UK Member Please Say HI

[Yorkshire Coop]

Thanks everyone for your kind comments-really appreciate it xxx

Afternoon all ! Been keeping chickens - or is that the other way round ? for the last 8yrs......had all different breeds since we started, currently we have 4 girls - Zoe, Dixie, Connie & Honey (yes, we watch 'Casualty' !), 2 x Speckled Star/Marans, one Black Rock, and a Light Sussex who's always filthy as she loves dust and sand baths lol. Oh, and all get names and all have such different 'quirky' characters. We're in NW Leicestershire so a big hello to everyone UK and beyond.............. Connie Honey Connie & Dixie Dixie, Honey & Zoe.

Hi & welcome to the thread Great pics and names My son watches casualty too so I'm sure he would be well aquatinted with your names.

 

[rebrascora]

@BigFuzzball

Hi and welcome.
That's a nice little flock. After 8 years how do you manage to have so few chickens. I am overrun with chickens and I'm only in my 4th year? I suspect you are a lot more disciplined than me or you have an "other half" that keeps you in check, whereas mine just encourages me and the members of this thread don't help in that respect..... they are already trying to tempt me into setting more eggs this year and I have broody hens tugging at my heartstrings too.... but I'm managing to resist so far.

Are your girls giving you many eggs at the moment? Mine are starting to ramp up production and yesterday there was a really notable increase.

Do you have any other animals? I have horses, cats and bees.

Look forward to hearing more about you.

Regards

Barbara

 

[Yorkshire Coop]

@BigFuzzball


Hi and welcome.
That's a nice little flock. After 8 years how do you manage to have so few chickens. I am overrun with chickens and I'm only in my 4th year? I suspect you are a lot more disciplined than me or you have an "other half" that keeps you in check, whereas mine just encourages me and the members of this thread don't help in that respect..... they are already trying to tempt me into setting more eggs this year and I have broody hens tugging at my heartstrings too.... but I'm managing to resist so far.

Are your girls giving you many eggs at the moment? Mine are starting to ramp up production and yesterday there was a really notable increase.

Do you have any other animals? I have horses, cats and bees.

Look forward to hearing more about you.

Regards

Barbara

Barbara!

e :yiipchick

 

[rebrascora]

@everyone else

Many thanks to everyone who sent me birthday wishes a while back. I tried to respond but kept having broadband connection problems.
Those of you who were following my story of Vippy and her crop surgery will be delighted to know that she has been back in the pen with her palls for a couple of weeks now and started laying 2 weeks post surgery and is near the top of the pecking order and looking extremely well. I have let them out for the first time since the flu restrictions onto the grass for a couple of hours in the sunshine and they are really enjoying it.
There has been an outbreak of flu about 15 miles from me just a week ago and I have been maintaining restrictions despite not being in a designated area, but the weather was too good today to keep them in and I'm legally entitled to let them out now, but doubt I will do so every day, to reduce the risk, especially since I am not always here to supervise.

Anyway, I just wanted to update everyone and also to say to Paula how very sorry I was to hear that your silkie didn't make it especially after all your efforts. At least Jackie had one more day back with the others being a proper chicken before the end came and is now no longer suffering. You really could not have done any more to help.

Best wishes

Barbara

 

[rebrascora]

@Yorkshire Coop

Hi Kim and thanks for the welcome back. Your excited emojis made me smile.

Proud to report that I processed another couple of cockerels (still lots to go but let's focus on the achievements!) and I'm still resisting setting eggs. One of the broody pekins has given up but Portia is still hoping I will relent and sitting tight.

I was shocked to find out that we have had a flu outbreak nearby just last week with almost no media coverage, especially when it was so close to the relaxing of restrictions....I wonder if that was deliberate? It would be helpful to know how these places contracted the virus....ie were they flouting restrictions or was there food, water or bedding contamination somewhere along the line. It would be useful to know how it was vectored to give us all a better idea of risk assessing our own set ups.

Have you been out on Harry since your last exciting excursion? I have done very little with mine I'm afraid. Walked a couple out in hand but that's about it. Must make more of an effort now that the weather is more Spring like. Hope the sun is shining on you as it is here. Talking of which, I've spent far too long online and need to head back out to make the most of it.

