Yesterday I brought our chickens to my daughter’s school for their Earth Day celebration. We were representing backyard chickens. This is one of many school visits we’ve done with them, so they are seasoned pros. We have a dog crate, which is the perfect size for an afternoon. Many factory hens live their entire lives in cages many times smaller than this, but that’s another discussion.
Last year I picked ivy from our garden for the kids to feed them. With the winter being so long, we don’t have ivy leaves yet, so I bought a tub of spinach leaves. The kids had a blast feeding the hens and the piggy little girls wolfed down almost every leaf presented to them.
There was another table with worm composting, and towards the end of the day, kids were bringing worms over to feed our girls. They wolfed those down as well, enjoying the change from spinach. They even ate the feed I brought them. It was really kind of amazing how much they ate in those 2 hours.
By 5pm, they were tired and ready to get home. I was afraid Lulu was having a mini nervous breakdown because she was continuously making a noise I had never heard before. Kind of like a donkey bray with a hiccup at the end. But this morning she’s good as new and even laid an egg. It’s probably so rich with beta-carotene from all yesterday’s spinach!
Happy Earth Day to everyone. How are you celebrating?
