Things I have already learned...

So we have only had these chickens for a day or so, and I have already learned a lot.

Lesson #1... Chickens poop a lot. After a 15 minute drive home the cat carriers were disgusting. And yesterday (our first full day with the chickens) we had a BBQ to go to. We left the chickens in their enclosed area when we left, and when we came back a few hours later, they were out somehow, and the patio was covered in chicken poop... still need to clean it.

Which brings me to Lesson #2

Lesson #2... Chickens are extremely curious. I never would have thought of chickens as remotely intelligent, but they managed to sneak out of their enclosed area... twice. We thought we had fixed the problem the first time, and then we found them out again.

Lesson #3... Chickens stick together. I would swear these girls were best friends (though in reality they were probably never with each other before we got them). You rarely see one without the other two. Even when they got into the big yard, the three of them were huddled together.

Lesson #4... No matter how hard I prepare myself to not get to attached, it doesn't work. The second time the chickens got out, there were only two out, and my husband saw something go over the fence. He told me a chicken got over the fence and I needed to go to the neighbors. They have five dogs, and I thought for sure our chickie was demolished. As I ran to the neighbor's front door I felt such sadness for the chicken, and for the inevitable loss of our chicken endeavor. As my hand went up to pound on the door I could hear my husband's voice calling me back. I imagined that he jumped the fence and either heroically saved our chicken, or had simply come back with the remains. It turns out the chicken had never left the fenced in area. The thing my husband had seen disappear over the fence was actually the neighbor dog. My heart was pounding out of my chest.

Lesson #5... I never thought I would be so happy to see a single egg. Only one so far, but it was fantastic. :-)