My love affair with chickens part II

Having got my chickens back while here in Costa Rica, I've found the motivation to continue their story because it deserves to be told. They are such wonderful, intelligent, and emotional beings. Since they've been domesticated for such a long time, they can make the best pets ever, much better than parrots and other beautiful birds that should be left in the wild. They are so affectionate with their caretakers if you raise them from chicks. I strongly believe that as the pressures of human industry and agriculture increase to the inevitable stage where animal agriculture will stop because it is not sustainable on this planet, we nonetheless have the responsibility to continue taking care of farm animals-in much smaller numbers of course. I think it would be a horrible, shameful thing to slaughter the last agricultural creature, who have been used and abused by humans for food and the like for thousands of years, only to kill the last of their species. So, I will continue their story in the hope that people will see them in a new light. Please, give them the respect and caring they deserve.

Ginger did indeed turn out to be the smartest and most independent of the hens. My son named the other chickens: Cyclops (cos she had one eye closed for a few days), Knocker (cos she would knock on the window to go outside), and Window (cos she would hang out by the window).

I kept the chickens in their coop for a few days so they would get the idea that this was their new home. But, I really wanted them to roam free in the garden. I was afraid however that they wouldn't go back inside their coop at night and they'd be at risk for predators such as raccoons or foxes. This turned out to be groundless because every night as it got dark, but not a minute sooner, they would head back to the safety of the coop on their own. I would close the window to their coop and they'd climb up to the nest boxes to roost and settle down for the night.

They were sooo darling at night. All of the hens would snuggle up to Billy Idol and take turns preening him. He was very spoiled by his hens, but he deserved it because he worked hard to take care of them. Every time he would come across a food source, he would call his hens over and let them eat first. Only when the last hen had eaten her fill would he eat himself. He worked diligently at keeping his family together and preventing them from getting lost or into trouble. If the dog came close he would usually try to stare him down and away from his hens. If one of the hens strayed, Ginger was notorious for this, Billy Idol would come running to her calls of distress. Boy, was that girl at the agricultural store wrong about roosters. Not only are they pretty, but they are also indispensable to the chicken family structure.

The first day I opened the window to the outside, my chickens were quite uncertain as to what to do. They stepped outside hesitatingly, but Billy Idol lead the way and soon all were out and about enjoying the summer weather and beautiful surroundings. It didn't take them long to start pecking at the window every morning at first light to ask to go outside.

I had gotten into the habit of saying a specific phrase every time I had fed them in the coop (my phrase was "here chicky, chicky"-lol) so they would associate that phrase with being fed. This worked out quite well because even roaming free in the garden I could get them to come running to me for food every time I called. They were hilarious when they came running and everyone that visited got a laugh from my tame chickens who came a-running. They looked like albatrosses trying to take off while flapping their wings.

They were great company to me in the garden too. They loved to hang out with me while I worked in my garden. There was always the hope of finding a delicious, recently dug up worm so they stayed close by. They would occasionally let themselves be petted also, but they weren't as tame as my Costa Rican chickens which I had the good fortune of raising from chicks. They had been raised factory style until I purchased them so they were wary of humans and never warmed up to me as much as my Costa Rican chickens who snuggle up to my neck under my hair at night before settling down for sleep.

I eventually had to give up my Canadian chickens because fears of the bird flu made the government pass a law against free roaming chickens. I couldn't stand the thought of them been cooped up all the time since they loved being outside and they were miserable caged up. I gave them to an organic farmer who has other chickens and they roam in an outside enclosure which is better than a coop, but still not as good as roaming free. Happily, my Costa Rican chickens can roam free and they love it. More on them another day...