Are chickens psychic?

Robert and I were discussing the fact that our very naughty old lady chickens (Jack & Cher) have been breaking their eggs, or their eggs roll off of the ledge in their little nests and get cracked...either one; and how we don't want them to teach our new baby girls (Cutie,Cheap-cheap, Buttercup) not to do the same. Rob came up with this halarious idea to put golf balls in the chicken nests hoping that they would try to peck at them and realize it was painful and they would quit, that is if they can actually learn...
Anyway, they don't lay much any more, I mean when I say old ladies I'm not kidding! Jack is 9 years old and Cher is probably 6 or 7 (I got her full grown from a friend so I can only guess her age) basically they are way past laying age. Last week Cher laid an egg while Riley and I were in the garden and we took it away from her before she could do any naughty stuff, but when I brought it into the kitchen to wash it off it broke in my hands. This lead me to believe that her shells are not strong enough...yes she may have osteoporoses! And then yesterday again I found one of her eggs broken on the ground and I feared she had damaged that.




My friend Jenn recently told me she took her old chickens to the feed store after they were past their egg laying stage because it wasn't worth it to her to keep feeding them for no return. I am a vegetarian you may know, so this idea doesn't sit well with me. Last night I was speculating with Robert and saying perhaps lived a full and happy life and maybe it was time to do something like that....



Then this morning I went out to the garden to take care of them and lo and behold! What did I find? Two eggs, one green (it may look more white in the photo), and one brown! Nice and strong, not as big as they used to be but good eggs! I was going to title this blog "Do chickens have ears?", but I already know the answer to that one! Yes they do! That is how you know what color eggs they will lay. Jack is an Americauna and she has green ears and eggs, Cher's breed I have no idea but her ears and eggs are brown!