What did you do with your flock today?

[ChicksnMore]

This afternoon we welcomed two new members to the flock.

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Soooo precious!

 

[ChicksnMore]

Sold a few more birds today. Getting close to having all my extra birds rehomed. I ended up spending most of the day just answering questions about my birds. I was very surprised by that but enjoyed it. A couple of the callers want me to hatch chicks for them. I'm trying to decide if I want to. I think I'm happier just breeding what I want for my projects and then rehoming the ones that aren't right. We'll see. I might go ahead and hatch some for them but I don't think I want to make a habit of this. I only have so much incubator space and it's peafowl season. I keep wondering if they'll actually buy the chicks I hatch just for them too. I did take an order from a woman this year for 4h birds but it's the second year she's tried to get birds from me and I felt bad for forgetting about her. She's coming on the 13th to pick up her order.

Speaking of peafowl...one of my neighbors is giving me her birds eggs again. Hers hatch India blue, silver pied, white and black shoulder. I'm hoping for a black shoulder hen to keep. I'm giving her some more chickens. She got her flock from me several years ago and is starting to lose birds to old age.

 

[kurby22]

We lost one of our leghorns day before yesterday. Haven't had them before this batch so I don't know their life span, and can't imagine why she died so young. She is just over 3 years old. So sad about that. We do not do necropsies here, although we would if we lost more than one bird at a time. So, it's a mystery.

The leghorns are my most reliable layers, but no matter, I'd keep them if they weren't. I have 3 Australorps who are just over 7 years old right now. I think I still get an occasional egg out of one of them, but don't know for sure. I just know I get the occasional torpedo egg and that's what they used to lay. I suppose any of the girls could lay an egg like that occasionally. They are still beauties.

So sorry for your loss. Losing a chicken is sad. I think it’s lovely that you love them even after their egg days are over.

 

[Smokerbill]

Today I'll find out if my chickens will eat cauliflower. I tossed a head into the run and they started pecking on the leaves. Maybe they'll eat the rest of it.

 

[kurby22]

How’s Biscotti doing @ChicksnMore? Your Yokos are sooo pretty!

 

[Shetland lover]

Today I'll find out if my chickens will eat cauliflower. I tossed a head into the run and they started pecking on the leaves. Maybe they'll eat the rest of it.

Mine adore the whole cauliflower. I hang them up and they're gone in less than an hour.

 

[Smokerbill]

Mine adore the whole cauliflower. I hang them up and they're gone in less than an hour.

I found that mine like it too. They pretty much demolished the cauliflower head. All that was left was the stump of the stalk and the leaf stubs.

 

[kurby22]

Been busy around here lately! Between hatching a ton of babies, shuttling around children to sports practices, and my work travel picking up…I’m starting to feel some of that spring anxiety I get when all the things peak at once. Thank goodness the rain is tapering off so we can start addressing all the gross runs that got rearranged by mud water and chicken poop and rats…

Tonight I got a few snuggles from the oldest bobtail chick we kept. Since we have a Willow, Aspen, and Hazel…she is named Maple Aria wants to name a boy Syrup too haha. She’s really sweet. I just love the bobtails, they are by far the most awesome Cochins I’ve owned.

I had a busy weekend selling birds and dealing with issues from sales. My bobtails are doing their best to convince me not to sell their eggs! I sold some to someone about 3 hrs south of me and only one egg was fertile after I’d just had two successful hatches of 6…so I collected 10 more and hand delivered them on my drive to LA for vacation…and none of those were fertile! SO I popped three in my incubator to test them and all three are developing! So she said she’d be patient and wait for them to get more consistent and I bathed them, treated them for bugs and cut a bunch of butt fluff. Sooo annoying and I feel so bad! Then I also sold chicks to a couple people and one messaged me today about a baby seeming lethargic. I’m sure the stress triggered cocci so now I’m worrying I gave her a dud for her kid to fall in love with at 5 years old Seemed to perk up after the Corid treatment I recommended so fingers crossed! But on the positive side, another customer—who lives in Tuscon @ChicksnMore!—bought a dozen bantam Ameraucana eggs from me and had a successful hatch and is super happy! So I guess just like all things chickens/poultry…the bad or weak don’t make it…

Lastly, I have a bunch of watermaals hatching today! Super excited

 

[ValerieJ]

I found that mine like it too. They pretty much demolished the cauliflower head. All that was left was the stump of the stalk and the leaf stubs.

Good to know. I might pick one up for mine.

 

[ValerieJ]

We cleaned the coop yesterday after the winter deep litter build up. Nice to get new straw in there. Cleaned up all the feed and water jugs too. Just a general all around once over. I love a clean coop!!!

Not that there isn't some attention paid to it daily, but it needs the deep clean now and then.