Miss Polly comes a visiting!

Wednesday, September 1, 2010


Over the last year I've been increasing the size of our chicken flock.  We now have 12 laying hens & of course our rooster "Handsome".  My chickens are one of my favourite pets -they are so easy to care for & love following me around and of course they have the added bonus of  producing the most delicious & nutritious eggs imaginable (as only truely free ranged hens can!). But of all the different hens my favourite would have to be Miss Polly.

Miss Polly  loves to be around us wherever we are in the yard.  The other day as I weeded our 12 m side garden, Miss Polly followed me the whole way around pecking contentedly by my side as I worked.  She loves to jump up on the windowsill & look into the house & would rather be around people than the rest of the flock.  

Well last Thursday morning we were in quite a rush.  Thursdays is our day off school & instead we travel varying distances to different activities with other home scholars - last week was dance class 45 minutes away.  We were gone for most of the day as after dance we have lunch & then a play/social time with the other families, so it was about 4pm by the time we arrived home.  Upon opening the door I stumbled across a mess on the floor - I said to the kids that one of the cats must have been left inside - but thought it strange that they chose the middle of the kitchen floor to do their thing  - I also thought it didn't look or smell like cat faeces, but anyway.  I grabbed the kitchen spray & paper towel & promptly disposed of the mess -not thinking much of it.  

Suddenly Zai called from down the hall that there was mess down there too.  As well looked closer we found a trail of mess down the hall & in the bathroom (thankfully we haven't put down the planned carpet in the hall - sometimes ugly tiles are very handy).  After looking closely we concluded that a chicken must have come inside - but how?  After a huge clean up job we headed out to put away our shoes near the back door - sure enough the back door was ajar - in fact it was wide open & we can only conclude that it was so all day (thankfully we live in the country where you can leave anything unlocked without worrying too much) so that explained how the intruder got in (although why she chose to walk to the other end of the house & back - who knew??)    It wasn't until we'd all had afternoon tea & the kids were sitting down to watch a DVD in the lounge that we spied a little brown feathered bottom poking out beside one of the lounges (I always think it's funny that chickens think they're hidden when their head is hidden).  Well I grabbed my camera to try & get that picture, but  by the time I got back she had realised her hiding spot was discovered  - sure enough it was Miss Polly & she led us on a merry chase through the dining room & down the hall (with me madly clicking the camera while chasing followed by all 4 children yelling at the top of their lungs). 
 It wasn't until she headed into Dave's & my bedroom that I began to worry - I mean to clean tiles is one thing, but a chook in your bed is quite another.  Thankfully I managed to catch up with her as she launched herself onto the windowsill & put her outside. The children have certainly had fun relaying the story to various listeners - the day Miss Polly came to visit & made quite a mess!!

Oh & HAPPY SPRING to all my Southern Hemisphere friends - isn't it just the best time of year!!
Have a lovely day

16 comments:

aunty sel said...

Hi Narn,
Wow, that's really cute. It's nice to have visitors, even if it is a chicken. Miss Polly looks lovely, she might have gone to your room to try and put her dolly to bed....(sorry, really bad joke, I know).
Lovely to talk to you earlier, and happy spring for you as well,
luv
sel

A Bite of Country Cupcakes said...

We have a hen named sooty that is renowned for similar behaviour!!!
Hens are the best little pets though,Is'nt it funny how we grab the camera in these situations now we blog!!! lol!!!

Grannysaurus said...

Only yesterday I stumbled upon a website that had a photo of a chicken wearing a bright pink chicken nappy/poo catcher. I guess pets like Miss Polly have created a market for them :)

Grandma said...

Happy spring!!! In some of the third world countries, chooks live inside with their owners - how much fun would that be??? Anyway, glad Miss Polly didn't get into your bed - yeah, I thought of the little song about Miss Polly and her dolly, too as I read your story - what is it - great minds think alike or is it.....
I'm glad Bessie didn't decide to pop in for a visit while you were out!!!
Lots and lots of love - enjoy spring - hope it's warming up a bit for you down there - we've been having gorgeous weather - praise the Lord!
Lots and lots of love to you all from Mum xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Farmgirl Cyn said...

Hey Renata!
First off...love your header photo!

I have my whole flock of chickens on the front porch off and on thru the day. They are always looking for hand-outs...black sunflower seeds (for the birdfeeder) are one of their favorites! They hear the screen porch slam and they come a runnin', lickity split, for a treat!

Enjoy the lovely weather to come your way, and all the excitement a new season brings!

Cindy

Unknown said...

Too funny - I mean, now that it's over and everything is cleaned up! We have a Rhode Island Red that would like to be like the family dog!

"Are These Kids All Yours?" said...

Oh no- too funny. Love it :)

Regan Family Farm said...

What fun, Renata!! I'm still hoping one of my children will take a liking to chickens...thanks for the fun comments!
Blessings,
Kathy

Ana Degenaar said...

Renata what a sweet story! I love Miss Polly!
Thanks so much for stopping by my blog, I REALLY missed you!

Smilie girl said...

What a lot of fun that visit proved! Miss Polly is a fine looking hen and a good pet. I am very envious of all those yummy eggs.
Dad had a chook that was partial to him. It used to stop what it was doing and run to him whenever Dad appeared. It would then sit on his gumboot as he walked along. Unfortunately the chook didn't get special treatment and went the same way as his peers.

Jan said...

Enjoyed reading your post... would have loved to see a photo of your four children hot on the trail....poor Miss Polly, she must have got quite frightened.... wonder if she tries to come inside again.
Love and Blessings - Jan

Unknown said...

Oh my goodness!!! What a hilarious story! :)

junglemama said...

How cool it must be to have chicken running around!

Kimmie said...

Thinking you better keep the camera by your bed, just in case you have a new bed mate one night.

Kimmie
mama to 8
one homemade and 7 adopted

Pioneer Beauty said...

Renata,
We all sat around the computer and I read the story to the children..We were all laughing and then as I was scrolling down to read and the picture of Miss Polly in the Kitchen they just lost it...We have a family of hens and are children love them...thank you for sharing such a delightful story..

Corinne & Damo said...

Hehehehe! I hadn't read this one yet! - My grandma (she was the perfect little lady, clean freak - THE cleanest house I have EVER seen (I'm sure that she cleaned the bathroom every day) well she had a pet chicken when she was a young girl - it used to SLEEP on the end of her BED!!! =D Very hard to imagine, she must have been a very special chook!

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