On the March to the Kitchen Door

It didn’t take them long to figure it out, bless their little corn-pecking hearts. Twice last month I ran to get some scratch to divert those girls from a nasty encounter. That’s all it took. The first time was when the gas guy was here and I grabbed up the plastic cupful of scratch and “here chick chick chick”-ed them away from the house and whatever potential disaster there might be. The second time, same thing, to get them away from the cannon boom.

Apparently, all they remember is where that scratch came from and now, every morning about ten-ish, there they are at the kitchen door clucking and carrying on. Unfortunately, although my office is way on the other side of the house from the kitchen, the floor plan is such that the wall directly behind my desk borders the kitchen garden. “Cluck-cluck-cluck” and “clack-clack-cla-dac-kat” goes the mid-morning call for attention.

How can you get chickens to cover their ears?

So far, I’ve held my ground. No scratch on demand. I sort of feel like I did when Charlie and Marta were little. No begging for treats at the grocery store. It’s a sure way to not get anything. Besides, I tell myself, too much scratch isn’t good for those chickens. Come to think of it, that’s what I told myself about treats for my kids.

I recently read an article on FB about a British Mum who routinely lets her children — Peep, nine, and Jos, seven — set their own bedtimes, decide whether or not they want to do their homework and even swear at her. She has never used the word ‘no’ with them. I had to go back and read the article twice. I got stuck on Peep.

Yes to free-ranging and foraging!

As old-fashioned as it might sound, I believe in boundaries. I believe in saying ‘no’ even when the only reason is that enough toys are enough, or that hungry for a bit longer is better than stuffing yourself with junk food. They probably thought I was mean at the time but neither has ever said so. And, they both turned out perfectly —  if I do say so myself!

So… no scratch, girls! Also, no scratch you suspicious-roostery-looking chicken! (We are pretty sure there’s going to be some cockle-doodle-doing very soon. But so far, he’s a lovely, well-behaved fellow and we hope he’ll stay that way so he can continue to watch out for the flock.) But no begging!