The mess left each morning by the bats
Living on the farm has been a huge learning curve for Mr Homespun and I. We are having to deal with many things we haven't had to in the past.
Like bats. They fly in each night and eat the fruit from our trees, a couple of months ago it was the persimmons, now it's the guavas. They smell and leave a terrible mess. I try and sneak out with a torch if I hear them but being deaf in one ear makes that a little difficult! I'm thinking of getting some solar lights to hang in the trees but if anyone has any other ideas (that work!), please let me know.
And foxes. Two of our chickens disappeared a couple of weeks ago. We suspected foxes but weren't entirely sure. Since then we have had a hen taken from the hen house which is only a few metres from the back door of the house. We had been lax with the security as we thought they were safe so close to the house. So we boarded up the hen house and they are locked up securely every night.
Then Friday morning I opened the run doors when it was light, around the same time I do every morning, when only minutes later I heard an awful ruckus. I dashed outside to find only two chickens in the yard and a fox running off. I found the other chickens still in the hen house, safe and sound. But this was again close to the house when it was almost full light. They certainly aren't very afraid of us, and we will be more vigilant.
We have also had some problems with flooding. We had a monumental amount of rain early Anzac Day morning and because of the poor set up here at the farm almost all the water from the top end of the farm all ends up in one place. The carport/flat area. An area where I unfortunately have quite a bit of the furniture stored that won't fit in the house.
So we are again considering what to do around the farm first. There are so many things that need fairly urgent attention but all require planning and, unfortunately, funds. The sooner our old house sells, the sooner we can make a start!
Cheers
Even after your wise words made in another place, I have decided that chickens are too hard for me right now Mrs Homespun. The amount of money I needed to spend on keeping them in a fox proof fort was equivalent of about 7 years worth of egg purchasing at the fruit market! I hope the remainder of your girls stay safe and sound.
ReplyDeleteI note the rain tonight and hope your furniture remains safe and sound too!!!
All god so far, its just the torrential rain we worry about! I understand completely about the chickens, I still sometimes wonder whether it is worth it, it's just that now they are pets! xx
DeleteThe coop has gone to a good home. I advertised it on Gumtree this morning and 8 minutes later it was sold. They drove down from Maitland to collect. No veggies were harmed in this moment of chookie madness!
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