Relaxed Farming - our farm in your classroom

And twenty-four hours later, the paddock is now looking like this! It looks a lot drier but just under the surface the water lurks and this lone chicken pecking around definitely had muddy feet when she went back in the barn. The poultry are all still being kept in but their part of the barn is partitioned with simple netting and as most of the doors are open (fresh air for the goats, sheep and alpacas as well as access to the concrete apron) if any chicken squeezes through the netting they can of course get outside.
This particular chicken is currently laying her eggs in the alpaca hay rack so each morning she squeezes through the netting, lays her egg and then goes for a wander. When we do our end of morning/early afternoon check on everything, she is usually waiting by the door to the chicken area in the barn, asking to be let back in. Why she doesn't squeeze back through the netting the way she came who knows? She is of course making herself vulnerable to the fox (along with two or three others who similarly squeeze through) but these birds are quite clever and alert and they tend to stay near the front of the barn (where touch wood the fox has never dared to approach). Some chickens are much better at avoiding predators than others and this is one reason why we never clip wings unless we have to as by doing so, we are removing the bird's natural defences and ability to 'fly' away.
No news from our 'man with the gun'. He has come out once at night and once during the day and has seen foxes both times but to date, our particular fox has eluded him!!