A Typical Morning On My "Farm"

Gathering the eggs...

Mornings usually start with an hour of much needed "me-time". I check my emails, scan the headlines, read about any exciting sports news which happened over the night, and try to get an article or two written and scheduled to be published on my blog. After I finish up with my morning blog maintenance it's time to head out to the chicken coop.

I let my hens and guineas free range during the day, they rarely venture out of the yard and surrounding woods so they are quite safe even out of their fenced in yard. I call "Come on guys!" as I open the gate and they all come barreling out, eager to start their morning foraging. As the poultry satisfy themselves looking for bugs and grass to eat, I manage to squeeze in enough time for a half an hour of yoga. Once both the dogs are up I let them outside to chase squirrels and burn off some morning energy.

After yoga it's finally time to feed the hens! They've probably started milling around and squawking pitifully by this time to show me how hungry they are (even though they have food available free-choice all the time). I mix up a bowl of mash from a couple scoops of layer ration and enough water to moisten it and dish it up into a couple of bowls placed around the yard. Then I clean out the waterer inside the coop and refill the water bowls outside. Finally I hoe up their dust bath area, clean out the small water pond in the chicken yard, and water the plantings around the coop.

After caring for the poultry it's time to feed the indoor pets. Thankfully my sister takes care of making sure the dogs have their breakfast, after I call them inside from their morning "run" she hands out the bowls to each dog. Meanwhile I feed my two cages of birds; seed and fresh water for the cockatiels and finches, and some fresh fruits and vegetables for both cages too. The 'tiels can eat larger bites of food so feeding them is a bit simpler, I can just pin some greens or carrot sticks in their cage, or put thawed peas or corn or largely chopped veggies in a bowl for them. All the finch veggies have to be finely grated or minced into tiny pieces which can be handled by miniature little finch beaks. Then I put some grass in the finch cage for nesting material and attach the large bath to the cage door. The finches all love to bathe and will do so many times each day. The cockatiels will occasionally jump into their water bowl but they usually prefer to have a light misting shower with a spray bottle a few times each week.

After all the animals are fed then I eat my own breakfast, usually a piece of toast or half a bagel with a piece of whatever fresh fruit is in season at the moment and a glass of juice. Mornings can sometimes be a little hectic at my little "farm" but I love every minute of my routine. There's no better way to start every day then gathering fresh eggs and watching dogs chase each other around the yard with carefree happiness.