When we rescued the chickens, we knew absolutely nothing about them. We are after all clueless city slickers. I immediately did some research via the internet and purchased a couple of books. I had a big learning curve on the care of chickens.
First thing I learned is they were laying hens. What does that mean? They lay eggs without the assistance of a rooster. They lay an egg a day. The eggs were large brown shell. Very rich tasting eggs too! Their breed is Rhode Island Red hens. They are a larger breed of chickens. I also learned that they lay eggs for three years then quit. Their lifespan is roughly six years.
This was a good resource site for me. They had a list of foods that were good for them and foods that were poison to them. Just an example for you in case you decide to have a couple of chickens of your own. Good food; meal worms, chopped lettuce other than iceberg, (but not a steady diet) chopped chard, chopped watermelon, actually all melons, grapes, banana, cucumbers, chopped tomatoes, corn, corn on the cob and eggs. Bad for them, apple seeds and avocado. These are poison to chickens.
FYI: the ducks like the good food too! If you feed ducks, give them some of food on the good food listed. Stale bread actually gives ducks botulism, which kills them.
At first, we kept the girls in the same pen with the two ducks, Opa and Oma. We rescued Opa and Oma from the same place at the same time we rescued Winkin and Blinkin. We soon discovered the chickens would jump on Oma and peck her head. They did not do this to Opa. Why??? Opa was the reason the girls jumped Oma. Drake (male) ducks need more than one female in captivity. It is recommended to have 3 to 4 females per male duck. They are very busy boys!
Opa would chase the chickens and jump them. I was constantly chasing him to keep him off Winkin and Blinkin. Now Winkin would run a bit and just assume the position for Opa. I would be hot on his tail to keep him off Winkin. Blinkin would keep her distance from Opa. It was about a month after the rescue that, I figured out what was going on. They needed to be separated....Now!
We erected a 10' by 10' dog run, put down hay (another thing ducks cannot have) and put a temporary roof on it for the birds. We put a big deep (100 gal) pool in it for Opa and Oma. Winkin and Blinkin would sit on the edge of this pool, drink water and hang out. I was certain one day I would find two drowned chickens in the pool. Once we figured out the goings on between the birds, we divided the dog run in half. The ducks on one side the chickens on the other side. This worked out best for them. They were together but separate.
We expanded their coop giving each a 5' wide by 20' long area to live in. Since then, we expanded the coop to 400 square feet, creating a 10' x10' enclosure for each pair of birds. We put a dog house on a platform in with the chickens so they would have privacy while laying eggs.
FYI: if you do this, you will want to create a small hinged door at the back of the dog house to collect eggs that are at the very back, which is where they always are.
We did not let the birds out of their coop for a year. We were afraid they would head back to their original home, across the street. The owners of the home and property abandoned the place, sending it into foreclosure and leaving the animals to be killed off.
After a year, we decided to let them out to roam around. I was a bit concerned and not sure I could get them back into the coop in the evening. I used two long sticks and corralled them back to their coop. After a time, I used my hands and arms to guide them in. Now I tell them it is time to go in walking behind them pointing at their open doors.
As time went on, I was able to tell Winkin and Blinkin apart by the slight difference in the color of their tail feathers. Their personalities were blooming too. My husband could not tell them apart no matter how hard he tried. Thus the nickname "The girls."
Blinkin turned out to be my brave chicken. Winkin would stay fairly close to her. At night Winkin would cuddle up under Blinkin's wing to sleep.
Winkin was the best at bug, mouse and snake hunting. I stood in awe and horror as I watched Winkin grab a little field mouse trying to steal a piece of corn in their coop one day. She killed it by slaming it on the ground until it died then proceeded to gulp it down, very slowly....I felt so sad for the mouse, while finding a new respect for Winkin!
Winkin and Blinkin also followed me while I mowed the lawn. Blinkin would give up and go off on her own, but Winkin stayed right with me. Sometimes I had to stop the mower to get her to move out of the way. She would get too close. She caught bugs lightening fast following me. One day she caught a small snake I exposed in mowing. She grabbed it, beat it on the the ground until it stopped moving and yep, she slowly gulped it down. Blinkin ran over trying to take it from her, but no go!
Winkin never shared her kill with Blinkin or Opa.
Winkin died two years ago. She was 3 years and 5 months old. The preceding winter was just too cold for her. We had a heating pad buried in the hay of the dog house for her to sit on. We had heat lamps everywhere to keep her warm. Then the very hot summer came. I did all I could to keep her cool. One hot September day, she acted more like herself. She went outside chased and feasted on bugs. As she walked in across the threshold of the coop that late afternoon, she dropped dead. I still miss her.
