Australia - Six states..and that funny little island.

[chicken-clucky]

Here we have my two Cochins
Brown- Hazelnut
Cream/Buff- Nanna


Hamburg- Hannah (umcomfromed)


Gold Laced Seabright- Goldy


Brown Leghorn- Unnamed


Legar- Lelia


Playmouth Rock- Roxan


Lavender Rooster- Levi

 

[Anniebee]

Wow .. where to even start! OK, at what I think is the beginning …. Saturday evening Blondie decided that she was going to be broody; yep, good plan, apparently 5 days without a broody is sufficient for me

Saturday night she spent sleeping on the timber panel which has blocked off the nest box.

Sunday morning, however, she was showing no interest in the nest boxes whatsoever and spent Sunday in the garden with her flock mates.

This morning, she was out having breakfast and spent the majority of the day in the run. By the afternoon though, she had plonked her blowfish impersonating self on an egg and was not budging. So I booted her out and blocked off the nest boxes. For the past three hours she has tried to pancake on the nest box cover.

KiKi who I think is semi broody, cos apparently one is not enough and I need another one, was parked on the roost and every time Blondie tried to pancake, KiKi dropped down, beat her up and chased her out. Then back up onto the roost for a repeat performance when Blondie came back, wings out, blowfishing and tooking up a storm.

Closer to bed time, Crystal, who uses the nest box cover as a launch pad onto the roost could not go to bed because Blondie was on the cover and when she eventually managed to get up to the roost, a semi-broody KiKi beat her up and pushed her off.

While all this was going on, Dusty kept rushing in to try and break up the squabbles as this is what she does in her role as rooster!

So, basically, I have Blondie strutting around doing her ‘I wanna be a mumma’ impersonations; KiKi strutting around doing her ‘Not on my watch Sunshine’ performance and Dusty strutting around doing her ‘If you two do not pack it in, I am going to knock your chicken heads together … Do Not make me have to split you two up!’

Poor ole bottom of the pecking order Crystal and moulting LuLu are walking around bug eyed and tippy toed trying hard to keep out of everyone’s way and Cilla is being typical Cilla ‘Squabbles? What squabbles? No squabbles in my bubble’

.... well it is Teila.

It's the way you tell the stories. !! Absolutely always, I get a great chuckle out of your writings. ( where's that book - is it started yet ? ).

What on earth do you feed them ? Sustagen ? Red Bull drinkies ? .... Vitamin B6 ( good for reproduction and hormonal surges etc. ) ?

Ok ... news flash - you need to become HEAD CHOOK.

.... Queen of the run - dominant bod. And if that means extra work in making new areas to separate that lot - then go for it.

I honestly couldn't stand the fracas and dust-ups in the chook pen. But I think we'd all miss the broody stories you have to tell - it might however work, especially for your peace of mind.

Sounds like they start each other OFF, and then it's ON for young and old. ... Now all you need is Cilla to become broody again ( and gee whiz - it could happen !!

) ... and you have pancaking chooks all over the place, interspersed with punch-ups between them.

Good luck with all that ( says she still chuckling ) .... I am honestly not laughing AT you, but rather WITH you.

Your broody stories are the best.

Cheers .........

 

[Anniebee]

Thank you I love the fluffy silkie in your avatar.

I gave my little Agnes a haircut the other day. She can keep up with her friends better when she can see. Behold, I call this look the 'Bart Simpson'.

Thank you Fizzybelle ..... that is a special comment for me, as I lost little Moppitt 2+ years ago, after she developed pneumonia from being in a coop that I did NOT know leaked ( during a fierce overnight storm we had here - which I was unaware of, as I sleep heavily ).

Being a silkie, her feathers did not shuck off the water, and it got through to her ultra-thin skin. Enough hours being drenched, turned into upper respiratory problems ( tried to save her from that with anti-biotics / vet help ) but it turned into pneumonia, and she had to be put to sleep.

