It took a while, but I’m patching things up with the Red Hen. I admit to being a little grouchy when she started dropping huge chicken droppings on the back porch.
I threw things at her and sprayed her with the house, and she started avoiding me.
I felt bad and bought a large back of mealworms, and at first, she waited until I had stepped away to eat them. But I did this day after day starting six months ago, and today, she came right up to me and pecked at the worms at my feet.
You can’t blame a chicken for going to the bathroom, especially if they are free-range chickens and have the run of the farm all day. Animals have taught me patience and tolerance.
I value the idea of the farm as the Peaceable Kingdom, and that means I need to be peaceable also. I haven’t been able to get close enough for a good portrait of the Red Hen for a while, but today, she just stared at the lens for me when I got close.
Chickens can make wonderful companions. We’ve had a few over the years that we would let out during the day, and put them in a crate indoors to sleep safely. But before we put them to bed, they would often sit with us and watch tv for a 1/2 hour or so. They enjoyed sitting in our laps, our next to us on the bed, or on the back of the sofa looking over our shoulder. They’re quite clean, generally genial, and rarely went in the house.