Two have laid so far, and a third is in there having a think about it.
Mundane News
- Thread starter Katherine
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Two have laid so far, and a third is in there having a think about it.
In the 1970s we were being driven down from Heathrow to Devon when we saw Stonehenge on the side of the road. My uncle pulled over onto the verge, and we wandered across and had a good look at the stones, then sat on one of the fallen ones and ate a picnic.
classic33
Leg End Member
And the fourth one is in hiding.
classic33
Leg End Member
All in it together, eh.
They be up to summat, watchit..
oldwheels
Legendary Member
- Location
- Isle of Mull
We've already discussed this at length. Chicken is the name of the species. Hen is the name of the sex. Hen chickens lay eggs. So, some chickens (the female ones called hens) lay eggs. I don't have any males (cocks, or cockerals), so I don't need to distinguish which sex of chicken I am talking about.......so I am completely correct to say "my chickens should be laying more eggs".
Of, and if we are to be pedantic, a hen could be a goose, or a pheasant, or an ostrich. If I were to say "my hens only laid one egg today" you might think I was talking about an emu.....so I use chicken to avoid that confusion.
OK?
My grandparents, parents and all the farms I worked on as well as later at university all referred to hens as the ones laying eggs which if not eaten turned eventually into chickens.
I agree that other birds can be named for sex but it does not alter the point that referring to domestic poultry people understand what is meant by hen and chicken.
Right, so you understood what I was saying, and you knew that I was correct in what I was saying. I'm not sure why you tried to correct me, then.
oldwheels
Legendary Member
- Location
- Isle of Mull
Sadly true but I have no idea what could be done otherwise.
People have more money and time now but I wonder how many visiting these places are simply ticking boxes and have no real interest in the place they are visiting.
I consider myself lucky as I travelled and visited most of the UK before tourism became a menace.
Now I am in the slightly unfortunate position of being a prisoner in what has become a must see area due to pressure of numbers of visitors.
This has happened fairly suddenly over the last decade.
oldwheels
Legendary Member
- Location
- Isle of Mull
Still disagree and nothing will change.
deptfordmarmoset
Full time tea drinker
- Location
- Armonmy Way
Meanwhile, back in London, it's a duck's Bank Holiday.
Which of these statements is wrong:
1/ The English common name for the breed of poultry we're talking about is chicken.
2/ All hens are chickens.
3/ Some chickens are hens, some aren't
Talk of poultry due to effects of avian flu the latest domestic animal rare breeds at risk register has now added all native poultry.
classic33
Leg End Member
My family, all bar the current generation, were/are farmers. My grandparents referred to them as hens, even the cock. Unless they wanted the cock kept seperate.
Maybe its a regional thing, it's certainly not a generational thing.
The geese were geese, locked in a seperate hut to the hens at night.
We're becoming too detached from where our food actually comes from. Folk are unaware that potatoes, and other tubers, are grown underground/in the ground. That the items bought from the supermarket/shop are actually washed before they reach the shelves.
Many recoil in horror at any presented in anything other than a clean condition, or oversized ones.
classic33
Leg End Member
Where'd they go on their bank holiday?
This. Exactly this. Keeping chickens is something of an inconvenience, but we do it mainly to help our grandkids understand where food comes from. We've always grown our own fruit and veggies (annoyingly we've just run out of last years potatoes and onions), but they're a bit less exciting to a 3 year old than birds and the eggs they produce.
