Bog Myrtle & Peat

Following the tidal wave of rats, I’ve been struggling to keep on top of all other projects. It was only when a damn rat had a go at one of my grey partridges that I was rudely awakened from the single minded pursuit of scaley-tailed invaders. The cock bird has survived, but I’m not even slightly impressed and it remains to be seen whether or not the poor bird will make a full recovery. I have a nasty suspicion that the shock might catch up with him in a few days, but all I can do is make sure it doesn’t happen again and keep my fingers crossed. I’ve kept back nine grey partridges for an experimental breeding programme this coming spring – the arrangement is now that I have four cocks and five hens which, barring worst case scenarios, ought to produce some eggs for the pekins to sit on when the winter is over.

The two cocks up on the hill have totally vanished, leaving a free group of three hens and a cock in the radishes (one of the hens seems to have gone missing since last night). I want to bring my call birds (a cock and two hens) and pen down to the house so that I can consolidate my breeding stock and keep better care of them, but I think that if I do, the four free birds might just hook off altogether. Perhaps that’s a risk I have to take if I’m going to take proper care of my breeding stock for the spring. It could be that there is so little on offer elsewhere in the way  of feeding that they’ll stay in the radishes out of necessity rather than choice, which wouldn’t be the end of the world.

Moving my birds around this evening into their new winter accomodation, I had the opportunity to pick them up and examine them. They are in great condition and are looking really good. Some of them are even quite fat, which I think is a positive thing, particularly for a species which can struggle with worms. This is all totally new to me, but it’s already starting to seem very interesting.