Chickens Down the Road

A few weeks ago, the neighbors down the road started letting their chickens free range during the day. Well, actually, they might have started before that, so maybe I should say that’s when the chickens decided to leave their yard.

Usually it’s just three particular chickens from his flock. The rest stay in their own yard. The ones that tend to wander are a bantam rooster, a white hen, and a black and white hen. I’ve started calling them the Three Amigos.

It’s been funny to watch as first they got up as far as the roadside. Then they crossed the road and were digging around across from their yard. After a couple of weeks I noticed them slowly working their way up the road. Two weeks ago, they wandered up the neighbors driveway. A few days later they were trotting down the middle of the road in front of my house.

At first I thought the rooster was trying to figure out where the other crowing was coming from (my house). Upon closer observation, though, it appeared he might actually be the voice of reason in the group. I would see the hens wander into a wooded area as he’d frantically try to round them up and head them toward home.

Finally, on Sunday they came up my driveway and spent an hour enjoying themselves in the leaves along the driveway and scratching around in the front yard.

I wonder if the neighbor has figured out how far they’ve been roaming?