Chicken Morning

Now that the ladies are getting so big, we've been letting them free range in our front field. This morning I stopped to snap a few pictures on a chilly morning.

Here Dandelion is enjoying a little hug:



While the other chickens think (once again) that my shoes are something tasty:






Not so much.



Here is a good shot of Petunia (on the left) and Marigold (on the right). Marigold's beak is darker (as befits her temperament). Petunia is also known by her prodigious appetite and willingness to ignore all else in favor of food.





And here are all the girls together (Dandelion can just be seen behind Chick Pea on the right):




It has been so nice to know that Tubby the dog couldn't really care less about the chickens. He never chases or bothers them. They don't even fight over the pears that drop from our trees, favorites of all our animals. Tubby really does like their chicken feed, so I need to be careful to buy the crumbles rather than the pellets so that he is less likely to think it is dog food.


And speaking of chicken chow, the girls love when the roof of their house is open because it is the best of both worlds: free ranging, but all the chicken chow you can muster. Here Dandelion takes her favorite face-down position (Petunia would try this is she weren't so, well, plump):





Petunia and Marigold notice the "Open" sign flashing on the feeder:




And before I know it, all four are stuffing their little feathery faces:




(Love those feathery ruffled bloomers!) I had to pull Dandelion off (twice) and rescue Marigold before closing the roof. Sure enough, Chick Pea and Petunia chose to come out and join the Fearsome Feathered Four for their morning walk about.


Hope no one thinks they are turkeys for tomorrow!


Happy Thanksgiving!