Growing up, my little brother had a pet chicken named Cookies and Cream (see the jealous looking white hen on the right). She was a rare chicken that you could actually pick up and hold, and she wouldn’t put up a fuss. Granted, every time her feathered feet returned to earth, she’d fluff out all her feathers and stalk off in a huff. We all liked her, though she had a bad habit of pecking my toes (my family said it’s because my toes looked like worms, which Michael frequently fed to her). So this picture was more or less in honor of Cookies, even if she didn’t get the place of honor in Michael’s lap.

Cookies was a [presumably] light Brahma, but the other hen and rooster in this picture are based on Swedish Flower Hens (Skånsk Blommehöna), a landrace breed from southern Sweden. Because they are the result of a couple centuries of unselected breeding, they don’t have the narrow breed standards that selective breeding creates. Instead, they are a dual purpose bird that comes in every color imaginable; among the more common traits are feathers flecked with white (the “flowers” or “blooms” for which they are named), large, light tan eggs, and a medium weight (around 5.5-8 lbs). Their fancy feathers make them a good fit for a Dala Rooster!