For at least a couple of hours each day our chickens get the run of the yard. For the most part, they wander around happily hunting and pecking for bugs. Occasionally, they’ll all nestle down behind the hydrangea bushes next to the house for a little nap.
And frequently, this is what I see from the kitchen.
The chickens come onto the deck and stand at the door, lobbying for treats. These are the roosters, T. Boone Chickens and Johnny Cash. They like to look in the window and crow to get my attention. The hens are a bit more subtle, but no less insistent.
In my recent Examiner column about the benefits of raising backyard chickens, I said that chickens were entertaining.
Now, was I wrong?
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Robin
Minnie Ruth, the mis-named rooster, has a new name. It seems that most people think he is best re-named Johnny Cash.
Johnny Cash at two weeks—when we thought he was a she—and now.
Frankly, old habits die hard. I still find myself calling him Minnie Ruth. He doesn’t seem to mind as long as I have a can of corn in my hand.
The winner of the Extraordinary Chickens calendar is Daniel from Your Home Kitchen Garden.
Thanks to all who gave suggestions and comments about the chicken-naming dilemma. I am already thinking of names for the new chickens I plan to order in the spring.
Robin
There is dissension in our happy home and it has come to this. We must hold a vote to decide the new name for The Chicken Formerly Known as Minnie Ruth.
In case you haven’t been following the chicken drama Chez Bumblebee, let me catch you up.
Back in August I purchased three baby chicks for $2 each from the Amish market in Hughesville, about 45 minutes from our home. The fellow who sold me the chickens—who was not Amish, I should add—assured me that the baby chicks had been sexed and that all of them would grow up to be fine laying hens. He explained that the chicks were a white Plymouth Rock, an Arucauna and a Polish chicken. I named these baby chicks after my grandmothers and great aunt: Olive (Olivia), Minnie Ruth and Maxine.
Sadly, Maxine passed away after a few days. But Olive and Minnie Ruth have thrived.
But they also presented a surprise after a few weeks. They are, in fact, roosters. Unmistakably roosters. In fact, they are now in the full flush or their rooster-ness, although the hens, Myrtle and Maude, still boss them around.
Now, it came to me out of the blue one day that I should rename Olive T. Boone Chickens in honor of T. Boone Pickens, who is generally a good guy and whose wife, Madeleine, is working to rescue all those wild horses. My son, Ben, prefers to call the chicken T. Rex because he is so enormously huge and has an audible footstep.
But Minnie Ruth has presented more of a dilemma. No name immediately came to mind, which is why I need your help.
But I believe that the name should fit the chicken. So first, a little background.
As you may be able to see from the photos, The Chicken Formerly Known as Minnie Ruth is a beautiful black, with blue-green hues to his long, luxurious feathers. He is growing some manly facial hair that is sticking out to the sides and will probably grow into a more prominent chicken beard.
He isn’t as large as T. Boone Chickens, although he is much larger than the hens. He is skittish, even though I raised him by hand and have always been a kind and loving chicken mamma. Oh, and he is apparently in love with Maude. He follows her everywhere and, uhm, adores her, shall we say. They currently sleep together at night on the roost bar near the ceiling in the Palazzo di Pollo. He is quite the romancer, although Maude is playing hard-to-get.
In the Twitterverse, I had several suggestions for a new name. So now I’m asking for your help.
Name that chicken!
The choices are (in alphabetical order, so as not to indicate my preferences):
- Al Harris
- Don King
- Elvis
- Fabio
- James Brown
- Johnny Cash
- The Chicken Formerly Known as Minnie Ruth
For your vote to count, you must participate in the poll. It’s to your right at the top of this page. Vote now!
And if you want the chance to win a special prize, leave me a comment about why you advocate for one name or another. If your name is the winner—and I pick your name out of a hat among others who chose the same name—you can win a copy of the 2009 Extraordinary Chickens Calendar. It’s like a pin-up calendar for gorgeous chickens! I got one for myself!
For practical purposes, voting closes on Sunday, December 28. But vote now! And check in to see how the votes are going.
And happy holidays to all!
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Robin
