One of my many fans (okay, my sister) has requested more information on Peggy and Tina. Specifically, she wanted to check out some video of audio of the new chickens, who are not really so new any more.

Tina is becoming quite a big girl. Her comb and wattles are starting to grow in, and her voice has changed from a peep to a cluck. Essentially, she's going through chicken puberty. Luckily, Tina is mostly out of her awkward stage and turning into quite a lovely young chicken lady. Her black feathers are shiny and almost iridescent, and she's got a fashionable splash of gold on her breast. I can't wait to see how majestic she looks once she's fully grown.



Peggy is still smaller and seems to be maturing a bit more slowly than Tina, but she's looking pretty good, in my opinion. I mean, check out her awesome gray beard. (She's considering dressing up as a sea captain for Halloween.) This is the first good picture I've gotten of Peggy in ages. She's still really speedy and frequently darts away when I bring out the camera. Plus, it's tough to focus on all that face fuzz.



As far as life in the coop, everyone seems to be getting along pretty well. Lisa and the new girls have settled in as roommates. They all cram into the nesting box to sleep at night. It's pretty cute, although I can't believe they're comfortable that way. Lisa is not doing so great, health-wise, but that's for another post.

And now, the moment all/one of you have been waiting for: the video. Here are Peggy and Tina on a little backyard free range excursion. If you listen closely, you'll hear Tina's cluck and Peggy's peep. Enjoy.


Peggy and Tina Get Around from Audrey on Vimeo.

The kitchen remodel has begun in earnest, starting last weekend when the demolition began.

But first, here are some "before" shots. Technically, they don't give the complete "before" picture, because we stretched out some of the kitchen remodel prep over the past, oh, three years*.

In these shots, you can see we've removed all the cabinet fronts. That's because Dakota will be milling down the oak doors and turning them into hardwood flooring. This was an exceptional flash of genius, in my opinion. Not only does it embrace the all-important green principle of reuse, but it also saves us lots of money.



Here's the wall we're taking out. Those are temporary shelves and counter tops next to the fridge. A couple of years ago, we removed out the massive, space-wasting floor-to-ceiling cabinets that used to be there. We've been using the current set-up ever since. It's been perfectly functional, but, obviously, not ideal.



So, that's the before(ish). On to the after.

Last Saturday, our electrician neighbor came over and moved the wires out of the kitchen walls so Dakota didn't knock out all the power (or, you know, electrocute himself) when he started busting up the place. Dakota and our very nice neighbor usually pay each other in trade, woodworking for electrical. So, it shouldn't cost us too much to rewire the whole kitchen. And, we're finally rid of our old glass fuses. Hurrah.



Don't you just love that old wallpaper? To be honest, I do kind of dig it. But, I wasn't sorry to see it go on Sunday when Dakota set to work ripping out the wall. Here he is starting the demolition, and wearing his all-important dust mask. The plaster walls give off a lot of dust, and who knows what else is lurking inside those walls.



And here's the wall at the end of the weekend.



This is the view from the dining room side of the wall. Once this wall is completely out--by the end of this weekend, hopefully--the dining room and kitchen will become one, big space. No more skinny, annoying kitchen!

If you're interested, I'll have more updates very soon, including some in-depth discussion of our earth-friendly counter tops, paint and wood.

* While it was kind of ridiculous that we spent such a long time discussing, planning and saving for the kitchen remodel before we finally started, it actually ended up being a good thing. Our design is really carefully thought out, Dakota has come up with several excellent ideas for maximizing the space and green materials have become easier to find and less expensive. So, maybe it was a good thing that lived with a partially-demolished kitchen for so long.

A commenter recently asked about some LA chicken-keeping basics, so I thought I'd post the information here, so everyone can read it. From what I can tell, and this is what I'm going with, this is the official LA County ordinance about keeping chickens in your yard:

I found this paragraph on page 19 of the Los Angeles Animal Services Permit Book, which can be downloaded as a PDF here.

I think you might also be required to license your chickens, but I've had a hard time finding out if that's really the case. And, honestly, unless you live in a neighborhood with no real crime, no feral cats and no stray dogs, I seriously doubt you will ever be asked for your chicken license. I have satisfied myself with sticking to the distance rules, cleaning the coop so it doesn't stink and having only hens, no roosters. My neighbors know about my chickens, but only because I've told them. Three hens don't really cause much trouble.

The other question I got was where to get chickens in Los Angeles. There are actually quite a few places. Just call around to feed stores in your area between February and August, and you'll probably find someone selling chicks.

I have purchased chickens from three places in the LA area, although I'd probably only recommend Agoura Feed in Agoura Hills. As a general rule, I suggest you get your chickens as babies--preferably only a couple of days old--from a place that seems clean and that keeps the chicks away from older fowl. Ideally, you'd get them from a place that has only baby chicks. That just seems safest, disease-wise, to me. You can also order from My Pet Chicken, which ships small quantities of chicks and guarantees that they will arrive alive.

Try to get the chicks vaccinated for Marek's, if you can. It might save some heartache later. I'd also say a minimum of 3 chickens is ideal. You'll probably end up with extra eggs in the fridge, but just give them to friends. My feeling is that, if you have 3, if something happens and you lose one, you're not in a bind with one lonely chicken.

Hope that helps!