Roswellian Wild Burro

Roswellian Wild Burro by StreakingDonkeyBooks
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The Roswellian Wild Burro, Equus roswellian asinus, is an extremely rare type of donkey who is very shy and elusive. The first recorded sightings of this wild donkey were made on July 4, 1947 near Roswell, New Mexico. Shortly, thereafter, limited sightings of this beast occurred near Area 51 in Nevada.

All who have been lucky enough to see a Roswellian Wild Burro agree that they are bright green in color with a yellowish muzzle, have very skinny legs, extra-small hooves, extra-large triangular ears, and oval eyes. Average height at the wither appears to vary between 20 and 24" for adults.

To learn more about the extremely rare and elusive Roswellian Wild Burro, visit the Streaking Donkey Books gallery and click on "Donkey Pasture" where you can see this wonderful donkey inhabiting shirts, cards, ties, and tote bags . . . among other things.

Mini Donkeys Playing With Jolly Ball

Donkeys Playing With Jolly Ball by StreakingDonkeyBooks
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These two characters are why we call ourselves Streaking Donkey Mini Acres. Nathan, on the left, and Alastair love to play with anything they can grab and walk off with . . . shovels, rakes, gloves, buckets, you name it. Our farrier calls Alastair a thief as he likes to reach back while Lee is giving him a trim and try to grab that dangling hoof knife! Here, however, they are playing with one of their FAVORITE toys, their pink Jolly Ball.

The picture of them above can be found on several products in our Streaking Donkey Books gallery: shirts, ties, hats, bags, and a Christmas card. Click a link above and browse through the "Donkey Pasture" in our gallery. If you need a braying laugh or two, peruse our "Donkey Cartoons."

The Daily Inspection and Chicken Help

These photos were taken mid-September 2008, making our girls 4-months old. At this time everyone started laying eggs, except Zahn. She waited another couple weeks; though her personality changed from ultra friendly to peckish. On the other hand, Chianna changed from very skittish to the most entertaining of them all.








Aeryn (inside the coop) and Chianna are inspecting the new hay placed inside the mini coop. Anything new, different, or simply changed becomes a chicken's focal point. This little fact makes chickens very attentive "helpers" when you are doing chores.





Zahn here is helping Jayne bring in a fresh flake of hay. Jayne is eyeing Zahn nervously because Zahn, during this time period, began feeling the urge to lay eggs; consequently, she began pecking....quite hard I have to admit! Up until her hormones kicked in, Zahn was the most friendly bird of our mini flock.

All four chickens are inspecting Jayne's handiwork and her water-changing capabilities. Moya and Chianna are inspecting the water's freshness directly.













Aeryn is making sure that I place and fluff the new hay "just right".

Chicken Coop Construction

After putting the small coop kit together, we added a floor made from 3/4" plywood and stilts cut from cleared saplings cut from our property. We thought the raising of the structure would mimic more closely a chicken's desire to be up high at night, and it would keep them safer from predators. We also added latches to all openings.

We added a ladder cut from a scrap 2x4, plywood, and 1x2's.




After we created the small coop, which we think of as their "bedroom", we put up an enclosure which is approximately 8 feet tall and began constructing another coop building. This second coop building will enclose the small coop, thereby providing added protection from the elements as well as a space in which the chickens can scratch and move about during winter months and inclement weather. The small coop is referred to as the "bedroom" because this is where our girls like to lay their eggs and sleep at night. Also, since it is now the end of February, it has helped protect our chickens from the wintery elements (20s, 30s below zero) as it is a smaller space it is more efficient at trapping body heat and heat from the ceramic heater. [The small coop is approximately 4' x 4' square]. The larger, outer coop is 8' x 14', and, yes, it is fully enclosed.

