‘Chickens in quarantine’
Good afternoon,
Every morning this week I’ve fed our hens the usual mixture of layers pellets, mixed corn, broccoli and kitchen scraps. They scoff it up, blissfully unaware of viruses and the consequent restrictions on social gatherings. They bump up against each other, peck each other, and huddle together on perches at night. Here are a few of them earlier this week:
They are – at least the younger ones are – laying eggs galore. We may run out of bread, flour, toilet roll and pasta, but we are unlikely to be short of eggs. Here are a dozen only slightly artfully arranged:
I promise – this is the closest the Companionship emails will come to Instagram food pictures. And just to reassure you, while we eat the eggs, the hens live out their natural days, even when past the age of laying. They too have become our companions.
Finally, if you look closely at the University’s FAQs for staff on the Coronavirus, you may spot a mischievous heading above some sober advice. #WWDD See https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/coronavirus/staff/
Yours,
Donald.