Changes

 It’s the end of June and long-awaited changes have begun. The meat chickens are nearly as grown as we want them. I’ll miss watching their antics, but I’m ready to have just one coop to take care of. The roosters are getting belligerent. Every morning when I let them out, they run around challenging each other. You may have heard the expression “get your hackles up” and not known its origin. Hackles are the feathers on the back of a chicken’s neck. In a chicken fight, the individuals involved do, in fact, put their hackles up.

Chickens with their hackles up

Here are raised hackles from the back. I’m sure our experience of having the hair on the back of our neck stand up in stressful situations is evolutionarily linked to hackle raising. It makes the chicken look terrifying, right?

Raised hackles from the back (front left)

After the fights are over, it is as if the roosters say to each other, “Let’s go get a drink.”

When the fights are over, everyone adjourns to the local pub

In what I imagine is a long-awaited moment for cardinal parents, the cardinal chicks are fledging. This one was cheeping and shaking its wings, trying to get a parent to feed it. Too bad, buddy—time to forage on your own!

Cardinal fledgling shakes its wings in vain

Construction on the deck replacement started on June 23 with demolition of the old, rotten wood.

Deck demolition

The next day, the damaged boards underneath the deck were replaced. I could have sworn I took a picture, but it seems that was a false memory. The Trex decking (maintenance-free composite of waste plastic and sawdust) was delivered Monday by a semi and a skid-steer loader. When the guys left on Tuesday, the surface was covered

Deck covered

And one set of stairs was built.

Stairs with steps, left; risers for new stairs, right.

Yesterday, they started on the railing, which is in progress today.

The beginning of the railing

“They have more tools than you can believe,” Terry said. “You should take a picture for your blog.”

Some of the tools along the chick fence.

Here’s the whole scene.

Tools everywhere

Sadly, Jane’s cat, Skip took ill a few weeks ago. We weren’t awaiting this change, although we knew it would come sooner or later. He stopped eating, and the vet discovered a massive tumor. He took the Big Cat Nap on June 10.  He was Jane’s only cat, and Jane had never in her whole life been cat-less. She kept checking various websites of animal shelters, finally finding two adorable gray and white siblings, a boy and a girl. They are not yet three months old. After much deliberation, she named them Gracie and JJ.

Gracie and JJ

She has to keep collars on them to tell them apart, although she seems to think that she will be able to recognize them as individuals when she knows them better. What we know so far is that Gracie is the boss, and JJ is somewhat shy and retiring.

Trying to keep the cats still for a picture

Jane has gotten nothing done since the kittens came home. If she’s not busy watching their adorable antics, they are sleeping on her lap. Everyone knows that you can’t get up when you have a cat on you.

Jane and her cats (Gracie has the red collar)

The last phase of renovation will be starting soon. We have a pre-construction meeting with the kitchen people next week. I’ll be glad when everything is done and the cash hemorrhage is over!