She was the most beautiful, lovable little chicken. If I ever have silkies again, I think I shall keep them inside the house, and only let them out on all days that do not have rain - - - and check on weather forecasts for same.

That's the problem with silkies, they do not have the oily type flat feathers that other breeds have, and can be brittle in bad weather conditions. When my Mindy Araucana gets drenched ( she loves that - has a secret agenda methinks ) .... I bring her inside, dry her off as best I can on my lap, and then put her in the cat carrier that she adores ( she talks to our dog Miss Ruby, when inside that ) ... to dry off completely. Sure, she has the flat feathers and all, but I am paranoid about it after Moppitts' demise, and Mindy is small, but not exactly delicate !!.

The other two ? - first sign of rain - they are in their coop, sheltering. They do display some sense !!

Love the "Bart Simpson look" on your beautiful Silkie. Mindy Araucana managed to grow feathers after her last moult, that do not cover up her eyes, so have not had to get the scissors out there - - - this time.. Except that is to clip wings - after a moult, when wing feathers grow back fully. Am not into 'climbing trees' to retrieve wayward flight-able chooks. They can still use their wings to get to a roost or wherever, but do not take flight into high branches etc.


Cheers .......

 

[Anniebee]

Here we have my two Cochins
Brown- Hazelnut
Cream/Buff- Nanna


Hamburg- Hannah (umcomfromed)


Gold Laced Seabright- Goldy


Brown Leghorn- Unnamed


Legar- Lelia


Playmouth Rock- Roxan


Lavender Rooster- Levi

chicken-clucky .... your new girls and 1 boy are just beautiful. I hope you get some good chicks from their matings later on.

From the looks of the photos' they are still fairly young ? Would that be correct.? Lots to look forward to there.

Cheers ........

 

[satay]

Here we have my two Cochins Brown- Hazelnut Cream/Buff- Nanna Hamburg- Hannah (umcomfromed) Gold Laced Seabright- Goldy Brown Leghorn- Unnamed Legar- Lelia Playmouth Rock- Roxan Lavender Rooster- Levi

Oh such lovely ladies and a gent. I hope you don't mind me commenting as i used to breed cochins a while ago and still have one lady left. Cochins don't have pea combs. It could be a throw back somewhere but they look more like brahmas to me. I used to breed them too. Either way they are still lovely.

 

[Teila]

Good morning Friends

Chicken-clucky your new additions are beautiful! Well done!

Thanks everyone; I am pleased you got a chuckle. I am not really complaining about my broody’s, I love them to bits. Having said that, I did fleetingly consider a Post Christmas Broody Sale on Gumtree

It is fun to comic it up a bit and share with my friends.

So, the drama continues this morning and yes Anniebee they do “start each other OFF”.

On our last episode we left you with a possibly broody KiKi, a definitely broody Blondie, a gender confused Dusty and a ‘in her own little world’ Cilla.

Well, this morning, Cilla broke out of the bubble to attack Blondie. I am not sure if Blondie’s walking around with wings out, took tooking is being interpreted as an attempt at domination and rise up the ranks or a sign of weakness but Cilla was not having any of it and even after Blondie managed to wriggle out from under Cilla’s grasp and onto the outside roost, Cilla was jumping up and down, trying to part Blondie from some toes.

When Blondie did jump down, Cilla zeroed in and attacked again, Dusty raced over [in rooster mode] to break up the fight and pecked at Cilla and at that exact second also realised ‘Oooops, that is Cilla!’ You could see it written all over her face; big mistake. Cilla promptly put Dusty in her place.

So, at the moment, we have Blondie in the broody breaker, more for her own protection than anything else and KiKi in the nest box being given the benefit of the doubt, if no egg by this afternoon, she will be confirmed broody.

I put Blondie’s food containers in the middle of the cage so as not to tempt Crows and Doves etc to try and eat it through the bars. Three times now, while typing this, I have heard Blondie ‘appeal’ to which I raced out … first time, a Crow was trying to reach in through the bars to the middle and steal her food … second and third time, two Crows! I chase them off; they keep coming back.

