Good morning! Everyone looks hungry again today, so first I get the feed ready. Good thing it’s a full load!
Into the weeds of Field No. 1
Field No. 1 has turned into a terrible mess, completely overgrown with weeds. Somewhere in there should be potatoes. Okinawan sweet potatoes, I think? Today I’m going in to dig for them.
The plan: cut back the weeds so a human can get in and work (Iroha has already gone in ahead of me), look for the potatoes, which I can actually see, and start digging from one edge. These potatoes don’t have a set season, but we’ve reached about the time they should be ready. I’m not sure they really are. I’d like to turn this area into Playground No. 2, so I want to get the potatoes out soon. Today’s the challenge!
Meanwhile, Sonata has gone all floppy. Hello? Grandpa, are you awake? His wings have gone limp and are sort of drifting off somewhere. That’s our easygoing, half-retired Sonata.
Meet Dal
Today’s chicken is Dal, a rooster who is 90% fighting-breed, which is why he’s so big. Stand up properly, Dal. Amazing!
The fighting chickens next door were kept wide open, and Dal was born to a 90% fighting-breed mother and a 100% fighting-breed father. He’d probably be very capable in a fight, but here he lives a relaxed life in a group. When his mother was about to leave her chicks to fend for themselves, they were very hungry. I called “Food time!” and all five brothers walked straight in through the front, and I caught them.
We’ve had him since he was a half-grown chick, so he wasn’t very friendly at first, and still isn’t, really. But he’s okay. I thought I might have to put the brothers in cages if they fought more as they grew up, but they turned out to be surprisingly social. Having lived in a group from the start, none of them cause much trouble. Good boys.
His name was first Dalmatian, because he was white with black spots, like the pattern still on his tail. Then his father’s beautiful golden genes suddenly burst out and he turned another color, so he’s not much of a Dalmatian anymore. But that’s fine. He’s not quick to fight, but he’s a bit of a lone wolf. He still gets along fairly well with his brothers, yet often stands alone in the middle where no one else is.
Thank you for watching Chicken Paradise Hawaii! See you next time.