Fewer Hens

I've lost two hens in the last two weeks, both little brown Warren hybrids.  I'm always sad when I lose them because they are my pets as well as my egg providers. One hen was one of the old age pensioners and the other was one of the youngest group.  When I say 'youngest', they are actually very middle-aged but they are the youngest that I have. I could do with a few genuinely young ones so that there is a reliable supply of eggs. The girls are laying right now because spring is on its way but that won't last and I doubt if some of them will lay any more eggs after this.

I went to visit my farmer friend yesterday to see the first of the lambs. Very cute! Lambs are always very appealing and innocent looking. One of the mother-to-be ewes is so wide that she is wider than she is tall - maybe triplets? They lost one ewe last night because she had a prolapse. Being a smallholder is sometimes difficult.

Their hens are getting old too although they are not as old as mine. They are going to get some day old chicks after Easter so we are thinking about getting some with them and sharing the cost of delivery.

On the way to the farm, I called in at the large Tesco at yellow sticker scrum time and came home with a nice bagful of goodies.  Still nothing for my son but I got three meals of fish for my friend and enough things for lunches for us for over a week (some went in the freezer) but just one dinner this time. In Tesco, I was just bending over to lift something from the lowest tray of goodies when a lady came up and literally pushed me right out of the way so she could have whatever she had spotted. I was appalled at such behaviour. There was plenty of goodies for everybody there to go home with a bagful.  I obviously need to sharpen my elbows before I go there again although I probably won't be out that way until the calves are born on the farm. But a bagful of such goodies really makes the housekeeping str-e-t-ch : )

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