The other day two mules arrived for the neighboring village of Cajchixla to carry back some laying hens we had been raising.
In two trips using five mules we delivered 175 laying hens in total.
tuli mula toq'in tiq'ozan kaaxhan. Ben O' kaval viaje iq'o 175 tuxh kaxhan
I hired two neighbor ladies to raise day old chicks until they were 5 weeks old. The pay for this work was five quetzales or sixty-six cents for each chick successfully raised.
Kat lok in kaval ixoq kat chizan inq'a tuxh kaxhan
In order to catch the last chickens in the coop Pedro the father at the home had to send in a specialist, his daughter Maria. We could buy laying hens in Nebaj but by working locally we not only help with a little income but add training. Some of the lessons that are added include "how to make a better chicken coop"- one that is easy to clean, protects the hens well and has good access for eggs and catching birds.
Oc me'al nak u vinaq' lu maj kaxhan
The second woman Maria and a neighbor girl Jacinta are loading her birds for transport.
Kaval Ixoq nuko kaxhan
Loaded and ready to go. It is a simple route form Xesally to Cajchixla. Down one hill, up the next, across the ridge and back down.
Mat ja tiq'o kaxhan. B'an b'ey la b'en ex tenam cajchixla. Mat ex copon yane japon. Inpal tz'aq'ala tul yane ben ex copon paq'te
Arriving in the flats at the ridgeline. Although this is in a dry season the mud stays on the flats. It is an hour and a half trip in all.
Kat ul e' tzaq'ala mamla x'ocol. Kam hora vete cajchixla? Val hora nik.
ku' ko cupon
The Arrival V ul
We filled a pen with the chickens as a crowd of women came to watch. Nosa u xahoraal tuxt kaxhan mientras Inq'a Ixoq gil mamla
kaxhan
A few escape always.
The distributed chickens were placed in gunny sacks for the final leg of their journey. Ak cu xe sarco u kaxhan. mate totzotz u ixoq tuxh kaxhan.
We now have 36 chicken coops and pens. Our final design is more or less like this one behind the kids. It offers good ventalation, access to a run, separation of the manure from the coop and as well as other features. We are beginning a vacination program, studing alternate locally grown feed sources, and working to choose the best breeds.
So what can you do? Send me some more birds. If you don't have a mule for the trip, ventilated boxes for U.P.S., or an extra suitcase, when you come to visit you can just go to our web page and donate through Pay-pal. Whichever is easiest I will leave that decision up to you. I would like to reach a goal of 150 layers per month and three new coops. The coops cost $140 and the chickens four dollars each.
The following are just a few more photos from the day. This girl was a little camera shy.
The other day two mules arrived for the neighboring village of Cajchixla to carry back some laying hens we had been raising.
In two trips using five mules we delivered 175 laying hens in total.
tuli mula toq'in tiq'ozan kaaxhan. Ben O' kaval viaje iq'o 175 tuxh kaxhan
I hired two neighbor ladies to raise day old chicks until they were 5 weeks old. The pay for this work was five quetzales or sixty-six cents for each chick successfully raised.
Kat lok in kaval ixoq kat chizan inq'a tuxh kaxhan
In order to catch the last chickens in the coop Pedro the father at the home had to send in a specialist, his daughter Maria. We could buy laying hens in Nebaj but by working locally we not only help with a little income but add training. Some of the lessons that are added include "how to make a better chicken coop"- one that is easy to clean, protects the hens well and has good access for eggs and catching birds.
Oc me'al nak u vinaq' lu maj kaxhan
The second woman Maria and a neighbor girl Jacinta are loading her birds for transport.
Kaval Ixoq nuko kaxhan
Loaded and ready to go. It is a simple route form Xesally to Cajchixla. Down one hill, up the next, across the ridge and back down.
Mat ja tiq'o kaxhan. B'an b'ey la b'en ex tenam cajchixla. Mat ex copon yane japon. Inpal tz'aq'ala tul yane ben ex copon paq'te
Arriving in the flats at the ridgeline. Although this is in a dry season the mud stays on the flats. It is an hour and a half trip in all.
Kat ul e' tzaq'ala mamla x'ocol. Kam hora vete cajchixla? Val hora nik.
ku' ko cupon
The Arrival V ul
We filled a pen with the chickens as a crowd of women came to watch. Nosa u xahoraal tuxt kaxhan mientras Inq'a Ixoq gil mamla
kaxhan
A few escape always.
The distributed chickens were placed in gunny sacks for the final leg of their journey. Ak cu xe sarco u kaxhan. mate totzotz u ixoq tuxh kaxhan.
We now have 36 chicken coops and pens. Our final design is more or less like this one behind the kids. It offers good ventalation, access to a run, separation of the manure from the coop and as well as other features. We are beginning a vacination program, studing alternate locally grown feed sources, and working to choose the best breeds.
So what can you do? Send me some more birds. If you don't have a mule for the trip, ventilated boxes for U.P.S., or an extra suitcase, when you come to visit you can just go to our web page and donate through Pay-pal. Whichever is easiest I will leave that decision up to you. I would like to reach a goal of 150 layers per month and three new coops. The coops cost $140 and the chickens four dollars each.
The following are just a few more photos from the day. This girl was a little camera shy.