Before Winkin died, Blinkin displayed a talent not seen before. After the death of Opa,(Oma's mate) we rescued 3 male ducks. One day one of the three boys, Mac, decided he would have Oma. I was in the coop cleaning out pools. I hear Oma hollering. I look up and see that Mac is on Oma. I holler at Mac, like that is going to make a difference. Winkin and Blinkin were both fairly close by buggin (hunting bugs). Blinkin looks up when she hears me hollering and comes running! She jumps on Mac's head with talons in attack mode. That boy jumps off Oma running like his tail feathers were on fire! I stood there with my mouth open...what just happened?
Blinkin goes back to buggin like nothing happen. Mac recovers but decides to try and jump Oma again. Not a bright boy. I holler for Blinkin. The girls knew their names. She jumps on Mac and pecks his head! He takes off running. I was laughing and wishing I had a video camera to catch this scene.
Mac is not the brightest duck. He decides to try one more time. Blinkin saw him before I did. She was in mid air when Mac and I saw her. He took off before he could mount Oma. He did not try it again that day.
Since the incident with Mac, Blinkin has been my little helper in the yard. She became the terror of the ducks. Sometimes she would jump on the ducks and peck them without cause. I would put her in time out in her enclosure. After 5 minutes, I would let her out again. We put chicken wire on the inside of her enclosed area of the coop. She had a tendency, (any chance she got) to stick her head through the chain link and peck any duck sitting on their nest close enough to her.
Oma I discovered was stealing Blinkin's bug catch. Blinkin would catch a bug, lay it on the ground, look at, either admiring her catch or deciding how she wanted to eat it, then proceeded to eat it. If Oma was close by, she would swoop in, snatch and gulp the bug then run off quacking before Blinkin could enjoy it. Blinkin would get upset and go after Oma and jump on her head and peck her. They reminded me of siblings fighting. Oma would yell like she was being killed and Blinkin would be pounding on her. I would have to break up the fights.
When I walk around the yard, Blinkin would follow me. She knew where I walked bugs would jump for her to catch. She would follow me every where.
This past spring Blinkin did something rather amazing. She laid eggs! Amazing because she was five years old. She had not laid an egg since the death of Winkin two years ago.
Each week for four weeks, Blinkin laid one egg. The last egg she cannibalized, but left the shell for us to know she laid it. After that no more eggs. My husband stated that Blinkin was letting us know she could do whatever, whenever she wanted to.
Her other favorite thing to do was go visit the wild bird feeder in the front yard. This was something she and Winkin use to do together. She loved their food. Yes, we gave her some of it too, but it just tasted better from the feeder.
The end of October, first of November, I could not find her. I looked all over. I kept calling her. I began to think something got her. She had a habit of going off on her own. I went back to the bird feeders again and looked around a little more closely. Sure enough there she was feasting on the dry cat food, ignoring me. She discoverd the cat food we left out for the critters at night. One of the bowls was not empty. She was picking all the Costco cat food out of the bowl and leaving the Cat Chow. She knew good food when she ate it.
Later in the early evening, I went out and let the birds out for one last bug hunt before closing them up for the night. Blinkin did not go out with the others. I thought maybe she was stuffed from all the cat food she ate.
Next morning she came out for a short time then went back inside. Hmmm?
The next day the same thing. What is going on??
Now I was running a fever at the time. Illness was taking its toll. I did not pursue my concern, (a regret). I went in and went to bed. My husband came home that night from work travel. He stayed home for a week so I could rest. I stayed in bed. I asked about Blinkin each day. He said she seems okay, but still not coming out. He moved her food and water right next to her.
After three days, I decided I needed to check on her. She was not coming out and I could see she was not feeling well. My mind clicked on antibiotics. I did some research online and found out about two antibiotics that are given to chickens. I went through the stash of medicine I keep for the dogs and cats and sure enough I had one of the two antibiotics!
I dissolved it in warm water, sucked it up the syringe. My husband and I headed out to see Blinkin. She was not having either of us pick her up. She kept hiding under the platform of her dog house.
Finally we cornered her. I picked her up and she began yelling and flailing, then calmed down, so I thought. My husband held her while I administered the antibiotic. I then put water in the syringe to give her. As I gave her the water, Blinkin flailed, yelled then dropped dead in our arms. The stress of catching her was too much in her weakened condition. She joined her sister Winkin in death. Blinkin was 5 years and 7 months old. It was heart breaking, as all deaths are.
We tried to revive her. Gave her little chest some quick pumps. I did not perform mouth to beak resuscitation, though I considered it for a brief moment. It was so fast for her. It was so sad for us. I cried, said goodbye.
My husband buried her beside Winkin, in our little cemetery for our babies. I still have tears. I miss her pacing back and forth at her door waiting for me to let her out to go buggin.
I miss my little terror of the yard. She was a unique chicken.
Here is a video of her doing what she did best and is remembered for most.
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