Chicken helpers

I got 15 chicks by mail in September 2020.  I'm out of work, so had lots of time to spend with them.  They are the friendliest hens I have ever had.  They are so funny they want to be in the middle of everything I do.  My son and I built an add on to the coop when they were young. This seemed to desensitize them to loud noises.  If I run a saw, or drill instead of running away, they come over to see what I'm up to.  It can be dangerous because they do things like peck a nail while I'm hammering it.  I'm carful, so no injury's.
The day before yesterday my son was trying to make it easier for me to open the door from the inside of the coop.  He didn't get it quite right because the next day the door was wide open.  The chickens will go into the coop at dusk, so I left them out.  They were all doing their thing in the orchard when I came out to work on my garden.  When they saw me they all came running.  I had lots of help? I'm pretty sure I don't have any bugs in any of my raised beds.  The poor worms I unearthed didn't have a chance.  At one point I had to stop and laugh as one of my hens pushes me aside to dig where I was digging.  Progress is much slower with my helpers, but more entertaining.  Oh  well tomorrow is another day,  and the girls enjoyed there outting.

I LOVE Those kind of days.  Any time an animal slows me up, it was a good day.

A few years ago, my chickens were all out in my yard going through my garden looking for treats.  I pulled up from work and walked over to see them.  There in the middle, sitting upright on his butt and eating, was a wood chuck.  All the chickens were walking around back and forth next to him like they all did that every day.  I walked closer to get a better look, and, in no hurry whatsoever, the wood chuck got up and started waddling away, leisurely as could be, and walked directly over my boot on his way.  He lived under my chicken coop for two years before he disappeared.  I saw him almost daily for a while.  Good days.

Aha! Jen is experiencing "Gallus interruptus"  - when you're trying to get things done and the chickens "help" slow you down. I'm sure I told one permie that chickens are way better than television.

That amusement MAY someday turn into annoyance :)

Making sure I mixed the compost and soil good enough