Moving chickens

It seems like all farm animals are food motivated. Rick used to move our cows by calling them, because they knew he always fed them. Often, we would use the pickup that we always fed them from to move them. A honk of the horn and a hollered, “Come, boss, c’mon!” was all it took to get them to follow the pickup wherever we wanted them to go. I have moved herds of horses with a bucket of grain and, as a kid, we would call the pigs in from the fields by banging on a grain bucket. So I decided to try it with chickens.

It actually started last summer when I wanted to get my chickens to come up to the yard to eat grasshoppers. I had been treating them with dried bugs, so I would call them, sprinkle the bugs out and the little biddies would follow me anywhere. They came to the yard, then went back in their house — but anywhere I went with that bag of bugs, the chickens following me. 

Last month, I decided to move the whole bunch to a coop nearer to the house. I lost quite a few hens this summer to predators because the location of their original coop encouraged the hens to go down into a draw where, I think, a fox lurks. The old coop on the northern end of the house wasn’t being used anymore, so I cleaned it out and set it back up for a house and run, then I started feeding them closer and closer to that run. I even tempted them with some rotting tomatoes and other kitchen scraps.

Finally, I grabbed the bag of bugs one morning, started calling, “Chick, chick, chickens!” and behold, they nearly all followed me right into the new run. The gate was shut and all was well. There was a big old rooster I had to catch and take back to the other house for the time being, but he will be headed to the freezer camp very soon. My old Chicky-Chick rooster didn’t come along either and he kept his three hens with him, but he will also be headed to the camp soon. With only three or four hens to move, it will be much easier to catch and pack them; I wasn’t looking forward to having to catch, crate, pack and release them — it would have taken at least five trips across the yard. It took a few days to get the nests moved and set up, but now they are all pretty well settled in and enjoying their new place of residence. 

We have had to adjust to some things though. I have a light in the coop that switches on about 4:30 a.m. and it shines directly into our bedroom window. As soon as the light comes on, the roosters start crowing, not far from our same bedroom window — but unlike a train whistle, or an airplane, it really isn’t hard to adjust to a rooster’s crow. I guess it is because it’s more natural.

Christmas Crack

35-40 Saltine crackers (or enough to cover the bottom of a half sheet pan (graham crackers work, too)

1 cup butter

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup chopped pecans

2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 400º.

Line a 10x15 or a half sheet pan with aluminum foil and spray well with cooking spray.

Put the saltines in a single layer in the pan.

Combine the butter and brown sugar in a saucepan and boil for about 5 minutes.

Pour over the Saltines and spread evenly, top with chopped pecans and bake for 5 minutes.

Remove from oven, sprinkle with chocolate chips and let sit until chips are melted, then spread.

Let it harden cut into pieces and it is ready to devour.