The chickens have gone :-(

I’ve been so busy recently.  We are having a lot of work done on the house and its difficult to get on the computer sometimes.  As we have wooden floors, everywhere seems permanently covered in dust.  I think I’m fighting a losing battle.

So, back to the chickens.  We have always had complaints from the neighbours about them.  We didn’t clip their wings and every so often one would fly over the fence and go have a go at the neighbours plants.  We would have to go chase it round until it got bored of the game and let us catch it.  It can get very tiresome trying to apologise whilst stood in the middle of the neighbours favourite flower beds.

This didn’t bother us too much as I was just happy that the chickens had a good life and were able to run free.  The real problems came with the rats.  The problem built up over a period of time.  We put poison down but we had to be careful where we put if because of the chickens and dogs playing in the garden.  The rats were just too clever and only ever ate from the chickens dish.  One night I locked the chickens in the coop and filled a 12 inch round container with chicken feed to a depth of just under one inch.  By next morning it was completely empty… heaven knows how many rats there were!

We tried everything, we moved all food supplies indoors, cleaned the cage out every day, only put scraps on the patio for the chickens but the rats just kept coming.  One night when I went out to do a head count before locking the chickens up I had the fright of my life.  I leant into the coop with my torch to count the chickens when a rat that must have got trapped in the coop decided to make a run for it.  It ran straight for the little door, but of course I was stood in the way so it launched itself and hit me in the chest before falling at my feet and scurrying off.   From that night I was terrified of doing the head count and had to force myself to open the coop. 

So anyway the chickens have now gone to live on a small holding a couple of villages away.  They free range just as they did here but now they have ducks and geese to play with.  I’m really sad and the garden seems so quiet.

Once the chickens had gone, we went straight outside and filled the feed bowl up with poison and by morning it was empty….

So no more rushing up to my feet and mugging me whenever I go into the garden.  I really miss the eggs as well.  If anyone knows anyone who sells fresh free range eggs in the Ashby area, then please let me know as I certainly won’t be buying any from the supermarket now I’ve been spoilt with freshly laid ones.