Saturday, March 01, 2008

Dazed and confused?

It was a bit of a surprise this morning to look out of the window and see that one of the hen houses was not where I'd left it last night. A gust of wind had not only blown it over once, but several times. It was down the field, belly up.

On reflection I think the residents, Mrs Scraggy-neck and the two Wynadotte bantams, were even more surprised than me. They, after all, were the ones bowled over in the night's terrifying windy darkness. I imagine them swept off their perch and floating in mid-air like birds in a space rocket, surrounded by hen-house detritus; a nest box, a grit hopper, clouds of shavings and wisps of hay - all suddenly and unexpectedly weightless. They emerged a bit wide-eyed and clucky but were soon mollified with a handful of corn.

So all's well that ends well. The hen house is now reinstated and I have ensured tonight's stability with a sturdy oak beam used flying buttress fashion. It's always good to see an architectural principle in practice isn't it?

5 comments:

Nikki - Notes of Life said...

Poor hens! The wind has been that strong I've fully been expecting a Wizard of Oz-type synario with the house!

Mopsa said...

Oh my...their feathers must have been severely ruffled. Did any eggs survive the flight?

Claire said...

Sounds like a scene from Chicken Run - well the one they didn't think of.Poor disorientated hens.

Diary Farmer said...

Are they laying scrambled eggs now or are just 'sunny side up'?

Elizabeth Musgrave said...

What a night for them.