The New Generation

My aim here at Leegan Farm is to add livestock with a purpose. We are trying to work towards a more self sustaining lifestyle. My chooks and ducks provide eggs, meat and feathers, as well as bug control and fertiliser. I chose a heritage utility breed of chicken, the wyandotte. They are pretty looking chooks, aren't too bad in terms of egg production, dress out to a good size and are good mothers.

Since my rooster had matured and was free to crow as much as he liked, I decided to let one of my hens go broody on some eggs. As a result I ended up with six little fluffballs.

As adorable as they are, these are destined for the oven. However, I feel it is a waste to cull females for food. They provide eggs for a number of years, are generally smaller and they're easy enough to find homes for which can then assist in paying for feed for the rest of them. So any girls I end up with will either be rehomed or kept to expand/refresh my flock.

My little chicks are now almost 3 months old and I'm trying to guess what I have.

It's looking like a have a good proportion of young cockerels and I might be lucky enough to have one turn out to be female. If there is a girl I'll add her to my flock.

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After moving to our new home, my rooster became increasingly aggressive as he matured. I learned tricks to outsmart him in their pen so I could collect the eggs. Then he learned some tricks of his own and found ways to get out of their pen to greet me each morning with fly kicks. I had my suspicions that he was practicing on our scarecrow in the garden. After a few months of this, I'd had enough, particularly with visiting nieces and nephews at risk. We set a date and did the deed and this is how he ended up:

Coq au vin - May not look great, but I assure you it was delicious!

The only problem then was I had no rooster to help my hens find tasty treats and fertilise their eggs. I contacted my chook breeder and I was in luck! She had a fine boy, who is kind to his humans and devoted to his hens. I brought him home and he settled in very quickly, scratching around to find some kind of tasty offering for his new girls.

Left to right: Pumpkin, Buttons, Queenie and Ember in front.

I'm yet to think of a name for my new handsome rooster, but I think I'll wait until we're better acquainted.

Back at the Beginning

It all started when I was a child. I had an insatiable love for animals. Growing up in the suburbs we had a few pets, but not many and I yearned for the day that I could have a dog and a duck.. and a horse.. and sheep and a cow and the list goes on. From a young age I always said I wanted to be a farmer, little did I realise that would hold true into my adulthood. Now here I am slowly working towards my dream.

I started out in an 851 square meter suburban block and crammed in a small dog, 2 cats, a few lizards and as many ducks as I could legally fit (plus a few extra for good measure). My forays into breeding ducks were both exciting and messy, very messy and I swiftly realised that my little block wasn't the ideal place for a growing flock of birds. I persisted for a few years and eventually added chooks to the mix. Of course, I ended up with a rooster and although the neighbours never complained, something had to give. A few tense months passed as we were debating whether to move or wait and get rid of the rooster, cringing every time(and there were many) that Mr Rooster would stand tall and let out his loud crow, echoing off the nearby buildings.

Our yearning for open space and inevitable livestock won us over and when we went to look at what seemed to be a picture perfect property, there was no going back. We are now on 5 acres just inside the somerset region of QLD to the west of the Sunshine Coast.

We have been here only for a few short, hectic months, but it already feels like we've been here a lifetime. Our journey has a new beginning and I hope to share the ups and downs with you as we learn and progress on our little farm.