Forest Chickens, 'Ulu, and Granddaughter

I retired one of my older flocks to the ranch. They no longer laid enough eggs to make it worth keeping them. Often, we relegate these older birds to the stew pot, but sometimes they go on bug patrol instead. Trouble is, there were way too many of them to run around loose at home.

So, one evening after dark, we plucked the birds, one by one, off the roost and set them in the travel cage. Before dawn the next morning, we drove to the ranch and set them loose in the area of one of the cattle water troughs. We rigged up their old water bucket on a nearby tree so they can easily get a drink, too. It sure didn't take long before the old gals figured out the lay of the land. I can already tell which is their favorite tree to roost in at night.

They now form the Bug and Fertilizer Patrol. Instead of costing us money in feed, they are in chicken paradise where they enjoy bananas, guava, bugs, grubs, worms, seeds, greens, and shall we say "leftovers" from the cows. In fact, they have somewhat adopted the cattle, or is it the other way around? It's win-win no matter how you look at it.

Bonus: Chicken companions on my walks through the woods!

  
Even though we keep getting sidetracked with various other also-urgent ranch projects, we still brought some of the 'ulu (breadfruit) treelings to the ranch in order to start our orchard. No, we didn't manage to actually get any of them into the ground yet... but it did give us a much better idea of what goes where and how much room all of it will take. The future orchard, by the way, will be right behind the future house. Until then, they are under the Grandmother Mango tree where they won't dry out too quickly between waterings (or rains).

'Ulu keiki just waiting to spread its roots

Look how tame Spirit horse is getting! Mike's been working with him and it shows. Acacia was so excited to be able to almost touch him! She LOVES spending time at the ranch. (Well, except for that one time when the cows got loose and we had to spend hours chasing them back in, on foot! Nobody enjoyed that time.)

She's a good little hiker with those long legs of hers, easily keeping up with Grampy as he checks the livestock. She's learning to recognize the wildflowers and can spot a grasshopper or lizard well before the rest of us notice its presence. Yes, we do realize how very lucky we are to have a grandchild in our lives.