Hope you are well.

Best wishes

Barbara

 

[BigFuzzball]

Hi Barbara,

Nice to 'meet you' !

To be fair, with 4 of us it seemed just 4 girls was ideal so we've maintained that and whenever we've 'lost' one then we've replaced with a pair to avoid too much bullying/pecking etc. That meant at times we've gone up to 5 then eventually back to 4. We have plenty of eggs with 4 per day and weekly send half a dozen to our vegetarian neighbour who's in her 90's !!

The original ones were an amazing learning curve, the largest, a statuesque resplendent Black Maran (who knew she was) contracted a very nasty eye infection from pigeon droppings or so we were told, and despite injections, bathing it, draining it, clearing out the infected puss from the lump etc we eventually had to have her put to sleep.....then another 2yrs later saw one (who was a lovely lively plump ball of fun) just go into the bedroom apparently to lay but she just went to sleep and never woke - typically we were away for a couple of days so my eldest daughter was in a right state as to what to do !

For the first time we had a broody hen last year (Honey) who was 'textbook' broody almost to the extent of hilarious. Eventually snapped out of it with some help but heaven help if we ever have 2 or more at the same time ha ha ha !
This moult has been the biggest and longest I've ever seen form any of my birds and we're only just getting back to 2 eggs per day from late last year ! They've eaten fine, digestion (and poo) looked ok but just been right out of sorts even to the extent of Dixie regrowing her feathers a couple of shades darker and her comb shrank to 'point of lay' / juvenile size before regrowing and filling out - was sure someone had swapped her..............

Have gardens surrounding our 3 bed on 3 sides, not huge but adequate and 9 months ago acquired some adjacent land from the council (huge council house gardens never used) so have another 40x40 ft 'area' we call the 'allotment' into which I've moved the girls, so with fruit trees and canes in there they can dig, scratch and eat to their hearts content (WHEN allowed back out).

No other animals, just a nutty budgie with a huge vocabulary and an ability to form his own sentences.....who loves being carried outside in his cage to sit with, watch and heckle the girls lol !

Daren't even mention getting a Cockerel or fertilised eggs etc as the kids would happily see us with dozens of Chickens, Ducks, Bantams, Quails etc etc etc !!!

Keep in touch - got any experiences and/or tips to share ??

Regards

John.

 

[timon]

Afternoon all !


We're in NW Leicestershire so a big hello to everyone UK and beyond.............. 

Hello. I'm in a village near Loughborough !

 

[Yorkshire Coop]

@rebrascora

It's great to see you Barbara I've missed you here on the thread but didnt want you to think I was stalker or something hunting you down

on the bird flu nearby, sure must be worrisome for you. It is strange that nothing was reported about it but maybe the flu has become old news now for the media and they have found something more juicy to report.

Good going on the cockerel process Slow and steady always wins the race! Making that start is always the hardest but once it's done it's done.

Set those eggs on the 25th! Resist until the 25th........... I know I'm bad, very bad but I just can't help myself.....

I've been bad with Harry again too and not ridden :/ Farrier is coming on the 15th and his shoes will go back on unless I get a rocket up my backside and get some serious riding done. He's been off the red cell for a few weeks now and on Friday he was back to bring down in the dumbs, lethargic and not much oomph about him and that is the only thing that's changed. I'm not getting the vet out again for blood tests just tell me he's anemic again so I'm going to go get some more red cell in the morning and put him back on it and keep him on it.

We had lovely sun this morning but it started raining again just before lunch, you know just for a change....
Hope you got lots done whilst the sun was shining Barbara

 

[GGBEAR]

@DancingWthDucks im pretty sure this is the same as what happens to mine its just more noticeable on the light coloured beaks its like they shed a layer off there beaks I don't think u have anything to worry about

 

[GGBEAR]

@Yorkshire Coop my coop is a swamp again and all outside as there has just been rain rain rain

A big hello to all the new peeps there is to many of you to do it individualy I have to sneak on here in between Aiyla and the other children the dog and the 10 ducks and chickens.

All my ducks look so mucky amd my chickens