Eggs (week ending 2/12): 37
Eggs (year to date): 273

The weather was almost spring-like until today, when the snow came again. The chickens enjoyed going out to forage among dead leaves and grass that hasn't quite come back to life yet, and the goats spent at least one night under the tree they keep eating tender bits off of.

I got a better look at the Two Socks cat - it actually has four white socks and a white patch on its chest. I'm also thinking of officially giving it the name "Target" because I came out to close up the chickens one night, heard some angry clucks, and that cat came scurrying out of the coop.

Saturday while I was working on projects (adding new hay to the coop litter and putting the burlap and rag "privacy curtains" back on the nest boxes), the socks cat came out and sat by the large goat gate. The chickens wandered around it for a while, ignoring it but keeping a wary eye on it. Then one of the New Hampshire Reds decided to peck it on the ear. It ran off. I thought, maybe it won't be a pest, especially since the Volunteer cat seems to be gone. It'll learn to leave the chickens alone, if it hasn't already.

But... this morning after putting food down for Cleo, while scattering scratch I heard a feline yowling from the tack room. I went to investigate and saw that Cleo and the four socks cat were contesting the food dish. Plus, the fuzzy brown Volunteer cat showed up today after being MIA for a while. I think Volunteer wandered off when the weather was good, but since it was cold, returned to where it knew food was.

Still no sign of Biscuit - I think it's no longer MIA - it's DOA.

So. Still too many cats. Four Socks is proving to be a pest. Hence the new official designation of Target. And I don't mean the store.

Eggs (week ending 1/29): 32
Eggs (through 1/31) 10
Eggs in January: 201
Eggs (week ending 2/5): 35
Eggs (year to date): 236

A perfect 35 in collected eggs last week. The hens laid five eggs a day, every day for seven days. Perfect 35 is not an official term - having it happen was so unusual that I thought I'd not it here. As things warm up, the production will no doubt go up.

There are also some weird cat goings- on around here. Biscuit is still missing, and at this point I don't expect to see him/er alive again. But the volunteer cat, a fluffy brown and white mix, hasn't been seen either... but there's a new young cat in the area.

I first caught a glimpse of this one the other night when I was walking to close up the coop for the night. Something small scampered off into the dark. I thought it might be Biscuit since it was small. Then my daughter reported that she had seen a black cat with two calico socks on its feet. This morning as I was doing my usual routine, I heard an odd, monotone wail. I looked in the tack room, where Cleo was eating. It was unlit and dark, but I could see a dark spot moving toward Cleo and the food bowl. Oddly enough, Cleo wasn't terrified of this apparition like she was of Biscuit. Anyway, at that point I saw two points of light color - the two socks on the cat's feet. In a normal tone of voice I said, "What's going on here?" Cleo didn't miss a bite, but the Two Socks cat vanished.

Hope this one doesn't take an interest in the chickens. If it does, it'll learn all to quickly to stay out of their way.

In the meantime, I've got some Saturday projects lining up for the furture. First, I plan to put a new, high roost in the coop. With spring coming, my thoughts are turning to Chick Days at Tractor Supply or a big order from McMurray Hatchery - and I'll eventually need more roosting space. Floor space wise, the coop as it stands now can comfortably hold 24 full grown chickens. I can probably push it a little since I let them free range (which is how I apparently get away with having "too many" roosters), but my plans are to buy straight runs wherever possible and cull the roos for the dinner table. There'll also be a large order of meat birds, too.

Speaking of meat birds, that brings me to my next Satuday project - actually, a multiple-Saturday project. This year I want to build a chicken tractor. Specifically, I want to keep the meat birds in it so they get outside a bit more. The Rosses from last year didn't do much more than hang around in the coop and occasionally go out into the barnyard. With a chicken tractor, they'll be exposed to more healthy elements like fresh greens and insects. Although I'm not going to try and collect Rosses at the fair this year. I'll probably just buy up a batch of Cornish Roasters.

And in 2006... I'm thinking perhaps I should build a coop and run dedicated to a single breed of bird - as yet to be determined.

It's also looking more and more like this site will be redesigned for my HTML project. I'm getting ideas for some new pages to add - a Chicken FAQ, a glossary of poultry terms, and a section of notes on my experiences with different breeds. More chicken 'n egg fun ahead, I'm sure.