Kittens and Chickens and Socks, Oh My!

That pretty much sums up what's new at this little place here in the past several days.

Three litters of kittens. Yes, I know, I know.  The mamas will be going in to get fixed later this summer, once the kittens are weaned.  It's just that barn cats tend to be short lived around here, and the surest way to end up with one less barn cat is to go have it fixed.  I can't tell you how many cats we've had fixed that disappear, get killed on the road, or become coyote or raccoon meals within a few months of being neutered.  Gets expensive, it does!  So my policy the last few years has been to let the females have a litter before getting fixed; at least that way I have a replacement barn cat when she meets her untimely end.

I am not going to get into a moral argument about how I could adopt a cat from a shelter instead of letting my barn cats breed replacements.  My reasons for not adopting are:

1. the shelters around here won't adopt them to be outdoor cats (ie. live in my barn not my house)
2. the cats don't usually work out as hunters/mousers
3. they don't respect my chickens and chicks like a cat raised with poultry does
4. I'm too cheap to pay $76 for a cat!  $76 being what my local animal shelter charges for a cat under 6 years old.

I'm sure there are many people who wouldn't agree with this.  That's fine.  Do what you do, I'll do what I do.  Back to my story. . . 

Two of the mama cats are sharing their kittens, denned up together in the hay and taking turns feeding them.  The third mama decided to have hers in the woodpile, so while we can hear them, we haven't laid eyes on them yet.

one mama tending the masses

both mamas, with kittens between them

palm-sized day-old kitty

Not counting the third litter that we haven't actually seen yet, there are two gray, one buff/light orange, and the rest are colored just like the one in the picture above.


An order of chicks.  A smaller order than in the past, now that the hatchery is able to ship a minimum of 15 birds instead of a minimum of 25.  I ordered 21; 15 broilers and 6 pullet chicks (2 light Brahma, 2 Lakenvelders, 2 Blue Andalusians).  Unfortunately the Lakenvelders ended up being unavailable, so I only got 19 chickens, plus my one 'free' that McMurray always sends.  Trying to figure out what breed the bonus one is; its markings are similar to several breeds.

view from outside the brooder

hungry chicks

the two dark ones are actually the "light" Brahmas;

they will get white as their adult plumage comes in

mystery chick, from the front

mystery chick from the back

Being as I ordered 6 pullet chicks to replace six of my older hens this coming winter, I may place another small order mid-summer.  I would get another batch of meat birds and re-order those Lakenvelders I wanted.


Socks!  I have finished my first ever pair of hand-knit socks!  I'm so excited to be able to wear them, now that they are done.  And I'm lusting over yarn colors to make the next pair with, LOL.  I think I love socks.

The picture makes them look a bit more uneven than they actually are.

I had one pulled up further than the other.