Well, the rabbits were packed up and trucked off to the swap this morning. As I predicted, there were plenty of admirers but no buyers. I did give out my number to a few people though, which will hopefully translate to some sales later on.

There were lots of things on offer, it was probably the best-attended swap I’ve been to so far, even though it was rainy. I managed to pick up a few excellent new additions to the homestead and only spent a grand total of $56.

My first purchase was something I’ve been wanting for a long time… Homing pigeons. Ok, I did want fantail pigeons, but I needed birds that could occupy the upper quadrant of the chicken pen and fantails are not great fliers. Plus, with homing pigeons you can drive them miles away and let them go and they find their way home. You can’t have that kind of fun with a fantail!

My five new homers

The second purchase was a pair of chocolate Muscovy ducklings. I know, the last thing I need is more ducklings but I really want the chocolate color, so hopefully they will stay on as breeders. The other, older ducklings will probably all be going to freezer camp at the 12 week mark, around the beginning of August.

Third purchase was another long-time desire of mine… Barred Rock chickens! Barred Rocks were the breed I wanted first when I moved here, but somehow it never worked out. Today I purchased a young pullet and cockerel pair from a lovely little girl who told me they have been kissed goodnight every day since they were born. They certainly are very friendly birds. I’m going to try making my version of a “No-Crow” collar for the rooster to see if it actually works. It’s just a little fabric collar that goes around the neck and prevents the rooster from getting a full big breath of air to let out a big crow. I’m skeptical but it sure would be awesome to hatch out my own chicken chicks!

My final purchase for $6 was a dozen pastel green Ameraucana hatching eggs. They’ll be going into the incubator with the latest clutch of quail eggs in the next few days. I’m very excited to see what develops!