Cream Legbars

[Fire Ant Farm]

Ha! That's funny. Ever try adding whole oats? Mine pick them out first because they love them so much.

Well, I tried the mash for their evening meal. As they had snubbed their AM food, they were hungry. This feed has whole seeds/grains in it in addition to protein/probiotic pellets. They systematically and very quickly picked out every last one of the whole oats, and then wandered off to eat dirt... But I'm thinking that there might have been at least a little by-stander consumption of the mushy pellet stuff. It'll do, I guess. I suppose I'll just end up throwing some food out every day.

Interesting development, though - Lissa has developed a taste for ball moss.

Meanwhile, I'm afraid that Paula has discovered the joys of sitting in the tree - I had to climb up and get her out. (See? I told you - they're cats!!!)

I had not really considered wing clipping before. Starting to consider the option (though I'll start with just trimming the lower branches first.) Are CLs flighty? Yes.

- Ant Farm

 

[sol2go]

Well, I tried the mash for their evening meal. As they had snubbed their AM food, they were hungry. This feed has whole seeds/grains in it in addition to protein/probiotic pellets. They systematically and very quickly picked out every last one of the whole oats, and then wandered off to eat dirt... But I'm thinking that there might have been at least a little by-stander consumption of the mushy pellet stuff. It'll do, I guess. I suppose I'll just end up throwing some food out every day.

Interesting development, though - Lissa has developed a taste for ball moss.

Meanwhile, I'm afraid that Paula has discovered the joys of sitting in the tree - I had to climb up and get her out. (See? I told you - they're cats!!!)

I had not really considered wing clipping before. Starting to consider the option (though I'll start with just trimming the lower branches first.) Are CLs flighty? Yes.

- Ant Farm

Look at the entertainment value! Such a bonus =) I learned something new about oats, so thanks to @KPenley for that.
You must have very nice dirt, and ball moss, and…(watch out for impacted crops, that's not anything you want to tend to).

As long as you are still thrashing around with food, I'll add that I plant up gallon pots of rainbow swiss chard, which always seems to draw a crowd when I put it in their runs. I remove it before it is decimated, so it can grow to feed another day…there are probably other food items that are similar.

btw - I can't recall if they are approaching POL, if so, never mind anything they do, they will just be whacky for awhile...

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

Look at the entertainment value! Such a bonus =) I learned something new about oats, so thanks to @KPenley for that.
You must have very nice dirt, and ball moss, and…(watch out for impacted crops, that's not anything you want to tend to).

This is multiple years worth of fallen leaves under a big red oak, they LOVE the dirt and leaves under there. As for the ball moss, I watched her closely for that very reason. I actually think she is more amused by pulling it apart than interested in consuming it.

As long as you are still thrashing around with food, I'll add that I plant up gallon pots of rainbow swiss chard, which always seems to draw a crowd when I put it in their runs. I remove it before it is decimated, so it can grow to feed another day…there are probably other food items that are similar.

Oh, that's a great idea! I will totally do that. They love wheat grass sprouts/fodder, but I started to have mold issues during hot weather, so I stopped for a while - I'll start again soon.

btw - I can't recall if they are approaching POL, if so, never mind anything they do, they will just be whacky for awhile...

OOOOOHHHH.... Yes, they are. OK, good to know. (So far, they LOVE pooping in the nest boxes, ceramic eggs be ******.)

I can't WAIT until I can get their new coop built...

Edit to add: I just walked out for something, and I caught them eating the rest of the soft pellet stuff greedily. I think they are only eating it when they think I'm not looking!!!!!

 

[sol2go]

I'm guessing they LOVE the bugs more than the dirt and leaves…sounds like they are actually behaving like chickens!!

 

[ChicKat]

Edit to add: I just walked out for something, and I caught them eating the rest of the soft pellet stuff greedily. I think they are only eating it when they think I'm not looking!!!!!

 

[KPenley]

Edit to add: I just walked out for something, and I caught them eating the rest of the soft pellet stuff greedily. I think they are only eating it when they think I'm not looking!!!!!

