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Hello!
Everyone needs something to cheer them up at the
beginning of winter, there’s no point denying it any
longer, it’s cold! Help is at hand though in the
form of the Omlet Bake Me Happy Competition! We
can all think of a time when a slice of chocolate cake
(or two) has helped mend a broken heart or a thick piece
of lemon drizzle cake has miraculously cleared a blocked
nose. So let’s get out the scales, crack open some
eggs and get baking to beat the wintery blues!
Basically the 2005 Bake Me Happy Competition will run
until midnight on November the 27th. You can enter
either by sending a photo of your creation to johannes@omlet.co.uk
or if you want a chance of winning you could send an
edible entry to
Omlet
Bake Me Happy
Tuthill Park
Wardington
Oxon
OX17 1RR.
Cup cakes, biscuits and every other type of
patisserie and confectionary are allowed – if in any
doubt send it in and we will decide.
First prize will be a stunning new Omlet
Apron and there will also be 5 runners up who will
get a surprise prize. Plus of course fame and
adulation from everyone at Omlet and everyone who reads
the Newsletter (over 11,000 people!)
Good Luck and enjoy this weeks Newsletter.
The Omlet Team
p.s Are we getting old or are the egluowners of the
week getting younger and far to much pocket
money!? |
Even the greatest cake starts
with a simple egg
Penny
holding a tray of
buns,
wearing the fabulous
apron which you can win. |
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Star Photos
Chloe's First Egg - freshly laid
+ out of the nest box and into the
pan
= 0.00006271 food miles!
( I usually just garnish my egg
with salt
and pepper - ED )
You can see more photos in the gallery |
Barbara's Weekly
Diary!
Chilly
Chickens?
You can keep chickens outside all
year round in this country. They are remarkably hardy
creatures and don’t forget, they are wearing a big
feathery coat. You can bet your boots too that although
the eglu is also very well insulated, if you peep in
through the eggport at night when they’ve gone to roost,
they will all be cuddled up together at the back and
that must be very warm indeed!
The first time your hens
see snow they can be somewhat hesitant to step onto it,
often causing a hilarious scene as the hen at the front
of the morning rush puts the brakes on and the others
pile into her behind! Once they have ventured out
they will carry on as usual, pottering around feeding
and drinking.
Some people like to give
their hens a warming feed in the mornings. Porridge is
popular as are cooked and mashed up potato peelings
mixed with their pellets or mash. Mine love some
wholemeal bread served with warm milk or water and a
drizzle of honey on top. Wheat is a good scratch feed to
give on winter afternoons as it releases energy slowly
which will keep them warm overnight. It is far more
effective for keeping the hens bodies warm than corn
which tends to put weight on!
You might also need to
keep an eye on their water in case it freezes overnight.
It's a good idea to bring the feeders inside overnight
when temperatures dip because it makes filling them up
in the morning so much easier.
The only other thing to
look out for is that hens combs can get frostbitten in
cold weather but you can prevent this from happening
simply by rubbing some Vaseline into the comb. It’s a
painful condition and causes the comb to go black where
it has been frozen and this bit will eventually die off
so a little preventative care can save your hen some
discomfort. They do seem to like having their combs
rubbed too so it’s an excellent excuse for a cuddle and
a bit of bonding!!
Barbara |
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Nervous Chickens.
Poor Baggins posted on
the forum that we got our delightful Pepper (Pepperpot -
approx 20 weeks old) and Rust (Gingernut - approx 18
weeks old) 3 weeks ago. Although we (and our dog) love
them dearly, they are so unfriendly. We handle them (by
picking them out of their "bedroom") every morning, and
talk to them regularly but they are not becoming any
easier to "tame". I appreciate that they'll never be
cuddly but would at least like them to not be quite so
afraid and "skittish". Any ideas - should we handle them
more, is it too late and will they always be like this?
The other thing is that they won't eat anything other
than their chicken food - we have tried all kinds of
fruit and vegetable scraps and they look at us as though
we're mad! Please help - I'd love for them not to
treat us as though we're diseased!
As usual, forum members rushed to the rescue
and posted advice:-
Don't worry! Perseverance is the name of the game!
