Australia - Six states..and that funny little island.

[LuckysMum]

Update, Appps turned up this morning looking for food so she is now locked back in her pen. She is none to happy about it either.

but i can't have her out there somewhere at night at her size. Also found 3 little ring neck babies this morning.

I'm very happy you found her, cheeky thing.

Fizzybelle I was told that hens will imitate a rooster so they can be boss. Hens are funny creatures I wouldn't put anything past them.

Not sure who asked about nesting material, I use pine shaving on the floor and hemp in the boxes. It work well.

 

[sjturner79]

I hope she's ok Satay, and sitting on some eggs safely somewhere, like you're hoping

Kegs1972, I hear ya.  like to start and end my day spending time with my girls. It never gets boring watching them, there's always something going on. 

Glad the jellybeans are growing really well SilkieChickStar!


Took Annabelle my RIR hybrid to the vets today after another soft shelled egg yesterday. She felt poorly late in the afternoon, I could tell she wasn't quite right, and she didn't get out of the coop at 5 this morning (usually she's pacing back and forth to be let out). Good news is she's in good health. I'll be monitoring her nutrition closely, and ordering some calcivet. I don't think, despite having several dishes of shellgrit (which she loves) she's eating enough of it at the moment. She's got no other symptoms, lungs and everything sounded good, she had a full check over. Also yesterday morning she laid a normal egg, then the soft shelled one late in the evening.In the case of yesterday, it could be the now lengthier days are messing with her and she didn't have enough calcium to make two proper eggs. There have been days though where it was only a soft shelled egg. The feeling off could be due to an inflammatory response from when the egg passes. She bounces back after a little while. Anyway, good news for now. As much as she drives me crazy at times, I'd hate anything to happen to her.

Also, my Araucana Mabel is very happily, through her own volition, becoming a lap chicken. It's at the point now where all I need to do is clap my hands on my lap and she'll jump up, and happily lap up the attention I give her (she loves a beard rub). So adorable.


Ok, I also have two general questions. Firstly, can chickens eat orb weaver spiders? I ask because they are now starting to try and take over the back yard after setting up camp in the front. Not having that, I'll tolerate a couple high up in the trees, but that's it. I don't want to walk through another web on my way to check on the girls at night. I've seen the girls eat spiders before, Annabelle loves them, but ones I know are harmless. Just not sure about orb weavers. Secondly, what's a good hay substitute? I brought a bale today, and it's a bit old and dry. Kinda over it. I need something I can clean daily, they always poop in the nest. Thank you.

I found hay gets to damp with the humidity here, I went to shellgrit for a while as that's what we used in the best boxes years ago, and then found that the chooks also laid in the litter box, so now I just use the same cheap clay litter that the cats get.
I'll have to get a picture of my 2 broodies. They were brooding in a best box that 1 barely fitted in , so I built some bigger boxes for them. I don't see how the isabrown that used to live here managed to use them.

 

[SilkieChickStar]

Good morning folks satay I hope your little girl shows up soon, may be even with some bush babies in tow. Hoping also that you get some much needed rain. Aaaaw SilkieChickStar your bubbas are growing so fast. While of course they are still cute, they are funny looking things hey? Are the two eggs duds which did not hatch? Are you keeping the little ones or selling them? Fizzybelle great to hear that Annabelle’s check up was pretty good. Dusty has passed a couple of soft shelled eggs prior to or during a moult and I always know when it is going to happen because she is so uncomfortable. I think the reason Annabelle “feels off” afterwards is due to the effort required to lay them. Not being hard, there is nothing for the muscles to grip and push so it takes them much more effort to get the soft shell out. Sorry that I can not help with the orb weaver question or hay substitute. I use straw in the nest boxes but do not have next box poopers. May be the very occasional poop but that just gets scooped out. cheep82 sorry, I forget, are you able to keep the boys or are you going to have to find homes for them? After the quiet start to their day yesterday, the girls stepped up the pace around 07:30AM and waged a full on nest box war Dusty has not laid an egg since the 19[SUP]th[/SUP] of September and I think she might be coming to the end of her egg laying days. She is fit and healthy otherwise. She still likes to scratch around in the nest box and play at laying. Anyways, yesterday we had Cilla in one nest box [the favourite], Blondie in the one next door and Dusty in the one next to that. When Cilla laid her egg and left the nest, Blondie moved over to the favourite and also laid. When Blondie vacated Dusty moved over to the favourite, sat there for a few minutes and then jumped out and sang the egg song. She had not laid an egg but the silly thing must have thought that she had because there was an egg in the nest Mumma & Babies at dusk:

Yes the two other eggs didn't hatch. It seems we are selling these babies as we have had a lot of interest from family! Not yet though, they have to be weaned first.

