The autumn sun rises through crisp morning air casting an orange glow on everything it touches. It’s the clarity of light and heaviness of the dew underfoot that I love so much about this time of year. It is all the more enjoyable to see our six new rescue hens basking in this newly discovered outside world. I have had the pleasure all this week of watching them regain some of their true nature after spending their first year in colony cages with wire floors. It is a powerful experience to look a creature in the eye and to know where they have come from and to be the one that has changed everything for them. The dear things have already worked out that the house with straw is for nesting and roosting and that if they scratch about and make a wallow in the earth, it’s quite nice to bathe in it. The first few moments when I placed each one into their new enclosure, all they could do was stand there in a huddle and look around in astonishment. They were so clean and pale! A few days on and their combs are becoming a more normal colour, they are eating well and have dirty feet. I’m finding increasing numbers of eggs each day which means that hopefully their stress is subsiding. I think they look more settled and one of them at least is canoodling with Big Rooster through the chicken wire. It’s love in the time of COVID-19. The two mimic each other’s dancing and scratch the ground, talking together. He seems very keen to get close to the new ladies but they have to remain separate for another few days. I feel mean doing this but it’s for the hens protection until they have had a chance to start growing new feathers. Meanwhile, the two 9/10 week old chicks are being kept separate in the vegetable garden for now. I tried introducing them into the main flock of three hens and two cock birds but alas, they were brutally attacked by the older girls. Eventually, everyone will be in together and a new order established, but I’m waiting until the new hens can join in for strength in numbers! I’m not sure if this is the right way to do it so please offer advice for me in the comments box if you have any thoughts. Despite all of the shifting about and worrying about pecking orders, watching them enjoy their new lives here is bringing us a lot of pleasure. The children enjoyed helping them pick apart a sunflower seed head or two and love being followed by excited hens looking for a treat. My son loves collecting a few caterpillars from the cauliflower patch and feeding them by hand to “Baby Bee”. She’s his new buddy like sweet Rosie was before. The chicken love is abundant here and seeing the morning sun on their feathers today was all the thanks I will ever need.