The Feathered Exterminators

This is a chica. We have fourteen of these feathered friends, and they do marvelous things. Our chicas look pretty, walk funnily, run hysterically, and they cackle, like they're passing around a good joke.

Our chicas lay eggs... beautiful, healthy, colored eggs. They are not fertile, because we have no rooster. And despite being mint colored, and mocha colored, even pale pink, they all taste like delicious farm fresh eggs. Finding eggs is a delight.

Finding spiders? Finding spiders can be less than delightful. We appreciate the orb spiders that arrive in October, and weave massive webs across walkways, in trees. They do good deeds with the mosquitos and peskier flies. We admire garden spiders, and any spider that respects our personal space is alright by us. But when black widows and brown widows, even camel spiders {which aren't actually spiders at all, but yeesh!}... when we find those sorts of creepers and crawlers, with fangs, and venom, we get the heebie jeebies.

And when we get the heebie jeebies because our Viking tent ropes are full of creepers and crawlers, we call in the feathered exterminators, our chicas! The bundles of rope turned into spider condos, and we needed a fast and safe wait to evict all of the residents.

Step 1. Bait the rope with rolled oats.

Step 2. Call the hens... chchchcook chchchcook chchchcook chchchcook! Here chicas!

Step 3. Watch the hens come from across the garden, running like beautiful fat clock work masterpieces.

Step 4. Add a last sprinkle of oats, so they see that good things come to those who run.

Once the feast begins, the ropes are quickly, efficiently and safely ridded of pests. We saw black widows swallowed whole. The more the hens pecked, the easier it was to pull the ropes open, exposing more surface, and snacks.


In no time at all our ropes were cleaned up and ready for use, thanks to our fine feathered exterminators.