I might have to take a sicky so I can sit outside and keep the Crows away from poor ole Blondie who has gone from being picked on by her flock mates to being badgered by Crows!

Have I mentioned I HATE CROWS!! lol

 

[satay]

Good morning Friends 

Chicken-clucky your new additions are beautiful!  Well done!

Thanks everyone; I am pleased you got a chuckle.  I am not really complaining about my broody’s, I love them to bits.  Having said that, I did fleetingly consider a Post Christmas Broody Sale on Gumtree  It is fun to comic it up a bit and share with my friends.

So, the drama continues this morning and yes Anniebee they do “start each other OFF”.

On our last episode we left you with a possibly broody KiKi, a definitely broody Blondie, a gender confused Dusty and a ‘in her own little world’ Cilla.

Well, this morning, Cilla broke out of the bubble to attack Blondie.  I am not sure if Blondie’s walking around with wings out, took tooking is being interpreted as an attempt at domination and rise up the ranks or a sign of weakness but Cilla was not having any of it and even after Blondie managed to wriggle out from under Cilla’s grasp and onto the outside roost, Cilla was jumping up and down, trying to part Blondie from some toes.

When Blondie did jump down, Cilla zeroed in and attacked again, Dusty raced over [in rooster mode] to break up the fight and pecked at Cilla and at that exact second also realised ‘Oooops, that is Cilla!’ You could see it written all over her face; big mistake. Cilla promptly put Dusty in her place.

So, at the moment, we have Blondie in the broody breaker, more for her own protection than anything else and KiKi in the nest box being given the benefit of the doubt, if no egg by this afternoon, she will be confirmed broody.

I put Blondie’s food containers in the middle of the cage so as not to tempt Crows and Doves etc to try and eat it through the bars.  Three times now, while typing this, I have heard Blondie ‘appeal’ to which I raced out … first time, a Crow was trying to reach in through the bars to the middle and steal her food … second and third time, two Crows!  I chase them off; they keep coming back.

I might have to take a sicky so I can sit outside and keep the Crows away from poor ole Blondie who has gone from being picked on by her flock mates to being badgered by Crows!

Have I mentioned I HATE CROWS!! lol

Poor you and the crows I remember them well from the city I could barely hear people on the phone some days for them. I do have the odd few out here that will steal eggs but thankfully the peewees shoo them off after a while. I told my neighbour if the pekins i gave her don't go broody she should take them down to your girls so they can teach them

I didn't get woken up by chickens this morning rather a loudly barking Thor. The boys get locked up in our covered area at night and i never normally hear them til i let them out in the mornings. His barking didn't stop so i raced out (Having zeus with his cancer I was worried something must be wrong with him). Nope i find thor telling off a Christmas beetle.. He's not a fan of beetles but i have never heard him go off at one before.

 

[Teila]

satay I know I like to retain a sense of humour but in all seriousness, the Crows here are a real problem and getting beyond a joke .. I have no idea why they are protected and could cheerfully dispatch them right now. Even though Blondie is in the shade, I dragged the large shade umbrella out of the shed and put it over her crate, it appears to have deterred them for now; something new and scary.

If my broody’s do not settle your neighbour can have them

I, for one, will be very pleased when winter gets here.

Lol .. loved the Thor v Beetle story and I do not blame him .. Christmas Beetles creep me out

 

[chicken-clucky]

Yes only a few months old, i like to get young ones to tame them.

 

[chicken-clucky]

Wow i thought my morning was eventful but you guys take the cake.

So i have Three Coops and runs, two next to eachother which are not locked in at night and one on the other side of the garden, anywho morning check and let out had me finding Miss essy of coop 1 pinned in a corner of coop 2

by Murphy the feather eater......... lucky she just wanted out, piked her right up and took her back to her coop. Silly Chook