Chicken with attitude

We hadn't been able to move our chickens while it was snowy, so this morning we took the opportunity to find them some fresh grass. This was the sight that greeted me when I opened up their nest box - a very feisty silky-cross called Summer.

She's definitely a chicken with attitude, though luckily she really likes humans. But woe betide any cats that come too close - she just pounces on them. Before I joined blip I managed to get a photo of her with a clump of white fur in her beak. Our four cats now give her a pretty wide berth!

The chickens live in a fox-proof moveable ark, and only come out into the garden under supervision. In the summer they love to rootle around, looking for bugs and worms, pick off grass seeds and have a nice dust bath. During the cold weather they stay stubbornly in their roosting area. We knew it must have turned milder this morning, as they actually came out for a potter.

Later we took the dogs up to Southey Wood where ladybirds were basking in sunny spots, and we briefly saw a peacock butterfly! It felt a bit bizarre after the Arctic temperatures earlier in the week. The car thermometer registered 9.5C.

At the far end of the wood we were surprised to find ourselves in the middle of a pack of foxhounds! They're very big dogs, but luckily were very friendly, although I think Gemma and Rosie felt a bit overwhelmed. I think they must have been exercising them, as they seemed fairly relaxed and disorganised, with no sign of any hunters or horses.