A Day With My Flock

[Quack House]

Sorry for your loss

 

[Hannahs Hollow]

I'm Lizzy. I am almost 7 weeks old now! I am an Easter Egger. Ameracuana X

I like to chase my sister Mitzi around and around the rhubarb. Sometimes we race straight at each other and do a chest bump. I always win. She's tiny.

At 5 weeks our mom Harmony took us up to the nesting boxes to sleep. The next nite she kicked us out. I think she was telling us it was time to join the flock. She hasn't had a nice thing to say to us ever since.

We are getting over run with chicks and Mom is still looking for 10 more! Bo just had 7, one a week early. Mom tried to put Pippi back in with Bo and her babies and she thought it worked. Pippi became an escape artist!

The last little chick to be born was really a runt and Bo pecked her in the head twice leaving her with bad holes that mom had to clean up. The runt is doing fine now that she is in the brooder.

As I said Pippi has become a Houdini. Mom kept finding her running around with us big chickens and hens minutes after returning her to the broody hutch. The last time she put her back in, Pippi made a mad dash out again with Bo on her heels trying to peck her. So now Pippi is in the brooder with the runt.

One of the other chicks is a roo. So he was in the brooder with the runt to keep her company, encourage her to live and for warmth and lastly, hopefully, make her transition into the flock later a bit easier.

So, that's 3 in the brooder with the heat lamp and chicken wire cover to keep Pippi in as mom found her up on the side of it, 4 in the nest with Bo, Sophia went lame some how and is in a wire dog crate in the hen house. Josie isn't getting picked on so much since the man made our yard 50'x50' bigger! Giselle can't hop the new 7 foot fence as she has lots of room and can't be bothered.

Ruby keeps eating all my chick food but mom says she is still laying her eggs.

Last weekend mom bought us 2 blueberry bushes, a forsythia, a hazel nut tree, 3 azaleas and a weeping pussy willow. We ate all the leaves and flowers off the blueberry bushes and all the flowers off the azaleas. Yummy. Mom left them in their pots for 3 days before she planted them to see if we would kill them. We didn't touch them until she planted them! Now there are no azaleas and she put chicken wire cages around the blueberries...

The man more then doubled the coop size but he hasn't put in the roof or floor. Not even a roost. Mom has to take out the old wall and is afraid of the wasps that have been trying to nest in it.

The worst news is that Mom closed up the green house and we have to stay out in the rain. Or go under the plastic covering the sand box, the plastic covering the front porch of the coop, in the coop, under the picnic table umbrella..... The green house was warm.....

Matilda has something going on with her tummy feathers. She has a red tummy too. Mom can't find any bugs and Matilda doesn't seem to be pulling out feathers.


This is mom and Matilda relaxing. Matilda is so tame.

Mom is hoping Matilda might just be stressed with all the building going on.

I am a happy chick most of the time. My sister cuddles with me on the roost at nite and mom hides our bowls from the piggy, Ruby, so we get some food. The bigger hens leave us alone for the most part and I am named after my Grandma. Life continues.

 

[Hannahs Hollow]

Someone once asked me if chickens can get jealous. At that point I thought no. I mean they'll compete for their food or the water or companionship or the roost but I had never seen them get jealous of my affections until tonight! Josephina has been pretty stressed out and is sitting on my lap. Matilda was sitting on my lap moments before. Matilda doesn't seem to like Josephina sitting on my lap. They are not good friends to start with. Strange that Matilda who didn't want to be on my lap anymore was upset the Josephina was up.

Anyone else out there experience this?

 

[Hannahs Hollow]

Been a hard couple of weeks here at the hollow.
My name was Lazzy because mom caught me trying to crow and changed it from Lizzy.

I don't mind since I want nothing to do with her anymore.

That woman clipped one of my wings and now I can't sit on the fence or the roof of the coop with my sister Mitzi! Mitzi got a wing clipped too and now she just hides in the coop.

Anyway, Mitzi and I are ameracaunas. Our chicken mom Harmony raised us and we are not overly friendly. Mom says the chicks she raises are much more friendlier.

Sophia is still lame. The mom and that man have finally mostly finished the coop add on now so half of it is chicken wired off. Sophia lives on the other side.Mom wanted a mini front porch on the coop but now the door won't open all the way.... Mom has a lot of learning to do.



Mom also moved 3 of the new babies into a wire dog create in there. They make a lot of noise. I crow at the dog and confuse it.

Speaking of babies. I don't like them! 2 are going to be my rivals if mom is going to keep them and all these beautiful ladies are mine!

Mom says she has 15 more in the house. If they are all boys I'm going to work on growing my feathers back or learn to fly with 1 wing so I can leave this behind and go find my own flock.

Mom had 4 babies die in the last week and she could figure out why. They just never grew. Now mom is thinking coccidiosis. She is now treating them and they have perked up.

A few weeks ago mom went to the flea market and bought some wonderful tasting plants for us! Mom left the plants in the run for 3 days and we didn't touch them, we waited until she thought we didn't care and then she planted them. THEN we ate them!

Then after all the flowers on the azaleas were gone and all the blueberry flowers too she put cages around them... We can be sly. I don't like the forsythia bush as it likes to attack me when I'm not looking. Mom hopes for a lovely garden with chickens under foot. We hope for more blueberries!

I am learning real quick what a plastic bag is for. TREATS! If mom gets anymore of us she is going to have to toss the bag and run away. We love treats! On the other hand, mom got her hair colored and now smells funny.

The nice weather has arrived today and mom has many plans for it. She only gets the one day off and so much to do. But here she sits with me at the computer.

Life is not to bad, yet. I want the hummingbirds to be my friends and teach me to fly like that. Mom is going to the flea market again tomorrow and said something about an ornamental cherry tree. Sounds yummy!

