@Lacy Duckwing
Come say hello to Destiny! She's been a member since November 2017 and comes to us from the state of Maine.
Come say hello to Destiny! She's been a member since November 2017 and comes to us from the state of Maine.
1. Tell us a bit more about yourself. And is there a story behind your member name?
My name is Destiny and I have Autism and Dyslexia. I live in a small town in Maine. I've been raising chickens since 2011 and have had other farm animals over the years. I'm a Christian, photographer, car collector, and author. The photography that I do most is of my chickens. On other photography, I do car photography for my YouTube channel, Santanders Studebaker, wildlife, scenery, pet, and a few voluntary photographies for birth, a wedding, newsletters, and a few other things. Outside of my chickens, I enjoy taking pictures, music, playing the piano, drawing, camping, exploring, swimming, and creating fictional stories. For camping, I and my family often go to Northern Maine where there is nothing but dirt roads and no cell service. Up there, there is plenty of places to explore, fish, and sometimes swim.
Some wild Swedish Hybrids that I've been observing for a few years now:
A scenery picture I recently took at the ocean:
On my member name, there is a story behind it: I was creating my first YouTube channel, Lacy Duckwing, and I didn't want to use my real name. My favorite hen at the time was a Silver Duckwing Old English Game bantam named Lacy, so I used her name and her color. A couple of years later, I discovered BackYard Chickens. Though I didn't join at first, when I did a few months later, I needed a name. So, because my YouTube channel was about chickens, and again, I didn't want to use my real name for my BYC account, I just reused Lacy's name. I no longer have Lacy anymore, as I had to rehome my bantams back in 2020, but her name has stuck so well that I'm still using it to this day.
Lacy when she was a little over 6 years old:
2. Why and when did you start keeping poultry?
I keep chickens because I like them. They're my pets and all have names. They serve as therapy animals to me. I like to take pictures of them, have them fly up on me, and sometimes teach them a trick. In the past, I have raised some for meat. Now I'm starting to sell some of their eggs. I sometimes breed them to replace the retiring and for the enjoyment of seeing chicks hatch.
Lucy II with her second hatch:
Some of a flock called the Church Birds:
I was introduced to some chicks in early 2011. They stayed at my family's house that night until they were able to finish their journey the next day to their real home. About a month later, another batch of chicks came through, and they were there to stay. I immediately fell in love with them and got obsessed. The farm began and grew fast. My family got more chickens, some geese, ducks, turkeys, guinea fowl, rabbits, and goats. After some time, the farm downscaled and now, I only keep a small flock of chickens.
My first flock in their first winter next to my first coop, the Church:
3. Which aspects of poultry keeping do you enjoy the most?
I enjoy letting them out to free-range the most. While they're free-ranging, I like to lead them to better places for them to forage. Sometimes, I will pull out my camera to take pictures and videos of them. Other times, I like to hang out with them as they dust-bathe in new spots. When I'm not really doing either of those things, I like to watch them from a distance as they enjoy their freedom.
A few of my hens dust-bathing in a spot I lead them to:
4. Which members of your flock, past and present, stand out for you and why?
Of the past, Sparkle Girl stands out the most. She was a Rhode Island Red who was raised with Cornish Xs. When the Cornish Xs were processed, she missed them badly and got depressed. She started hanging out by my front door and wouldn't go away. She become my favorite hen as she grew attached to me. She was my first hen to come to her name. She liked to lead me to where I kept the chicken treats. I have never had a hen quite like Sparkle Girl, or as special. Many of my favorites since her are often compared to her, but none of them has matched up to her though Ginger II, a New Hampshire Red, has come close. (Ginger looked like Sparkle Girl and had a similar personality.)
Sparkle Girl:
Of the present, Beth II stands out the most. She is an Isa Brown who was rescued on a busy highway by my Mom. Though the previous owner was found, the owner didn't care for her. I gave her a bath when my Mom brought her to me because she stank from her previous horrible living conditions. Before I got to know her well, Beth immediately fell in love with me. At first, she would pace the fence whenever she would see me outside. Then, when I was around her, she would follow me so much I became annoyed. Over time, I got close to the overly friendly hen and now, she's very special to me (she comes to her own name, too.) Unlike any other chickens I've owned, it has been determined that Beth is going to live the rest of her days on my farm and will never be retired. She is currently known as the beak-cleaner of her flock for her obsession with keeping everyone's beaks clean.
Beth II:
5. What was the funniest poultry related thing that has happened to you in your years as an owner?
The funniest poultry related thing isn't something that happened to me but is something I watched one of my chickens do. That is, something Cave II did. Cave was an escape artist from hatch. When she was a chick, she somehow escaped her predator-proof coop by finding a hole that wasn't known about until she was escaping through it several times (then she would chirp loudly until I put her back and wonder how did she escape.) As normal, I often watch coop doors for any escaping chickens when I close them. When Cave got older, after I closed the coop door without seeing any escapees, she would often greet me from the wrong side. (To this day I don't know how she escaped like that!)
Cave II as a pullet:
One winter day, while Cave and her unseperatable sister, Bailey, were living with a flock called the Church Birds, my five bantams held the whole flock hostage. The bantams hung out in front of the doorway and would not let any of the Church Birds leave. That's when Cave took action. She flew over the bantam flock and ran down my shoveled trails. The bantams, seeing her escape, all chased after her, leaving the Church Birds behind. The Church Birds escaped, and, not being as intelligent as Cave, her sister, or the bantams, all went into the bantams' coop because it had the best dust-bathing. Unfortunately, the bantams gave up on their chase of Cave. When they returned, they attacked the Church Birds and held a few hostages in the cage they had in the back of their coop until I came to the flock's rescue.
Cave II (right) next to her sister, Bailey (left) :
Some of the funny things I see with my chickens I've been able to capture with my camera. Like this funny picture of some of the Church Birds trying to figure out why Lupine was acting weird.
(Left to right) Victoria I, Neisha, Duchess, Copper-Amber, and Lupine with Jazz hiding in the back:
6. Beside poultry, what other pets do you keep?
I currently have a dog. He is a Husky/Lab mix and his name is Sterling. Then, together as a family, we have five Guinea Pigs. Of the five, I have claimed one named Thistle as mine. In the past, I have kept geese, ducks, guinea fowl, turkeys, rabbits, and goats.
My dog Sterling:
Thistle the Guinea Pig:
The flock of geese I owned for 9 years:
7. Anything you'd like to add?
I want to thank @N F C. A while back, back when @sumi was still with us, I saw her thread of the VIP Member Interviews. After reading through a few, I wanted to do one. Thank you again, @N F C , it means a lot to me.
Here is one of my favorite pictures I've taken. It is of Owl, an EE, in a position that I've been trying to capture a good picture of for years:
@Lacy Duckwing
For more information about the interview feature and a complete list of member interviews:
introducing-vip-member-interviews
For more information about the interview feature and a complete list of member interviews:
introducing-vip-member-interviews
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Beautiful photos, thank you for sharing yourself with us!! 
