualofomaha.com/aha
    Read the tour blog: tour.ahamoment.com
    Follow the tour on Twitter: @myahamoment
    Like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/myahamoment
    Check into your tour stop on foursquare: www.foursquare.com/myahamoment

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