The coop plans for 2012

Yes, it's Christmas Eve Eve, and I'm not posting Christmas things. It's two days away and there are other things also going on....

Like chicken planning!

A couple of our hens are reaching the 1.5 year mark, meaning that now's our opportunity to sell and replace. It's difficult to sell a hen once they stop laying, but many will take a hen at 1.5 years old.

I thought about doing this at the end of fall when the hens stop laying, but between Fluffbottom being a cute new mom to her chick and KFC continuing to lay(!!!) through late fall and winter (one egg a day!), I'm still at a flock of three.

But, next month, if all goes well, I'll get two baby olive-eggers (they lay eggs that have dark green shells!-- combo between Aracauna and a Cuckoo Maran) and another copper maran. Then, a month later, my favorite, local, small-farm store will have salmon faverolle and (possibly) lavender orpingtons.

SO, come May, our coop could look like this:

• Cuckoo Maran (that's what Fluffbottom's baby is. She'll be laying this spring)
• Two Olive Eggers (and their eggs will look green like this!!)
• Salmon Faverolle (just like Fluffbottom, whom I'll miss...)
• Copper Maran (that's what KFC is, and will lay super-dark brown-shelled eggs)
• Lavender Orpington (beautiful birds, but hard to hatch, so they may not get to the farm store)

That's six birds total, but maybe five, depending on the Orpington. The coop was built for 6-7, so this will work out well! I won't have to shuffle any birds out anytime soon due to age, AND I'll get enough eggs for neighbors too (they have been asking. A lot.).

So that's the plan. We'll see how things change.