Mine wouldn't touch treats to start off with. They
turned their beaks up at EVERYTHING - even sweetcorn and
grapes! BUT, they soon realised that these things tasted
nice - delicious even - and from that moment, they were
putty in our hands! Mine go absolutely nuts for dried
mealworms at the moment and come running for them! Just
keep on trying them with things and they'll get
friendlier and friendlier when they realise that you are
the bearer of all things scrummy! –
Kate
I totally agree with Kate. You just need to keep
doing what you’re already doing. Our two were very timid
for at least three or four weeks, probably more, and
it’s only recently (within the last couple of weeks in
fact), that they’ve started running up to us when we go
out in the garden. Ours love tined sweetcorn and cooked
spaghetti – in fact they go absolutely made for the
spaghetti (it’s very funny to watch). Once they are
settled, they’ll come to love you as much as you love
them. – Andrew (atsw)
Try only introducing a couple of types of treat to
start with - sweetcorn is an easy one to start with -
and only give them in the afternoon. It's good that
they're eating all their pellets ‘cos it means they're
getting all the goodness they need. Be patient - they
will need a little time to settle in and every hen is
different so don't be concerned if other people's
experiences are different to yours. –
Red
Before you know it they won't eat anything but
treats!!!! – Rachel 19
Hello Baggins - I have only just picked up my
chickens for the first time TODAY! It took them that
long to get used to me. In the end it was easy. They
just dangled there happily, though their little legs
were going like the baddie's legs in thin air just
before he plummets into the canyon. They aren't too keen
on treats either but they'll take a grape if I cut it up
nicely for them. – Penny |
They are probably still a bit unsettled - new home,
fireworks etc. Plus they are still juveniles - they
settle down a lot when they start laying. –
Clare Taylor
Ours took a while to tame down, but our black rock
who is over 1/2 a year is still getting friendlier. Plus
ours didn't like scraps until they discovered the
compost heap one day... – noeglu
We found ours were more docile in the evenings for
cuddles. They are still a bit stand-offish at times but
are happy to potter around the garden with us. Treats-
fruit and healthy stuff got a definite thumbs down (or
the chicken equivalent), but mashed potato, rice and
particularly spaghetti are gone before they hit the
ground! They seem to love their carbs! – Nick
& Trish
See Baggins - they'll soon come to love you (or your
sweetcorn) Like Kate says, patience is a virtue (but
really difficult to practice when you are waiting for
your first egg!!) – Mel & Paul
It's been two weeks and mine are still quite timid.
At lunch time today, I spent half an hour sat at the end
of the run with sweetcorn in my hand. The Bovans Nera
pecked at it first, followed by the Ranger and then,
eventually, after a full 30 minutes, the Whitestar. They
are interested in sweetcorn but aren't really mad for
it. The one thing they really love is a handful of
dried, mixed, corn. – Graham (grd)
My Pepperpot and Speckledy are still not really happy
about being handled and run at the first inkling that I
may try to pick them up. The new Gingernut that came on
Saturday is completely different. She’s happy to by
picked up and cuddles and runs to me if she wants
picking up. My Speckledy is having real problems
accepting Innara. Diana seems quite bullish and runs
towards Innara, who promptly runs into my arms – ahhh!!
Still persevering but to avail. -
Fleata
If you are an egluowner then you
can access to the forum. Evening if you haven't got
chickens yet you can have a weeks trial access to the
forum by clicking this link here -> forum
Don't forget
Barbara
Remember that Barbara is always on
hand to answer your question about chickens - just pop
her an email to barbara@omlet.co.uk |
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Egluowners of the
Week
Ella
Clark
Age:
4
Occupation: Ballet
dancer
Where do you live?
Droitwich spa
What pets do you
have? 2 chucks,one hamster called
elvis.
If you were stranded on a
desert island what luxury item would you have?
My daddy
How many chickens do you
have? 2
What breeds are
they? Both rh reds
How old
are they? 9 months
What
are your chickens called? Florie and
Dora
How many eggs do you get a
week and what is your favourite way of cooking
them? Usually 14.i have one boiled with toast
before school.
Do your chickens
have a party trick? Yes,they chase my baby
brother Cameron around the garden.
Would you like to be egluowner of
the week?
Each week we will be featuring an
elguowner of the week. If you would like to be
featured then read our questionnaire here
and email your answers to james@omlet.co.uk .
Photos will increase your chances!
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Emily
Barber
Age:
5
Occupation:
Schoolgirl
Where do you
live? London
What pets do
you have? A Dwarf lop rabbit called princess
nina.
If you were stranded on a
desert island what luxury item would you have?
TV
How old are they?
10 weeks
What are your rabbit
favourite food? The leaves that blow into her
run!!
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