Sunday, November 15, 2015

Chickens' life in pictures

Life of our chickens is full of daily routines and rituals. Here are some of them. All photos were taken in the past few days (Nov 11-15, 2015).

At night. 

Breakfast.
Rooster No. 2 (back) has to wait outside until Rooster No. 1 (front)  lets him in. 
Ready for work!
Work starts with choosing the right office room.
Some rooms are more popular than others.

To work or not to work... 

Snapshot from the office.

My deep apologies for disturbing you, ladies!

Breakfast is over, let's play outside! 

A bit wet out there, uh! (It's been raining since yesterday.) (Nov. 15)



Today's muddy landscape. (Nov. 15)





Friday, November 13, 2015

サルモネラ菌の検査と今朝の写真

English article.)

うちのニワトリの卵をサルモネラ菌の検査に出しました。先日結果が届いたのでお知らせします。



結果は陰性、つまりサルモネラ菌が見つかりませんでした。うちのたまごは安全です。

日本では、加工していない殻のままの卵はサルモネラの検査が義務付けられていませんが、多くの生産者は自主的に検査をしています。私たちもそうです。食べ物を作るのは大きな責任です。慎重にやっていきたいです。

しかしブログの投稿としては、当たり前の検査結果のお知らせでは面白くないので、おまけに今朝(2015年11月11日)撮ってきた写真を何枚かお付けします。

おはよう!

めんどり、おんどり、日の出。

頭の上に乗っかっていい? (ニワトリが聞いてきました。)

写真を撮ってもいい?(私がニワトリに聞きました。)

あなたの頭に乗っかってもいいなら、写真とっていいよ。. (ニワトリが答えたのでそうしました。)

うちのニワトリ達


お菓子くれるの?(めんどり達が興味しんしんで寄ってきました。)
もう一歩近づくと足をつついてやるぞ!(おんどりが怖い顔してこちらを見ました。)

以上、うちのニワトリの朝でした!

Wednesday, November 11, 2015

Salmonella testing and some morning pictures

日本語。

We had our hens' eggs tested for salmonella and we finally got the result, so here it is.



The result was negative, that is, no salmonella bacteria was found.
It's quite obvious but anyway: our eggs are safe.

In Japan, salmonella testing of unprocessed eggs (in the shell) is not mandatory but many producers still have their eggs tested. We do the same because however low the risk, producing food is huge responsibility and we take it seriously.

To make this post more interesting, here are photos of our flock this morning.

Hello!

Hens, roosters and the rising sun.

Can I jump on your head? (The hen asked me.)

Can I take your picture? (I asked the hen.)

Yes, but only if I can jump on your head. (The hen replied and we made a deal.)

Our frontyard flock. 


Some sweets for us? (Hens were curious.)
One step closer and I'll peck your leg to death. (Rooster gave me menacing look)


Monday, November 9, 2015

Goat Story part 119: "Kaakun's gone."

The turbulent story of our power plant's star Natchan (the she-goat) and her friend Kaakun (the he-goat) entered new chapter. Our heroine Natchan is still here, but Kaakun is gone.

For those who didn't watch from the beginning, here's summary: There used to be two goats grazing on our farm, Natchan and Kaakun. Now there is only one goat, Natchan. The reason is explained below.

But before jumping to the explanation, here's a plea: Goats are sociable creatures, they need friends. Please drop by any time to keep Natchan's company, even a few minutes count. (You can also buy some eggs on the occasion.)

I always try to stop by and give her some grass, carefully chosen to suit her taste. If the grass does match her taste, she will kindly accept it.




And finally the explanation.

Natchan and Kaakun were good friends and enjoyed being together.







But then they hit puberty. Since then, Kaakun, a gentle and shy boy before, could think of nothing but mating. He would chase Natchan around and Natchan would meeh-meeh and run away. Natchan wasn't happy. The thing is that he-goats want to mate all the year round, but she-goats (at least the Natchan's variety) are in heat only for a short period of time once a year. So there was a major imbalance in their needs which meant a critical blow to their friendship.

When the situation became unbearable for Natchan, the decision was made that Kaakun has to go. Kaakun was returned to his owner. I hope he's doing well. We thought that Natchan would be lonely and sad (despite Kaakun being so pushy, he was still her only friend.) But Natchan looked apparently relieved.

Now, after the feeling of relief faded, she's a bit bored. People who pass by with their dogs or on a walk, keep her company, but they are not there all the time. So Natchan, in search of more fun, found way out of her grazing paradise. This is where I found her when I came the other day.
Guess who she met on her exploration journey?


Yes, you're right, she met her fellow explorer Christine the Chicken.

They said brief "Hello" to each other and continued eating their respective favorite meals.


※For the record, Natchan the Goat's favorite hedge shrubs are: Red Robin [Photinia], Sasanqua Camellia, Heavenly Bamboo [Nandina domestica] and Mochi tree [Ilex integra]. Warning: Goats do not like Boxwood [Buxus]. You should not plant boxwood in your hedge if you want to have it trimmed by a goat.

And so the Goat Story entered new chapter. We'll see what new adventures are awaiting for Natchan.