I love my seven girls to the point of distraction . They are unceasingly entertaining as they scratch around the yard , looking for bug and other scrumptious stuff . But sometimes , just watch is n’t enough . When I get the urge to interact , things get weird … and super fun .
It ’s hilarious just to go out with some goody in hand and call them to me across the deck , which also resemble a chicken ice skating rink as they slide to a stop at my feet and commence hop up and down trying to snatch the goody . ( They love what we call “ dog log , ” clump of those sausage - mould frankfurter - intellectual nourishment rolls . ) But when I really want to mix it up , here are a few activities that are guaranteed to flirt with .
1 . Chicken Piñata
OK , no , I am not making one of my chickens into a piñata — I’m making a piñataforthem . Any rotund fruit or vegetable that they like will do , as long as it ’s light enough to really dangle when they peck it . plug a hole through it so you’re able to attach it to a electric cord or string , and hang it from a low branch a few inches over their top dog .
2 . flow Frenzy
Put a shallow bowlful of really messy food — like plain yoghourt stirred into leftover plain spaghetti noodles — and stand up back . There will be yogurt splosh everywhere , and watching a Gallus gallus eat a spell of spaghetti is , well , screaming . It just is .
3 . Fruit Football
This is pretty basic , but roll up a individual grape vine or other minor round fruit into the grouping of chickens will result in one of them grabbing it and the others furrow her around the one thousand . Eventually , she ’ll drop it , and another hen will snaffle it , and the secret plan uphold until the grape has been pecked to tittle . Repeat .
4 . Wind - Up Toy Attack
For some cause , I have an absurd amount of unusual wind - up toy dog , including a fart - up mule and a wind - up hyena . meander them up and sprain them all loose among The young lady results in a huffy combination of attacking and fleeing . I got ahold of an adorable fluffy chick idle words - up toy , thinking they might mother it . Instead , they pecked it until it stop kicking , and then one grabbed it and ran off to a corner to peck at it some more . Awesome .
5 . Hypnotize Them
The ultimate in volaille fun ! There are a few different methods ( visit the interwebs for a plethora of option ) , but I care to confine them on their backs and fortuity from their breastbone down to their tails until they make relaxed . Not that my chicken are n’t already relaxed — they lie in the sunshine aright outside my terrace door flopped over like puppy .
Perhaps people will not recall of me as a “ serious ” crybaby rancher when they understand this , and here ’s the matter : I ’m not ! I have my modest muckle to feed my family and pay for their upkeep with a few testis sale here and there , but I ’m not in it for the self-aggrandizing long horse . I ’m in it for playfulness . And what ’s more fun than a mesmerise chicken with a tummy full of yogurt , waiting for its twist at the piñata ?
« More Greenhorn Acres »
