Bathrobes and Fuzzy Slippers

Feeling down because of social distancing and the economy? Read this and laugh a little!

Bathrobes and Fuzzy Slippers

Silkies are the perfect chickens for COVID quarantines. They don’t really fly much. You can count on them staying at home, in their own space, not venturing out much! Perfect! They make very little noise. They don’t bother the neighbors. Even the rooster just greets the day, then shuts up. This makes them the perfect apartment dwellers, good neighbors and quiet!

They are clean. Dust baths only, please. Their yard seems devoid of droppings and flies are a delicacy and have short lives when in the neighborhood of silkies.

They are omnivores with a strong bent toward vegetarianism. A little chicken scratch (mostly cracked corn), discarded organic kitchen scraps, compost pickings for bugs and a fly now and then, they are set! Anything larger than a fly is sure to meet a rapid and appreciated death in their presence.

And entertainment? Here is where they shine. Like a good neighbor, they are fun to watch. Ever check out the neighbor walking their dog or strolling their children. Have you caught yourself being amazed at how just watching these normal activities has captured your attention? Watching silkies is much like having a flock of interesting neighbors.

You don’t really notice them much, until you glance out and catch their characteristic movements. Like most chickens, they run, then slow to a w-a-l-k! They step quickly, hop to a preferred perch (like that special park bench in the case of your neighbor!) and…that’s about it! If one sees something that appears interesting, from a chicken point of view, head turned to get a good look at it, a crowd gathers, all focused on that one thing. Just like people!

Then there are the bathrobes and the fuzzy slippers. Silkies have a round, fluffy heads that look like an old lady with curlers in her hair and a shower cap covering them. Cannot leave the house, why do your hair?

Silkies are so fluffy, you would think they had a thick terry bathrobe over their sweatpants and sweatshirt. What COVID isolated person would ever dress like that? Well, almost everyone!

Of course, there are the fluffy slippers. Just like silkies who have feathers on their feet, a COVID isolationist can get away with cozy, fluffy slippers all day long. Not going to the store. Bring on the slippers! Not going to the office either. Working from home? Zoom does not show your feet. Perfect!

A word to the wise. Beware the next time you try to get your feet into those high heels!

“Now what happened to my feet?”

Just like fuzzy slippers, silkies feet to not look so great on the bottom. At home, fuzzy slippers keep the dust bunnies off the floor. In the chicken pen, fluffy feet just look weird as they rush from one part of the yard to the next. Do not look at the bottoms. They are more than weird!

So, if you are social distancing in an apartment, think of my chickens the next time you watch the neighbor take their dog for a walk. If you are a lucky suburbanite with a yard and you are seeking a zoning-approved pet for your yard, I highly recommend a silkie or two. The best part is that they come with their own bathrobe and fuzzy slippers!

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