Hens on the Homestead: Healthy and Happy for Winter

When life feels uncertain, hanging out with your hens always lifts the spirits. 

At our house, between our area's recent severe floods, the new Covid variant, and my being away from home a lot caregiving for family, there's a lot to worry about. But I'm grateful that our five hens are taking the last rocky months in stride.

In a big November windstorm, a sizable Douglas fir fell onto the chicken coop. Happily, the coop was pretty much unscathed--and the hens appeared to have slept through the impact. 

That's one of the great things about laying hens...unless they're being stalked by a predator of some kind, they'll go about their little routines through thick and thin, without getting too bent out of shape.

I'm happy to report we haven't had a broody hen since mid-October--one less thing to fret about. We've had some broodies who lost a lot of weight and color in their combs. At times, one or two of them looked so ill and were so lethargic we were afraid she wouldn't make it though the broody cycle. Right now, I'm guessing the chilly fall weather has cooled their body temperatures enough to stave off the urge to hatch eggs. 

Not that there's much to hatch these days. This time of year, when the days are shortest, some of our hens are molting--losing their feathers to grow a new set. Commercial hatcheries will often keep the hens in bright light 24/7, so they will lay continuously.

Allowing your hens to go through this natural process means their reproductive systems get a little break, and the hens will have a much longer egg-laying cycle. However, during this time, egg production goes way down; our girls are laying at a steady, if unspectacular rate of 1 egg every other day. On the plus side, John and I have about 8 dozen eggs in the shop fridge, which we've accumulated over the last few months.

Naturally, although the girls aren't laying much, they still have good appetites. So, while they're not earning their keep, as it were, it's still nice to have them around for entertainment value! 

However, our flock seems a bit crankier than usual these days: one of hens keeps chasing me and pecking my legs. I understand hens figure out their world through their beaks, so pecking is a natural behavior. I think she's doing this so I'll give her extra feed, but today, she jumped against my leg and flapped her wings on me. Not too happy about that!

The alpha hen has also been snapping at a couple of others when I fill the feeder. They'll make these hilarious little "toots" like a horn--but hens are pretty scrappy and will sneak back the feeder when the top hen isn't looking. 

Going into winter, I've been giving the hens some scratch grains before they go into their coop for the night. I understand digesting the scratch raises their metabolism, so they will stay a bit warmer overnight.  

Scratching for grains in the snow

With our area's recent record rainfall, the soil in the girls' yard is absolutely sodden. They'll do their
usual dust baths, though, then go out into the rain--and all five are looking pretty grimy! While our girls mostly lounge under the roof of their run during the downpours, they're always game to dash into the open yard when the rain lets up. 

And during these very short, dark days--yesterday, it looked like dusk at 11 am--seeing that flash of blond across the garden brightens the day.

Back to predators: we haven't seen any big cats all fall, and haven't even heard any coyotes the last couple of weeks. It could be it's been so darn rainy they're just hiding in their dens. But now that the weather is drying out a little, it's probably time to keep a sharp eye out!

A side note: I'm trying to keep to my regular Thursday posting...but if I miss a week here or there, it's because I'm away again for family.

Whatever your situation--and especially if  you're going through hard times--I hope you're finding ways to keep your spirits up!