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the last of the pullets has gone broody, as has Janeka. Luckily Idris has just left jail, so they can go in it :rolleyes: I hope this rash isn't going to continue all summer long...

do you recall the details? in particular, how far along they were in development?

there are a lot of factors involved besides the time left to cool, e.g. developmental stage of embryos, ambient temperature, even nest material (how heat retentive it is etc.), so I am not going to second guess it, rather, just let nature take its course. If Fez's hatch fails, there are several...

I believe that until day 14 of incubation, the embryo behaves like a cold-blooded animal, so while the long chilling will slow development, it may not be fatal. After day 14, it's developing into a warm-blooded animal, and henceforth such a long spell of cooling would probably be very damaging...

Spoke too soon. This morning I found that Fez spent the night in the wrong box; eggs cold. None were added, so she was not chased off by a late or early layer. So I assume another hen just gave her enough agro to drive her off the eggs at roost time. I lifted her out for breakfast, and then...

I managed to catch Fez doing her pinball wizard act yesterday :lol: This was going to be a photo of her dustbathing, but the shutter took too long to flip :lau

so what are you offering them at the moment? we find that true through winter, so that the first spring cut is like a normal one, and areas near the house barely need any cut at all (because they hang out there more often during the winter so that grass gets more nibbled). But it doesn't hold...

It's a combination of things really. First, the space here is finite, so I have to be very choosy about letting any of them sit. Then I want to give every hen that feels the urge the chance to raise a brood, so those two reasons together mean they have to take turns. Typically a pullet would be...

Idris has gone broody, again :rolleyes: Quite apart from the fact that Fez is already sitting, Idris is not 1 till August, so it's back to jail for her :(And Maria is building herself up for it too; one of the youngest and the oldest may end up sharing a jail cell :hmm

I would regard their desire to be close to the broody as good, though in that precise roosting position they could poop onto the nest, which would be bad. So I'd try to set up something where they can be close, without being able to contaminate the nest with feces.

Only a single % or 2 in most cases; or was yours a scratch bag where 5% or thereabouts of oil was added? And of course it depends on the type of grain. This is a useful comparison of nutrient values for lots of different grains and pseudocereals, though they're for cooked grains...

what a PITA. Good luck with the fixes.

That sounds great! I can't do that with my little coops. Yes I prefer to leave them to themselves too but this is working better with Fez. I open the door late afternoon (mine can go to lay as late as 6pm at this time of year) but have found I need to lift her off at teatime; she inflates and...

Congrats on your broody! Fez had the same problem. I solved by closing off the coop after everyone else has left for breakfast, so the novice broody is undisturbed. Can you do something similar? I did this because I have in the past tried what you did, and my broodies didn't relocate reliably...

further to the last, I am, however, up to date with Community Payback Orders :D https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/m0010zy5/the-outlaws For those who don't know it, this is very British humour. You have been warned. edited to add: and it's set on an allotment in Bristol, so could hardly be...

:eek::th I'm not just behind, I'm 10 years behind!

a book I'm currently reading is full of astonishing examples of clever bird behaviour, bad and good. I'm behind the times, I didn't know ASBOs were history: what are CPNs and CBOs?

You can tell that these 3 are up to something, and the other 2 are thinking about it 🤨 a-ha! :barnie it's a dust party on the lawn! well hopefully that'll collapse the mole tunnels at least :th:lol:

That's brilliant! and a hoot! :lau

Polka is now in broody jail, while her wild child novice broody is going to need close watching. I set some eggs under her this morning, and she has since twice gone back to the neighbouring box :th. Hey ho :hmm