Sex Link Chickens

These are our four little girls at one-month old. The scraggly one closest to us with the white is Moya, to her left is Zahn, behind her, the other black bird is Chianna, and the red one in the background is Aeryn. Yes, they are the Farscape Foursome. Moya and Aeryn are red-sex links. In our case, they are a cross between a Rhode Island red hen and a white leghorn rooster. (I've noticed that many hatcheries sell and advertise this hybrid as simply a "hybrid" or comets....some are crosses of other breeds, such as Delawares). The black chickens are black-sex links. This is a cross between a Barred Rock hen and a Rhode Island red rooster. Apparently, the black-sex link is very popular in Scotland. If you are unsure as to what the term, "sex link" means, it is quite simple: at birth the gender of the chicks can be obtained by the color of the down. For example, with the red-sex link, the pullet (future hen) is red while the cockeral is white.

We chose the black- and red-sex links because they came highly recommended at the feed store. Our principle concerns were that we wanted friendly chickens, good layers, and birds that were cold tolerant. These birds are now nine-months old and are friendly, fantastic layers (averaging 5 eggs per bird per week), and do very well in our northern New Hampshire winter (we've been 20s and 30s below zero for days at a time).

Chicken Coop - A Fowl Project Indeed

Naturally, the cute little chicks seen in my previous blog can't stay in our office forever! It was decided that we would purchase a chicken coop kit. Yes, we are striving for self-sustainability; however, in order to do so, one must make things possible - which means that everything can't be done at once. After much deliberation as to the amount of work we had lined up for this year - extending the donkey pasture by clearing deadfall and over-crowded trees (so there is actual space between them) in an area next to the existing pasture, constructing front and side overhangs for the barn - after last winter...overhangs are a must, building a greenhouse (the frame will be constructed from the 1 to 2 inch saplings cut down in the thinning process; overall, the frame will resemble a wigwam), sealing the roof of the house, setting up a safe confinement for the chickens, and building a coop. As you can see - we have a lot to do. Anyway - to save a little on time, we decided to purchase a chicken coop kit. This particular one is called the "Chick-N-Barn" by Ware. This particular coop comes with two screened doors and two solid doors. There are also three "easy access" egg gathering doors. The top of the coop opens on either side for ease of cleaning. No latches were included, so we plan to buy them in order to keep weasels, raccoons, etc. out. Also, the kit does not include a solid floor; therefore, we plan to install one. Some people use hardware cloth. The coop is approximately 4 feet wide, 3 feet deep, and 51 inches at its tallest point. We ordered the kit from critter-cages.

The first picture shows the kit all laid out. The second picture shows the coop fully constructed; it took us (two people) approximately 30 minutes to put together - very easy. This picture also shows the three little egg doors. The top part of the coop is screened for added ventilation. The third picture shows the interior as seen from the opened top. The pole at the top of the picture is a roost. The fourth picture - well, our calico is very nosey. She inspected our handiwork. Here, however, she is taking a break while perched on the roof. This shot also shows the screened doors. Notice that your chickens can enter or exit from either side.

Stay tuned! The next step is to install a floor and for added security - stilts....from materials found on the property....this should be interesting!

The Chicks Have Arrived

The road to self-sustainability includes the self-procurement of food. Neither my partner or I could kill an animal, yet, we need a protein source. So, what better way than to have chickens (ducks or geese)! This way, we get eggs and four new friends! These girls are quite personable and, to be quite frank, funny in their antics. They are (clockwise from lower right - nearest the thermometer in lower right corner): Aeryn, Chiana, Moya, and Zahn. Aeryn is the most bold, Chiana likes to lay on her side and stretch out a leg and a wing, Moya is the most easy-going, while Zahn enjoys laying in the food bowl and sending the food flying. She also lays on each side and continues kicking - to make sure - all of the food has been removed from the bowl. She then settles in and takes her nap.

We chose black sex-links (a cross between a Barred Rock and a Rhode Island Red) and red sex-links (a cross between a Rhode Island Red and a white Leghorn) because they are pretty cold hardy, known to be friendly, and lay brown eggs. Cold tolerance was our number one concern as we live in the northernmost reaches of New Hampshire where temperatures can, and have, plunged 30+ degrees below zero. It would be cruel to have birds that aren't cold tolerant. Our birds will also receive deluxe accommodations for both summer and winter seasons. Don't worry - they will be spoiled like the other furry - and hairy - members of our family!