Crystal the Rhode Island Red likes to follow us around the homestead.
Our winter thus far has been spent, cooking new gluten-free recipes, doing some deep cleaning inside our home, letting the chickens out to free range with supervision and shoveling snow. Welcome to winter in Michigan!!
This is our week of January 15, 2016. I hope you enjoy the view!
Rhodies and Cochin’s alike want to get out of the run no matter the weather.
We shoveled snow away from the door to the covered run so the chicks could scratch and peck. Our girls love their dirt!
Elsa found a tiny bit of open ground in front of the pole barn door.
We are challenged to find open areas of dirt or leaves to keep the chickens occupied during the long, cold days and out of trouble. Too much time in the coop means chicken squabbles and the lowest chickens in the pecking order seem to be the one who suffer, especially poor Freckles.
The wondering buddies, Crystal and Elsa.
This was a tiny melted area about the size of a plate near the front of the pole and the girls found it and scratched around satisfying the Rhodies intense drive to dig, scratch and peck.
Crystal and Elsa are wondering buddies. Even when no one else will venture outside in the snow and cold these two avian friends find a way to occupy themselves.
Posing at the pole barn!
Gene and his girls!
Unless there is a terrible snowstorm, we try to get the chickens outside every day, if even for just an hour. Sunlight, fresh air and exercise are good for the girls and helps to keep them busy and occupied too.
When the chicken run gate is open for our morning chores they invariably find their way to the overhand of the forge where there is open dirt and leaves. THIs winter we have stored buckets of bark chips under the forge overhang that we use from time in the chicken coop.
Chickens tracks lead the way to where the girls have been traveling.
I hope you have been having some enjoyable travels too!
Small House homesteader, Donna
Small House Big Sky Homestead 