I've been kind of hard on the chickens lately, not so much in person, but in print. I feel I may have given the wrong impression of my general feelings towards them. Yes, they mutilated my mums, but I've made my peace with that. All in all, the chicken scorecard shows more benefits than downsides.

Maybe it's because we don't have TV, but I could spend hours watching the chickens, totally mesmerized by even their most mundane putterings. Chickens have very complex social lives as well as a vast vocabulary of vocalizations. I personally (usually) find the crowing of a rooster to be a pleasing sound. Our rooster, Reynaldo, is especially considerate with his crowing. His crow is one of the first things I hear upon waking, but it is always JUST after I had woken up. I don't know how he knows, but he will come stand underneath our window and crow his heart out moments after we've opened our eyes and finished our yawns. A quick peep through the curtains and you'll see him standing his tallest and looking most official with his head cocked to the side and one eye gazing intently up at the window. All it takes is a "Good morning, Reynaldo" to satisfy him. His crows change to contented mumblings, and he goes about his morning business.

Even Lily and Wilson, our resident examples of "Man's Best Friend", can't match the chickens for devoted following. Whenever we are outdoors, whatever project we may be involved in, you can be sure the chickens will decide to center their activities in that same vicinity. Even trips to the toilet include a full, feathered entourage.

It is a good thing that I can find so many things to love about barnyard fowl, because we just made a rather impulsive decision to double our current population. A man was selling baby guineas at the end of our road the other day, and now ten of them are chirping away under the kitchen window. Having guineas, for comic relief and tick control, has long been our intention, we just weren't necessarily planning on having them so soon. Usually I am the one to make emotional animal acquiring decisions, but these little guys swept Joe off his feet at first sight. Maybe a petting zoo is our life's calling?