WooHoo!

 

[All Ball]

sol2go, thanks for the reply! I was afraid of that, just hoping. He's otherwise a pretty nice looking gent, tho colorful, squirrel-tailed and not long-backed...

I gather the person I got the hatching eggs from got eggs from 4 different sources, and has been line breeding about 3 generations since then, so I guess things are popping out here and there, heterozygous-wise.

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

I found a shallow red scratch on Paula's white earlobe this afternoon - which surprised me, since my girls don't really peck each other (though I can't wait to get them into a new coop SOON). I had seen a little small scratch on Jenny's wattle the day before as well. I wondered if they had found a rough spot in the coop wire, and made a note to check for it and to watch them closely (and finish the new coop asap). They haven't pecked the wounds making them worse, fortunately.

Meanwhile, I'd been cleaning poo out of the recently uncovered nest boxes (Paula is approaching POL), so at bedtime tonight I thought I'd check to see which one of them is sleeping in there to relocate them.

I opened the outside egg-collection flap and found all three of them piled into the same single little nest box, all on top of each other, trying to get comfortable to sleep. (They ignored the second nest box and the roosts, of course.) I think I know exactly what happened to Paula's earlobe now - I think someone stepped on her head. I relocated them (making them very grumpy) and covered the nest boxes back up for the night. Heaven help me when they're actually laying.

They're all nuts. Completely and totally nuts. Entertainment value is right...

- Ant Farm

 

[chicken pickin]

I found a shallow red scratch on Paula's white earlobe this afternoon - which surprised me, since my girls don't really peck each other (though I can't wait to get them into a new coop SOON). I had seen a little small scratch on Jenny's wattle the day before as well. I wondered if they had found a rough spot in the coop wire, and made a note to check for it and to watch them closely (and finish the new coop asap). They haven't pecked the wounds making them worse, fortunately.

Meanwhile, I'd been cleaning poo out of the recently uncovered nest boxes (Paula is approaching POL), so at bedtime tonight I thought I'd check to see which one of them is sleeping in there to relocate them.

I opened the outside egg-collection flap and found all three of them piled into the same single little nest box, all on top of each other, trying to get comfortable to sleep. (They ignored the second nest box and the roosts, of course.) I think I know exactly what happened to Paula's earlobe now - I think someone stepped on her head. I relocated them (making them very grumpy) and covered the nest boxes back up for the night. Heaven help me when they're actually laying.

They're all nuts. Completely and totally nuts. Entertainment value is right...

- Ant Farm

How old are they again? I think I recall them being pretty close to point of lay. Either way, my suggestion is to block the nest boxes off completely, day and night, for a while until they decide the roost is the next best place. If you find them sleeping on the floor put them on roost etc. Always move them to the roost nightly, they will get it pretty quick. Once you notice them roosting on their own for about a week or two, then you can probably safely open up the nest boxes again in time for them to start laying.

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

How old are they again? I think I recall them being pretty close to point of lay. Either way, my suggestion is to block the nest boxes off completely, day and night, for a while until they decide the roost is the next best place. If you find them sleeping on the floor put them on roost etc. Always move them to the roost nightly, they will get it pretty quick. Once you notice them roosting on their own for about a week or two, then you can probably safely open up the nest boxes again in time for them to start laying.

I think I was too hopeful and jumped the gun too quickly in opening the nest boxes. Paula is a week older than the other two, and also seems even more well ahead of them maturity wise (by her comb, coloring, etc.). She's 19 weeks old.

That's good advice - I will leave it blocked off and make sure they're all in bed where they belong each night for a while till they get the message. There will be a transition to the bigger coop as soon as it's done - in which case the nest boxes won't be so close (in proximity and in height) to the roosts. I'm HOPING to have the new coop done before they start laying, I just got nervous and uncovered them, since Paula is squatting for me really well/frequently now.

Never a dull moment...

- Ant Farm