My little helpers

Every morning at first light I poop pick the coop and like clockwork my little helpers join me. I wonder if it’s an age thing because last year Honey and Amber used to do this but they have now retired from the job and join the other girls mooching about the run.

Peaches and Barley at seven months old now have this job to do each morning. The routine is always the same. I start by cleaning the nest box then I remove it so that I can clean this side of the coop.

Peaches and Barley check out the nest box

Peaches and Barley always go straight to the nest box for an inspection. When I am ready to put the nest box back on I usually have to move them out of it first.

I then take the side panel off of the opposite end of the coop and proceed to clean there.

Peaches and Barley check out the coop

Has she missed a bit?

We can help her with this

How am I meant to see out from under this comb?

You can see by Barley’s open beak that there is always a running commentary going on.

A good job done we think

The entire time that I am cleaning up Peaches and Barley are helping me and chatting away to me. I say chatting, they actually squeak the whole time and I often call them “my squeaky girls”. It’s so sweet because I can feel their combs bobbing against my hands and I have to nudge their feet aside from time to time.

I am convinced that they think that I am doing the same thing that they are and it’s a shared mutual daily occupation. As soon as I put the side panel back on the coop they leave the coop and carry on with their day.