It will be a year in May since I became a chicken momma. I'm attached. Not so much attached to myself being the person handling their daily care. It's more about not being able to walk away unless I know they will be treated well. I don't have unrealistic expectations that anyone would be as deeply committed to their every day care as I've been. However, I need to know-their basic needs for their over-all health and well-being will continue to be met.
Caring for chickens is a huge every day responsibility.
My approach needed to shift from "you can't let them get sick and die, they need fresh air every day. They need water every day. They need food every day!!! Can you honestly do this?" to creating workable solutions.
There are ways to make raising chickens less work than how I do it. I'm keenly aware of that.
I wake up before the chickens. I will often have fresh water in their coop before they even get off of the roost. When they see me it stimulates their desire to eat their feed. I don't know why, but once the top vet at the University of Pennsylvania poulty lab told me this, I've found it to be true. Chickens require a specific percentage of vitimans and nutrition to be the healthiest they can be. Sort of just like us. Except they are so little that they can easily be taken off center.
Then an hour later I'm their feed mixologist. I make them specialized feed and turn it into mash. They leave the coop in the am to fresh mash every day.
Eggs need to be collected 3 times per day if you don't want critters coming in to steal them. And/or-to keep them clean.
Lunch time is their snack and play/exercise time. I usually walk around the run and they follow me. My walk is their run (it's so cute) and we do that until they get tired. And if I can't get out at lunch time to do that, I do it before the sun goes down.
Their morning routine also includes me cleaning their coop. Which needs to be done daily.
Who in their right mind would take all of this on if they don't have the ️love connection leading them?
Shifting my approach. Let's spend time learning the Chickens personalities...maybe deep love will set in.
Because when our love is pure, we take care of the things that we love...That's my theory anyway and I have got to stop giving myself a headache, have got to stop worrying so much.
Stay tuned