Chickens in the family

I don't remember this picture, but I can remember growing up with chickens, turkeys, ducks, rabbits, dogs, song birds and fish. My favorite memories of growing up were of taking care of them.  Having a big yard gave us the space to house them and gave us the opportunity to learn about responsibility, compassion and made me love nature.

We just brought home 4 black australops chickens. One of them has a name, Bolt.  She is the biggest one and the tips of her wings have a white stripe that can be seen when her wings are tucked in.  They roost in the basement in the box of our new chest freezer, which by the way is the greatest investment for our food supply this fall and winter.  They love being in the garden and their feces should be awesome for the plants.  They are getting in the flower patch and the deck, which are places that we don't want them to be, but how can we mad at them?  They are adorable.  

The other three don't have names yet. We are waiting for their personalities to shine thru so that we can name them.  So far, they follow me around in the garden and eat the bugs I unveil while I am weeding.

I love hearing their calls since they have a variety depending on their situation. When one of them is lost, she sounds differently and when they are content they sound another call.