What a surprise! No, not the cold weather, we saw that in the local forecast, temps in the teens, breezy to drive the wind chill into single digits.
So no surprise the pond was frozen over, and the chicken waterers would also be iced up. The morning routine is to let the hens out, feed them, check the water, and offer up the tidbits headed for the compost so the hens can get in and work over whatever catches their interest. The broken egg shells are often the first to go.
This morning, with the cold, I brought them a jug of warm water for the water bowl. Certainly, it quenched their thirst, they grabbed a quick swallow, a bite of feed and off to free range, pecking and scratching, scratching and pecking.
Sophia Royal, the Silver Laced Wyandotte with the purple ankle bracelet, got a nice big swallow, then dunked her whole head into the warm water – several times, wattles and all!
As I headed back to the house for a hot cup of coffee, I noticed the chickens around the pond. Knowing it was frozen over, I wondered what they were going to do when they found they would not likely get their next drink there. Several walked out on the ice, slipping and sliding a bit, before breaking the thin ice and getting a nice ice cold drink. Ice skating chickens. Who would have thought? There seems no end to the entertainment value these chickens provide..
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