 

[Hannahs Hollow]

OK. So now we have:
Giselle, Matilda, Lil Bo, Harmony, Ruby, Josephina, Sophia, Lazzy, Mitzi, Chesterina, Helen, George, Steve, Cara. Penny, Amelia, Chloe, Ella, Olivia, Grace, Eva, Ava, Bruce, Daisy and Emily!

The breeds: Light Sussex, Barred Rock, Brahma/Icelandic, Heritage RIR, Ameracaunas crossed with Silkie and God knows what else, Black breasted red old english game bantams, Caramel Queen and Frizzles

 

[Hannahs Hollow]

I had to cull Pippi Longstockings last weekend. Not a good time. She had a prolapsed cloaca and she was bleeding from it.

I wrapped her in vet wrap to keep her still.

I dug a hole.

I gave myself a huge talk about doing the right thing for her and how if I was going to be a poultry lover I had to be able to manage my flock in all aspects! I told myself I am a truck driver and truck drivers don't cry!!!!

I placed her in the hole and I moved the shovel into place.

She started eating bugs and dirt.

I burst into tears, grabbed her up taking the vet wrap off and brought her back to the sick ward.

She thought it was a great field trip but she was in terrible pain.

I found a neighbor who had the experience to complete the job for me.

I still drive the truck and I still cry.
Becky

 

[scratch'n'peck]

I had to cull Pippi Longstockings last weekend. Not a good time. She had a prolapsed cloaca and she was bleeding from it.

I wrapped her in vet wrap to keep her still.

I dug a hole.

I gave myself a huge talk about doing the right thing for her and how if I was going to be a poultry lover I had to be able to manage my flock in all aspects! I told myself I am a truck driver and truck drivers don't cry!!!!

I placed her in the hole and I moved the shovel into place.

She started eating bugs and dirt.

I burst into tears, grabbed her up taking the vet wrap off and brought her back to the sick ward.

She thought it was a great field trip but she was in terrible pain.

I found a neighbor who had the experience to complete the job for me.

I still drive the truck and I still cry.
Becky

I am so sorry about your dear Pippi Longstockings. I know my response is way late, but I was checking threads I had replied to over the past several months. Your post about Pippi was very touching, because I know how hard it is to put a chicken down. At least you had someone to help you.

I hope the rest of your flock is doing well.

 

[Hannahs Hollow]

Today my name is George. I’m the gorgeous guy in the middle!

I am half my full grown weight at just 12.7 oz. I am a BB Red OEG Bantam. I am 9 weeks old. To your right is my big oaf of a friend, Bruthy

and on the left is my friend Elvis but mom still isn’t 100% sure it’s not Elvira. What do you think? Elvis’ girrrrlllfrieeend is like me and her name is Gracie. No wonder they have hooked up, right?

Mom thinks she is the sweetest little thing at 4 oz. Our other sister Olivia is a bit bigger then her.
Then there is Cara, a Carmel Queen beautiful and the lowest of everyone in the playpen. No one ever bothers me, Gracie or Olivia even tho they are big breeds.
This is Franklin the Frizzle. Only a face a mother could love and Mom does!

Then we have Helen and Cloe and they are B******! They bug Cara and Elvis.

They are Ameracuanas. Mom is never getting Ameracaunas again! One grey the other white both with some brown mixed in. Very skittish and bossy.

This is the porch on the front of the coop... It has a tire full of sand for baths!!!!

There is also Lilly who is a Frizzle and looks just like Franklin but a little prettier and white on one primary feather tip on each wing. Mom says she is a sweet girl.

Anyway, more about me…. Mom bought me, my sisters and the Frizzles already hatched along with 2 other Frizzles and another Roo like me. She sold HIM….. The lady tossed him in because she didn’t think I would survive. You see I was “duck stomped” as a very tiny baby. Mom says there is nothing wrong with me and I have always let her hold and cuddle me. She calls me her pocket roo. Sometimes it’s just me a Gracie in her arms and I can see far far and away! Gracie likes to fly over the fence into the main flocks area but mom rescues her and brings her back unscathed. Mom doesn’t think the big hens bother with us because we might just be those pesky little wild birds that steal their food but the other day I few from her shoulder and ALL of them jumped me!!! I thought that ugly duck was
back!

Well Mom had more of us but she lost 4 to what seems to have been Cocci and CRD. Gracie shows signs as well as me and Elvis. We, including Elvis are a week younger then Bruce. Elvis should be much bigger… Mom has done a few rounds of Anti b’s, electrolytes, vits and mins and even wormed us! We are doing much better. Mom swears she is only going to hatch out from now on. Problem with that is CRD travels vertically…

Mom wants to move Bruce in with the big girls because he is too big for us, he steps on everyone running for watermelon,

but he starts peeping like a big baby and trying to break his own neck in the chicken wire fence to get back to us. Sophia pulled his tail feather you see.

There was 8 more of us but they have gone to their forever home a few weeks ago. Mom made $65! The other little roo and 2 Ameracaunas went for $7 each at the auction! Mom didn’t know we were going to be tiny fowl so now she has to build a little coop within the big one to house me, Olivia and Gracie. She says she is keeping us and the Frizzles (that cost her $10 each), maybe even Cara…. So by her math, she has 7, doubled the coop size this year, and now wants to add us 6! Her DH is going to have to start building again…. There is already enough room for us but now she’s going to need a new playpen for March’s hatch. Wish her luck! I love my mom!

 

[Hannahs Hollow]

Thank you..... Scratch "n" peck

 

[scratch'n'peck]

George is a cute little mama's boy.

Sorry to hear about the losses from cocci and CRD. Good luck with the new playpen.