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| Biffy-Lou (left) & Phillis (right) |
They're not yet ready to lay eggs, but Phillis' voice started changing on Sunday, which is partly endearing, partly bewildering when it comes from poultry.
I chose their names (since Kym suggested "Kentucky Fried" and "Breakfast") after beneficial bacteria cultures, to keep reminding myself that though they carry microbes, those microbes are actually beneficial for me. Phillis comes from Acidophilus and Biffy-Lou comes from Bifidus.
You'll see in the photo that the fence edge is weighted down with bricks... that's because Phillis managed to slip out of the coop on Saturday whilst we were away! We spotted her strutting about (no pun intended), showing off her newfound escape to a rather envious Biffy on the other side of the fence. We've put an extra barrier along that section of the original run where she got out (there's still more enclosed space beyond this where the fence goes underground to keep foxes and other predators at bay).
Phillis is plainly the alpha chicken. She's mastered the moody adolescent attitude perfectly. But I'm fond of her all the same. Even after she bolted and left me running late (and muddy) for dinner on Saturday evening. We're still learning how to catch chickens properly, and it took the pair of us roughly 20 minutes to get her back into the run and coop!
On the subject of coops... Here's the one we use to secure the girls at nightfall (affectionately speaking):
I picked up this aged guinea coop for $20 from someone at work. It's a good size for keeping a couple of chooks warm through the evening. To make it suitable for chickens, we made a few adjustments: since Kym and I find it difficult to access, we've removed the rear panel and positioned it next to the shed for easier cleaning. We also widened the space between the "ground and first floor" to accommodate the ladies' expanding waistlines!
Kym primarily completed the chicken-run with an improvised gate, fashioning it from spare materials we had available (as you'd expect, we're big fans of repurposing!).
Regarding expenses, since we repurposed items we already had, our spending was limited to chicken mesh for the enclosure (50 metres for roughly $90... we've used just over half and plan to apply the rest to future projects, so we estimate about $50), the coop ($20) and hinges for the gate ($15), amounting to $85. The chooks themselves were donated by a mate. The birds are presently dining on leftovers, though we may purchase specialist bird feed down the track. All in all, not too shabby, is it?
Biffy-Lou (true to her name) wasn't keen on being photographed today, but here's another shot of Phillis for you:
I'll return with plenty more posts about the ladies... I'm thoroughly charmed by them.
xx
PS: to view the remainder of the chicken enclosure, which we explored waaaaay back in August the previous year (!) click here.
