Everyone wants to know where we're keeping the hens--we live near downtown, but Denver allows hens (no roosters--too noisy!) in backyards. There is an existing shed on the side of the house, fenced on 3 sides with the house making the 4th side. It's a perfect coop!
Josh & I placed fencing over the top so that the girls can't fly out, or roost up on the wooden fence--Frankie, the pit bull next door, would love nothing better than fresh chicken dinner! 
We also want to keep hawks, foxes and raccoons out. Yes, there are foxes in downtown Denver, in fact there is a female that dens nearby!
We've been waiting patiently (HA!) for eggs. The woman who sold the hens to us was assisting the man who brought them to the Stock Show, and she said that they'd settle in within a few days and start laying. Three weeks later--no eggs. I called the man who sold them to us, and he said that we were doing everything right, but that nesting boxes might help. He said that a few of his hens had just started laying again after coming back from Stock Show and some still weren't laying. He said that it was very stressful for them, and that it could take 3-4 weeks to settle in, not 3-4 days. He offered to refund or replace our hens if they weren't laying within a week, but we like them.
So, Josh built nesting boxes, and we placed perches up high in the shed for the girls to roost. The feeder and waterer are hung so that the girls won't get shavings or poop in them--chickens aren't the neatest or cleanest birds. This is the Taj Mahal of chicken coops!
We put ping pong balls in the nests to encourage the girls to lay their eggs there.
While we were installing the boxes, though, the girls escaped and ran around the yard for a few minutes. Josh rounded them up.
Apolo marched back into the coop. She really wanted to stay outside and play.
Apolo was VERY curious about the boxes. She moved the ping pong balls around a little, then hopped out. Spot went in and out, too, and settled in for a while.
Josh & I placed fencing over the top so that the girls can't fly out, or roost up on the wooden fence--Frankie, the pit bull next door, would love nothing better than fresh chicken dinner! We also want to keep hawks, foxes and raccoons out. Yes, there are foxes in downtown Denver, in fact there is a female that dens nearby!We've been waiting patiently (HA!) for eggs. The woman who sold the hens to us was assisting the man who brought them to the Stock Show, and she said that they'd settle in within a few days and start laying. Three weeks later--no eggs. I called the man who sold them to us, and he said that we were doing everything right, but that nesting boxes might help. He said that a few of his hens had just started laying again after coming back from Stock Show and some still weren't laying. He said that it was very stressful for them, and that it could take 3-4 weeks to settle in, not 3-4 days. He offered to refund or replace our hens if they weren't laying within a week, but we like them.
So, Josh built nesting boxes, and we placed perches up high in the shed for the girls to roost. The feeder and waterer are hung so that the girls won't get shavings or poop in them--chickens aren't the neatest or cleanest birds. This is the Taj Mahal of chicken coops!
We put ping pong balls in the nests to encourage the girls to lay their eggs there.While we were installing the boxes, though, the girls escaped and ran around the yard for a few minutes. Josh rounded them up.Apolo marched back into the coop. She really wanted to stay outside and play.Apolo was VERY curious about the boxes. She moved the ping pong balls around a little, then hopped out. Spot went in and out, too, and settled in for a while.A day later, we had our first egg! It was SO exciting to see it nestled there among the ping pong balls! 
Thank you, Spot! (We know it was Spot because the egg is brown. Apolo will lay green eggs, and Drew Brees is too young to lay any.)
It was delicious! It tasted totally different than store-bought eggs--kind of like the difference between store-bought tomatoes and home-grown, right off the vine tomatoes.
We've had an egg every day. We'll have a nice scramble on Sunday!
Hens lay about every 26-27 hours, so the eggs come later each day. When Spot lays near sundown, she'll skip a day then start again at about 2am. That's about a 5 or 6 day run.
Apolo hasn't started laying but she seems ready--she's cranky, and hops in and out of the nesting boxes. I'm hoping for her first egg tomorrow or Friday. How exciting!
After taking care of the coop, Josh & I went to a bunny show. I wanted to see Lionhead rabbits.
Is that the COOLEST, CUTEST thing you've ever seen? They are relatively new in the US, hailing from Britain. They weigh about 3-3.5 lbs when fully grown. There are rabbit shows (who knew!).
This is the little black tort that I want--she's about 8 weeks old. You can already see her mane growing in. She'll be brown with dark brown points, a dark brown face, and black skin on her ears and nose. We'll see if the zoo grows this spring!
Thank you, Spot! (We know it was Spot because the egg is brown. Apolo will lay green eggs, and Drew Brees is too young to lay any.)It was delicious! It tasted totally different than store-bought eggs--kind of like the difference between store-bought tomatoes and home-grown, right off the vine tomatoes.We've had an egg every day. We'll have a nice scramble on Sunday!Hens lay about every 26-27 hours, so the eggs come later each day. When Spot lays near sundown, she'll skip a day then start again at about 2am. That's about a 5 or 6 day run.Apolo hasn't started laying but she seems ready--she's cranky, and hops in and out of the nesting boxes. I'm hoping for her first egg tomorrow or Friday. How exciting!
After taking care of the coop, Josh & I went to a bunny show. I wanted to see Lionhead rabbits.
Is that the COOLEST, CUTEST thing you've ever seen? They are relatively new in the US, hailing from Britain. They weigh about 3-3.5 lbs when fully grown. There are rabbit shows (who knew!).This is the little black tort that I want--she's about 8 weeks old. You can already see her mane growing in. She'll be brown with dark brown points, a dark brown face, and black skin on her ears and nose. We'll see if the zoo grows this spring! 
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