What’s There to Crow About?

I’ve mentioned before that I started keeping chickens and guineas. I bought them as one-week-old chicks and keets from Atwoods. There was a very helpful and knowledgeable lady there that answered all my questions and guided me on what I would need to start my chicken-guinea adventure. Four of the chicks I bought were ‘sexed’, meaning that they were supposed to be all female. I bought two others that I told the lady I didn’t care if they were male or female because I did want one rooster. The keets came as straight-run, meaning they were (probably) 50-50 male/female.


Fast-forward 15 weeks.

My routine each day starts with a walk up to the road to let the birds out of their coops and then on to collect the newspaper. The dogs and cats usually make the trip with me. It’s not a long one in distance but time-wise it can take quite a while, depending upon what I find to slow my progress. I have paused on my route for sunrises, flowers, birds, turtles, and anything that sparkles on the path.

This morning started like most others. I let the chickens and guineas out of their coops and checked their food and water and then made my way up the driveway. Anna, our beloved Pyrenees, was ‘guarding’ the driveway from a depression in the grass, so I made my way over to pet her and say good morning, and the other dogs joined me, nuzzling her to say ‘hello’.

Then we heard it; a strange sound. Something I had never heard before. I paused, and the dogs did too. Waiting to see if the sound happened again. Yes, there it was. What was it? It was coming from the chicken yard. Could it be? But that’s not what it should sound like. And again – the sound. Yes, yes, yes!

Crowing!

I walked up to the yard and watched as one of my ‘guaranteed female’ hens was crowing. I have wondered about this particular chicken for a few weeks because it was much larger than the other hens and it’s comb and tail feathers were larger. I have read that if one has only hens that one of them will take on the role of the rooster, crowing and acting more rooster-like and giving up their egg-laying role. But I don’t think it alters their physical appearance and starts at this early age, and especially since they haven’t started laying eggs yet.

Crowlee

So, I do have my rooster. It’s not one that I expected, but I’ll take what I can get. As to the crowing, I think it’s one of the sweetest sounds I could ever hear.

What a way to start the morning!

Greet the Morning?

So what’s so special about dawn that all the animals in the house want out and all the animals outside want in? And why can’t I sleep through it? I know the answer to the second question, but will I ever know the answer to the first? Probably not.

I do know that animals have an internal clock, humans included, which is pretty accurate. Our kittens have (for months now) started playing and jumping up on the bed at almost the exact same time every morning, attacking my feet, jumping on me, trying to rub their whiskers on my face, wanting me to get up and feed them. Coco, one of our dogs, starts whining at about the same time. Not to go out and ‘do’ anything, but to sit on the front porch and bark at the morning. 

I’m not opposed to the morning. In fact, I love the morning and I am usually an early riser anyway, but this morning I wanted to sleep in. Just a bit. I had stayed up late last night working on the computer and wanted just a bit more sleep this morning. But, it wasn’t to be, and I did finally get up and start my day.

 Sunrise Over the Pond

 
So, I hope your morning was a bit gentler than mine, and that you were allowed to sleep as long as you wanted to this morning. And if not, you have my sympathies. In any case, get out and enjoy the morning. The streaks of pink, gold, and orange painting the sky. The smell of the crisp, cold air. The birds chirping their welcome to the morning.

Have a wonderful day!