Hi there, I'm Ashe.
Ashe de la June


After many years in IT tech support and web dev, I unexpectedly ventured onto a new path. Now I'm in my thirties and have a double degree in Earth Sciences! I am raising fowl, a goat, a horse, four cats and a husband. I spend my free time in the garden and with my animals. Currently, my long-suffering husband and I sleep with one of our cats in the bedroom with a young pullet in a cat cage on a shelf who refuses to sleep with the other chickens! It strangely works out. My husband is an aspiring author writer and often blogs a story about our lives on the farm etc.

I am passionate about chickens, cats, web design, blogging, Pinterest, sprouting seeds, taking cuttings and other gardening, trialling make-up and hair products, baking, writing stories, spinal disabilities, making things and offering all kinds of advice to people.

Being one who loves to read, TaintedBlood.org is an old URL I purchased in 2002, inspired by the Margaret Weis science fiction fantasy Star of Guardians series of novels. Jazhiaran and Ashe are the names of rpg characters I created in the 90s inspired by the Raymond E. Feist fantasy novels following Pug the magician.

If you'd like to contact me, please do!

© ACO 2012-2016.

My menagerie



Reload to see another photo of one of my children. :-)




Ducks and chooks - egg laying!



Da Raea ‏@Jazhiaran 24 May
My chookie has now laid 14 eggs, and I made scrambled eggs with 13 of them yesterday and shared it with my parents :D good shit I tell you!



So, on 7 May this past month Daniel Jackson my slightly older Australorpe chookie began laying.  Her eggs began quite pale and gradually became darker.  They're still quite small - but my oh my, are those eggies hard to crack!  And the gorgeous colour and taste is phenomenal.  Compared to what I'm used to with barn laid / cruelty free eggs from the Supermarket, it is just unbelievably good.


Da Raea ‏@Jazhiaran 7 May
I am so very proud! One of my chookies laid its very first egg! That makes it MY very first homegrown egg!!!



If you were not aware of this, lighter coloured chickens will lay white/pale eggs, whereas darker coloured chickens will lay darker eggs.  This is why you have pale or dark eggs in your carton: alas you often get a mix.


Da Raea ‏@Jazhiaran 8 May
Another egg today. I awoke at 5 and listened til I fell asleep hours later, but no chicken song was heard. Hmmm...



I just wanted to do some calculations, and was doing it in notepad when I realised it'd be easier for me to find if I placed it on my blog as an entry.






  • Chooks bought on Wednesday 6 Feb 2013
    • - chooks were a month old to two months old ?  One chook began laying 7 May 2013.  Laying lady seems to be fully grown now, her combs and under beak wattle are bright red.  She also performs the laying song when she is disturbed.  The smaller, yet fatter chookie has finally developed green bottle colour on its wings as well as the Cola embers.  It doesn't have much of a comb, nor wattle.  Still unknown whether male or female.  It hides behind the other chook, as it is shorter.





  • Ducks bought on Saturday 9 Feb 2013 - ducks were 4 and 5 months old.  The ducks have not yet gained a curled tail, thus they must definitely be female.  They seem to have more flat beaks though, so that's a concern.  Their heads are rather round which is good.  They do not have darker heads than their bodies.  The smaller duck, O'Neill, makes this "mwahahahahahahaah" quacking laugh sound when it wants food.  I can't say their quacks sound particularly quack-like though.

    • what are your thoughts? 0 Comments
    posted by Da at 10:27:00 PM

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