My husband and I are now the proud owners of three Barred Rock laying hens, two quail, and about 15 incubating quail eggs. We are collecting about two chicken eggs a day and they are superb. The quails have not been regularly laying since their move but I had one of their little spotted delicacies the other day in my soup. We are still not legally permitted to have hens on our property so we bought a third of my employer's flock and went halfers on the quail. On the days when I visit the hens to feed them our kitchen scraps and collect their eggs, they tend to lay more than on the days I do not visit. Perhaps it is because I talk and cluck to them and tell them what good girls they are.
The quail chicks are due to hatch in a few days!
There has been a considerable number (15 or more) of articles and letters to the editor since Jan. 27th regarding the Urban Hen project, all in support of chickens and all upset with City Council.
In an interview with the Daily News, opposing counc. John O'Fee is quoted saying "People have chickens now, but the city will have to take action if neighbors complain.....the status quo seems to work fine at this point........If it's benign and neighbors don't mind, then it's not an issue worth pursuing" He is implying for us to go ahead and have chickens illegally as we probably won't get caught. This is a dangerous statement. It is like saying "go ahead speed, grow pot, (insert discrete illegal activity here), because unless someone rats you out, you won't get caught". He is discouraging us from our desire to abide by the laws.
At the meeting on Jan. 27th, Mayor Millobar repeatedly mentioned that if we really wanted to have chickens, we could apply for a variance on our property, yet he failed to mention it costs $750 to do so and you are not guaranteed success.
Counc. DeCicco has said "if you want the country life, move to the country". On this point, my friend and Urban Hen advocate Leslie Welsh observed "He might as well have said 'Let them eat cake'". I cannot imagine a more ignorant statement. The price tag for a hobby farm within a reasonable distance from the city is unaffordable to the majority. It is not an option for us - that is the reason we're fighting to have chickens in the city. Hello?
New terms are beginning to enter our vocabulary such as "The Urban Homestead"and "Backyard Farming". The only way to truly know the who, what, where and hows of our food is to buy local from small farmers that we meet, or if we have a little land to grow and raise our own. I know what my chickens are eating, how they have been treated and how healthy they are. Now that is food security!
We had a warm, sunny Easter and we brought a few chicks outside for some super great photo opportunities. My brother took all of these shots. http://andrewholliday.squarespace.com/
We kept the chicks in a brooder in our house until they were 13 days old. They are now in the greenhouse in a brooder as the nights are quite cold still and they don't have all their adult feathers yet. They have moved from the cute and fuzzy stage into the ugly and awkward stage. Their feathers are growing but you mostly see the quills. They look like porcupines on chicken legs.