 

[SilkieChickStar]

Well this is what happens when you have one sneaky d'uccle who has been mounted by a silkie roo (the one we rehomed).by the time we realised her egg was half developed when I candled it!! So I moved her to her own box and this little cutie hatched today.

 

[Fizzybelle]

Well this is what happens when you have one sneaky d'uccle who has been mounted by a silkie roo (the one we rehomed).by the time we realised her egg was half developed when I candled it!! So I moved her to her own box and this little cutie hatched today.

 

[Fizzybelle]

Glad she arrived home!

Fizzybelle- nope no roosters in our council, although I know of one nearby as I hear him. Got the other results in and the black ones are boys too. So all 4 chicks will need to be rehomed. I promised the kids after the new bigger coop is built (all bought in prep for chicks) then we'll get some POL girls.

Aww no I hope the kids won't be too disappointed

LuckysMum, I'll look into the hemp. I saw a hemp mat on vet n' pet direct I think it was that had me curious. Might try it.

 

[satay]

Great news satay I am pleased she turned up 

Do you think she may have eggs out there somewhere?  Is it worth letting her out and following her so you can may be save the eggs also?  I guess if she is too quick though you might lose her again?

Congrats on the bubbies!

I find if you let them out again they normally wont go to the nest if they see you watching.

 

[satay]

Darn, are you able to keep roosters where you are? I hope Rainbow's eggs keep improving, I got a soft shelled one today, it was already on the floor of the pen when I let them out this morning.

Speaking of roosters and mornings, I was rudely awoken today by an awful sound. At a twenty to five, Mabel whose praises I was singing yesterday, decides to try CROWING. I know hens can crow, and Mabel laid an egg today to reassure me, but dear god. Since Agnes passed, there has been some kerfuffles between her and Beatrice (Mabel's bottom of the pecking order, Bea is just above her). Bea won't back down (she's a bossy little D'Uccle), and I'm assuming this attempt at crowing is a part of this dominance struggle. Mabel's unhappy at being at the bottom, but Bea will not give in. It sounded like my rooster Iris, who I had to rehome earlier this year, when he started. Completely off key, but definitely a crow. It certainly had the effect she wanted, it got me out of bed in a hurry and outside. She stopped when I let them out thankfully, but I swear they must sit and ponder ways in which to test our relations with the neighbours. I think we'll need to hand out some more 'apology eggs'. 


Satay, hooray for a happy ending! I can imagine the tantrum she's throwing about being locked up too lol, they're sassy little birds.

She is none to impressed that's for sure. I'm going to keep her locked up for a bit. I can't take the chance of her sitting somewhere at the moment because of the drought out here everything is looking for food and her being tiny she would be easy pray for a large goanna or hawks etc.

 

[satay]

Well this is what happens when you have one sneaky d'uccle who has been mounted by a silkie roo (the one we rehomed).by the time we realised her egg was half developed when I candled it!! So I moved her to her own box and this little cutie hatched today.

Can't wait to see what that cross turns out to be, At present i have 4 little Belgian cross babies that the three ugly sisters hatched in the duck pen. I don't know their breed probably xxxx. The father is a black mottled Belgian and the mums the 3 ugly sisters(they aren't really ugly) are nearly 9 years old and all identical. The have never tried to sit before but must have hid some eggs in the pen.

 

[satay]

A little story from early in the week. Thor is the most placid dog around. He loves everyone pretty much... or so i though. One evening this week. Thor was inside with me just before dark when all of a sudden he barks and tears out the door. This is normal for him if he is a sleep and someone comes he hasn't heard. Well i race out the door and grab him. I see a police officer standing one the start of my front concrete path. Normally by this stage thor has calmed his farm enough that i can let him go.. Nope not this time. The officer is there looking for hubby to give him a summons to appear as a witness from when he worked at mitre 10 and they caught a group of kids stealing. The officer seems terrified and backs back a little. I tell him its fine he's actually placid normally. Thor still has hackles up and growling and i still have hold of him.. I tell the officer it is probably just all the gear your wearing. He does not seem convinced. He says he will come back later when hubby is home from work and could i please have my horse under control by then. Seriously? you came onto my property and walked from the gate even though you haven't been here before and you have a gun, taser and a baton that i can see and your scared of Thor. I did feel like telling him he is under control he hasn't bitten you..

So off he goes. He comes back later that night and this time at least drives down the driveway but wont get out of the car til hubby assures him that the horse is locked up...
So my normally placid puppy for what ever reason decided that i don't like you for once but did it need to be a police officer ?