Thursday, December 1, 2011

Every chicken palace needs a doorman

Back in late October, when the chicken palace was finally done...or so I thought,
I ended up extending the height of the fence that separates the chickens from the pig.

Eugenia insisted on jumping over the original fence to visit Wynonna and peck the dry skin off her back. 
It was gross. Anyway, Danni was visiting at the time, and she helped me build the addition.


We made it out of some scrap pieces of wire fence panel, which turned out to be a perfect solution. 
The solid fence at the bottom protects Wynonna from the pecking chickens, and the see-through fence at the top 
lets the sun shine through but keeps Eugenia where she belongs. 



We made a hole in the wire panel so that I could open the gate latch from the chicken side of the fence. 
This worked fine until the weather got cold and I started wearing my bulky barn coat to do chores. 
I thought about making the hole bigger but worried that Eugenia would use it as an escape route. 
Danni suggested I tie a weighted string to the latch so that I could simply pull the string to open the gate from the other side.



So I did. But what could I use as a weight for the other end of the string?
Hmm. I looked around at many boring options before I found this...



...a leftover Halloween decoration which was in keeping with the whole cow skull vibe.
Meet Igor the Doorman.



Roll your mouse between the margin and the picture and watch Igor open the gate. 
Igor does a very good job. And there's no pressure to tip him at Christmas time.

26 comments:

  1. i would buy the poor man a cheeseburger though...he is looking a little thin!

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  2. And, he's a 24 hour watchman! Perfect!

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  3. He's the perfect man for the job!

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  4. Your posts almost always make me chuckle. Thank you.

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  5. Thank you thank you thank you for the solution to my problem! See? You entertain, educate, encourage...and problem solve!

    Igor's a lil creepy, tho.

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  6. Estella from Co.12/1/11, 7:33 AM

    Great idea, but I agree Igor's a bit thin going into the winter months. Guess what I received yesterday.....My calendar, it's wonderful....I took my 2011 down already and put my new 2012 one up. Now everyday I can see the kids, BUT I must admit when I see Lucy I get a little sad..but only for a second I think of all the good times and I know she has the BEST HOME EVER. Hugs to all

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  7. I love the Christmas decorations on the banner, but Lucy seems a little under dressed. :)

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  8. That Danni, she's a genius but you win the prize for creativity! That totally made me chuckle out loud this morning.

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  9. LOL!! I love Igor!! How smart was that?

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  10. Haha, I read your blog all the time but rarely comment. But I had to just say, this is awesome. It made me laugh out loud. ^_^

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  11. You might not tip him, but it would be really grand to see him in an itty bitty Santa Hat...

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  12. Love your solution - and the critters' new attire in your blog header.

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  13. I just about DIED (ha) when I got to the picture of Igor.

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  14. OMG ... Seriously, how funny is that?!? Love it!!

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  15. So creative ... I would have used something boring like a horseshoe :-)

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  16. What a perfect solution ... and leave it to you to have Igor hanging around the ranch waiting for a job to do!

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  17. Igor doorman is skeleton key.

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  18. I laughed my head off when I came to the shot of Igor. was not expecting that. and I REALLY needed a laugh today.... really... so thanks

    and I love the Christmas hats: will Lucy be getting her portrait done with one? and I see you updated your date, too :)

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  19. Maybe Igor will pull double duty to scare away barn rodents and bull snakes. And coyotes.

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  20. Is his name pronounced eeegore or eyegore? (I've watched Young Frankenstein too many times).
    Love your sense of humor!

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  21. I love it that you give everything a fitting name. I bet you have always been this way (?).

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  22. So I'm thinking he doesn't require workplace healthcare?

    You must go to tinker town up in cedar crest. I suspect you'd love it.

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  23. LOL glad I wasnt drinking anything! I would have had to clean off the computer again!!! LOL LOL
    You always make me laugh! :o)

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  24. Technical difficulties prevented me from commenting on this earlier (you know me, right? lol)

    I love this post! What a perfect job for Igor, the bony dude who refused to "hang" with his friends. :-)
    This made me smile and smile.

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