Busy Busy Busy..........

Ok...... Sort of but not really.


Past three weeks have flown by. We cautiously ventured out to West Texas (Marfa) to escape the heat for a bit and do a little recovering. My farmhand Claire is BRCA2+(click on cancer risk tab) and a few weeks ago she had a prophylactic bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction. After a nine hour surgery, a stay in the ICU, and a few days of begging to get out of the hospital, she is doing remarkably well. Marfa is the city of do nothing. So we did a whole lotta nothing, except rest and recover. It was a beautiful 75 degrees everyday and a chilly, fire starting 50's at night.  I was able to catch a few shows at El Cosmico, where the fabulous Patty Griffin and her legend of a boyfriend Robert Plant played to a crowd of less than 150.  

Patty and Robert

It was awesome to get away, escape the heat, and do nothing. I definitely needed the recharge.I have been thinking a lot about water conservation since this drought in Austin began and I realized I may need to change the way I have been doing things around here at Uprooted Bamboo. I have been throwing around a few ideas and am still weighing some possibilities. Something has got to change since I can't seem to grow anything successfully.  


We got home yesterday and the heat is back to 103. This week it's supposed to dip down to the low 90's.  I went ahead and decided to go ahead and put my artichokes in the ground, praying that the cool weather comes around soon. Anyway, here's what happens when the girls are around and I try to plant something. Not the best helpers around. Seriously, killin me. 

Uh Uh, Stop it..............I know.

Boneless skinless in the House.

Yeah that's right. Remember when I said I could write a book with instructions about how to handle rare chicken happenings that occur when raising chickens? Well seriously......... I can.

A couple of months ago our two furry, four legged farmhands got a little rowdy and ambushed the girls. I know they were probably scheming this sneak attack for a few months, but one windy day, an unlatched gate, and my forgetfulness gave them their long awaited opportunity. Rouge ended up with a hurt leg and a few feathers missing and Penny ended up with a small cut on her back and a few missing back feathers. I cleaned them up, applied antiseptic, massaged Rouge's leg for a few days and in no time they were on their way to recovery. So, I thought. 

Rouge healed up nicely and after a few days the limp was gone. Penny on the other hand seemed to be losing more feathers. Over the next few days, I noticed more and more gone until one morning I walked out and all of her feathers were gone.  I mean, it literally looked like a piece of boneless skinless chicken you would get at the grocery store. Great.

What the hell was going on? I started a search and the list of differentials was long. I ruled out everything from mites, illness, to molting and came to the conclusion that the other girls must be pecking on her. They free range all day, are fed a very balanced feed and have plenty of space, so it took me awhile to believe that this indeed was the cause. Normally chickens turn cannibalistic( yeah I know harsh word, but that's what the feed store guy called it) if the aforementioned needs aren't met. But, I think the cut on her back from the dogs led the other girls to believe she was weaker, low on the totem pole, and ultimately in their world gave them the right to pick on her. The thing is, I never really see them peck at each other. They hang out, eat together, free range, and even at night on the roost I have yet to see them peck each other. One friend even suggested that since it's so hot in Austin, she probably just pulled them out to escape the heat, like taking off her down jacket of sorts. With this heat, as crazy at that sounds, I wouldn't put it past her.

Either way, the situation started to make me worry.

I headed to the feed store for some advice. I had read some things about Blue Kote and wanted to give it a try on her bare skin. It turns the skin a bright blue almost purple color, helps to rapidly heal wounds, and also tastes bad to the other girls who peck her.  The guy also suggested that I try a product called Rooster Booster.  According to the guy, it tastes awful(he knows because a coworker snuck some on the top of his drink once), only needs to be applied once, and will definitely keep the girls away from her. 


I went in guns a'blazin with both products, snatched up Penny, and applied liberally. Shockingly, she was fine with me putting it on her. The real test would be to wait and see if it worked. 


Ok. Now. Really. You have got to be kidding me. Remember when I said I could write the book on yada yada yada............................ well seriously, I can. 
I mean really, only MY girls would like the taste of both of these products. KILLIN' ME. Penny thought it was a buffet on her back and the others took a few tastes and went back for seconds, thirds, fourths. They pecked her back more in the first five minutes of the application than I have seen in the last few months. 


Now what? I could separate her, but the reintroduction might be just as miserable. I found another option, a last resort of sorts. When I found it, I couldn't believe it actually existed or that I would be using it on one of my girls.  Enter the chicken saddle. I know. So freaking ridiculous, but hysterical at the same time. And so versatile really. I put it on Penny yesterday and she's so easygoing she didn't even mind. She is now probably making the other girls jealous now with her sassy new jacket. I know....stop it.


We had a cool front blow through yesterday. 91 degrees. Aaaahhhhhhh. Feels like fall already. Just in time for Penny's new sportswear, only time will tell if it works. 

Chicken saddle sassiness

Oh yeah. It's camo too.