The Girls

One fun fact we learned in class was that they can sex an egg with up to 80% accuracy. So when we brought home our first 26 one day old chicks, we were pretty sure the majority would grow to be egg laying hens. We were lucky and only got one cockle-do-a-doer! Since we are in the Columbus City limits, we are not permitted to have roosters. So we knew we were going to have to re-home him to avoid being fined. But not before we and all our neighbors had some good laughs and smiles as this maturing cock learned to use his vocal cords. Talk about hilarious! Finding his right pitches and tunes proves to be similar to a young boy going through adolescence. What made it even more funny was the fact that our five parrots, “The Boys”, mimicked him and his crackling call. Now when we put “The Boys” in for the night in their inside cage, we sometimes roll our eyes and laugh as we listen to them cluck and call like their feather friends outside. As they say, birds of a feather flock together…

Obviously, one of the main reasons for having chickens, or hens, is for the benefit of having fresh eggs. So when we turned our home into a bed and breakfast here on the Northwest side of Columbus, I knew that I definitely had a great reason for being an owner of these beautiful birds. Peter and I picked a variety of girls so that our hen runs would be an interesting array of colors and patterns with some funky hair styles. We love having guests meet Marshmallow, a black silkie who has feathers from head to toe. Our 5 year old nephew gave him his name which puzzled us due to his coloring. But to Matthew it made perfect sense. And then there is Muffin, who looks like she has a white mop on her head. The best part of having so many different breeds is all the colors of eggs we get from them. We have an Easter basket all year round!

My favorite time with “The Girls” are when our “little people” (grandchildren) are visiting and they insist on letting the flock out of the runs so they can play with them in the garden area. What a sight to the eyes and ears. From the squealing and laughing of our 3 year old, Oliver and our 21 month old, Charlie (Charlotte), to the clucking and squawking of the hens, I don’t know who enjoys themselves more! It is always a grand time in the garden!

So, come see for yourselves all the hen happenings at The Timbrook Guesthouse and enjoy one of my favorite and delicious egg breakfasts! Eggs will never taste so good!!!

Chow for now! Mahalo!
Jill