Arizona Chickens

[SonoranChick]

Thank you @DesertChic I've got the dog crate ready in case she does decide to go broody on me. I am leaning more toward the dramatic temperature changes we've been having as being the cause.

 

[meetthebubus]

Thanks for replying so quickly! The strange thing is she is not even a year old yet (they will be one year in June). I went and checked on her again, and threw some grapes to them. She ran over and happily devoured a grape, and the purple tint seems to be going away slightly. I would be very concerned if her behavior suddenly changed, but she seems to be acting normal. Very perplexing

Roo has this a bit I think it's from him hitting the fence when he and China fight through the fencing
I think Goldie had it a little bit I thought it might have been for her hitting it on something, but she is a little fatty so maybe that's why.
Don't mean to scare you or sound morbid but I found out the hard way that they can act just fine and still drop dead for no apparent reason

I wouldn't worry too much about it.. how is your broody hen did she break ok?

 

[MagicChicken]

My white leghorn is having an issue...hoping someone can help. Her floppy comb has a purple tint to it, just on the tips. The internet wants to tell me that it is frostbite, which it is obviously not! She is acting totally normal, and laid her egg this morning right on time, and ran to gobble some fresh herb treats. Could it be due to the sudden heat? Perhaps dehydration? They were dewormed in February. I will be keeping a close eye on her today to look for any behavior changes. Any ideas what could be causing this? I can post a pic if needed. Thanks guys!

I see this more often in roosters on cold winter mornings, and during summer when it rains and the temperature drops dramatically in a short time. Only occasionally do I see it in my hens. I asked some old-time poultry guys what was going on. They basically said it's normal, don't worry about it.

If the bird is showing signs of actually being sick it could be a symptom of several other things. Desert Chic already named all the other things I can think of, so I won't repeat them here. But if the bird isn't sick, I'll pass along the old-timers' advice: "Don't worry, it's normal."

 

[SonoranChick]

Roo has this a bit I think it's from him hitting the fence when he and China fight through the fencing
I think Goldie had it a little bit I thought it might have been for her hitting it on something, but she is a little fatty so maybe that's why.
Don't mean to scare you or sound morbid but I found out the hard way that they can act just fine and still drop dead for no apparent reason

I wouldn't worry too much about it.. how is your broody hen did she break ok?

Waffles is much better and no longer broody, thanks for asking! I took the advice that many of you gave me and basically made her uncomfortable in the dog crate (no straw to sit on, just plain plastic floor, some food and water). She needed to cool down. It took about three days. I would let her out into the run, but as soon as she made a beeline for the nest box, back to chicken jail she went! I put her up on the roost with the others at night and one morning, just like that, she decided she was no longer feeling broody. Now she is back to her regular sweet self, and laying nice big eggs for us! I am also much more confident in my ability to break a broody hen now, thanks to you all. Like I said earlier this week, I just don't know what I would do without this AZ group.

 

[SonoranChick]

I see this more often in roosters on cold winter mornings, and during summer when it rains and the temperature drops dramatically in a short time. Only occasionally do I see it in my hens. I asked some old-time poultry guys what was going on. They basically said it's normal, don't worry about it.

If the bird is showing signs of actually being sick it could be a symptom of several other things. Desert Chic already named all the other things I can think of, so I won't repeat them here. But if the bird isn't sick, I'll pass along the old-timers' advice: "Don't worry, it's normal."

Thanks @MagicChicken
I am becoming a pretty big fan of old-timer's advice

 

[FeatherPugs]

After the last two days of nothing but dust plus more dust, my girls look like they have been dust bathing then not shaking the dust off! Poor things hid in non-windy places and still look like they took a mud bath then dried in the sun.

 

[BlueBaby]

After the last two days of nothing but dust plus more dust, my girls look like they have been dust bathing then not shaking the dust off! Poor things hid in non-windy places and still look like they took a mud bath then dried in the sun.

My younger ones are mostly hiding out in the coop to avoid the windy gust. They come out to eat and drink, and then head right back there. My Australorp's are just standing there right in the pen, no worries for them!

 

[meetthebubus]

I loved the wind and weather! my big bubus stayed in the bush area the mansion blocks the wind since its 6 ft high now

My little ones stayed behind their coop to block wind and had to walk sideways lol



I heard marshmallow squeak 2 mornings ago just once as I was going to feed them I ran for the camera but he didn't do it once I get it I'll have to post it bc I love little rooster squeaks!

Soon we will have a trio, not just a duet lol

 

[DesertChic]

My chicken yard was adopted as a temporary home to someone's pet pigeon during the strong winds of the past couple days. He would eat whatever dry food was on the ground and the seeds I scattered for him before releasing the chickens in the morning, and occasionally grab a drink of water when the chickens weren't too close. Other than that, he just sat around, walked around and tried not to get blown away. He flew off last night, returned this morning, and then flew off again tonight. I'm hoping he finds his way home, but if not I'll try to catch him and track down the owner based on the numbers on his leg bands.

 

[Jadesun6]

I LOVE projects like this!! Where is this floor located? In your house? The coop?

It will be in the kitchen and livingroom. We are gutting the kitchen completely. Putting in new insulation. Drywall and cabinets. I decided I wanted both rooms to have the same flooring. So, with that not in the budget I decided to do the paper bag treatment. That way it seals it and looks great until we want to redo it. The one in Ohio I did is still holding up great 5 years later. The bags are free from the grocery store. So I'm estimating the whole project will be about $60 for an area around 30' x 20'. Depending on how many layers of polyurethane I use.