Our first livestock

Its chicken day - hurray !!!!!! Did some final work on the hen house, the most cunning of cunning foxes would have his work cut out now. Picked Harry up from school, and drove to Rhosgadfan. The farm is much higher than ours, and very beautiful. We drove through open fields, with sheep wandering across the road, which we found out later was common grazing land for the locals.

We were shown some amazing rare breed and pedigree poultry, and saw our hens, Lohman hybrids, loads of them running round together, we were told to chose the ones we wanted, it was impossible, finally made up my mind, she was grabbed, put in the box, and she jumped straight back out again - now had to work out which one she was for the recapture ! Finally picked and boxed 4 that were sufficiently unique that we would be able to tell them apart. Drove home very very carefully, talking to them all the way (realised later they probably only understood Welsh, but they would become bilingual with us).

Gently put them into their new house when we got back, shutting them in, so they could get to know the place, but felt uneasy, as I didn't like locking them in. A couple of hours later, we got them out, and put them in the little run we had found in the woods. They wouldn't move from the door, and huddled together, so we went inside for tea. Just like the A team, when our back was turned, they promptly escaped, and started pecking at the poppies outside the back door.

Despite our fears, they turned out to be much easier than our boys, and went to bed when they were told. That's it - they are going to be 100% free range from now on.