Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[ValarieF]

 

[RoyalChick]

Why do my Princesses wait until I am away to fulfill my dreams. Bernadette I now know laid her first egg literally the first day I was gone. And this morning I get this lousy picture from the coop cam which is all three dust bathing together. Actually Babs was kicking dirt into Bernadette’s face and Bernie seemed fine with that.

 

[ValarieF]

Why do my Princesses wait until I am away to fulfill my dreams. Bernadette I now know laid her first egg literally the first day I was gone. And this morning I get this lousy picture from the coop cam which is all three dust bathing together. Actually Babs was kicking dirt into Bernadette’s face and Bernie seemed fine with that.

View attachment 3409653

When moms away the chooks will play.

 

[Ponypoor]

Darn Creature!

Curly is getting bold about being up on the high nest boxes - she hops up the stairs, across the roost, and then up on top of the nest boxes and hops down onto the shelf, checks out the nest box, the hops back up on top of the box... back and forth. And then she launched herself down to the floor - which really freaked me out!!!

Doesn't she know that she flies like crap ? and that she makes me panic to see her up there?!

Lay that egg and get down!

 

[Ponypoor]

Pony Sunday

Truly being naughty (that is not me riding her - my niece's friend)

And my lovely Sally, my niece's friend and I were having some fun with the horses that day. She was an awesome pony

 

[Ponypoor]

Darn Creature!

Curly is getting bold about being up on the high nest boxes - she hops up the stairs, across the roost, and then up on top of the nest boxes and hops down onto the shelf, checks out the nest box, the hops back up on top of the box... back and forth. And then she launched herself down to the floor - which really freaked me out!!!

Doesn't she know that she flies like crap ? and that she makes me panic to see her up there?!

Lay that egg and get down!

View attachment 3409670

Well she must have laid an egg, she is now throwing shavings and bits of strw on her back Oh she is going back in the nest.... Don't go broody yet kiddo! Hmmmm she is making a nest also. Well not much I can do about it way out here!

 

[ValarieF]

66 grams. My Ancona is laying big eggs

 

[ValarieF]

Of course Zeus tried to attack me lol but I was watching and put my foot out and stopped him.. Then I went after him and he went and hid and wouldnt come near me. Silly rooster your dealing with a crazy chicken lady!

 

[ChicoryBlue]

Interesting - I could likely get the 25x100 and cut the 100 into 6 pieces of 16'x25'.

$135USD (~$182CD) - will need to research this more - thanks!

They do have 25x25 now, US$49. https://pinnonhatch.com/poultry-sup...iPEdIk3oK1pjCKchPZIBIMGbFaiv-vJEaAlfCEALw_wcB

They have two selling points - UV protection and it's not nylon, it's polyethylene and polypropylene and will last a long time. You'll find nylon is cheaper though. I've had one net for almost three years so far and it's held up. I have two more nets but they're more recent.

I tried to cut a big one and found it difficult to do. They have instructions for dealing with it - and I forget if I tried to cut the length down or the width. My advice would be to first splurge on the 25x25 size and see what it's like to work with. Length would be easier than width to cut.
I did not lay it out properly, pinning it before I tried. I think it may need to really be evenly stretched and strongly pinned to get the absolute square full width. The width stretches out most of course but the length does some too. It has an elastic quality and is strong: the squares in these start out bunched together width-wise, so the shape is a long snake, the squares want to be a diamond shape. My "lawn" is not a golf course and all kinds of sticks and weeds and things caught it as I tried to manipulate it, and to be really square, the mesh has to have an even pull on it as it goes, attached every two feet or so? I tried to cut along a set of squares and I got 2 weird-shaped but still useable pieces. So the 2 subsequent nets I bought I've left alone. If it's more than I need I just leave it bunched, or extend their area with step-in posts under it.
On the other hand, there ARE true square-mesh nets that behave loosely, like a blanket. Mostly sporting nets I think - but they are way, way more expensive.

Here are some internet images - really tall posts under it so they can be widely spaced but still okay to walk under. The edges likely have insanely strong attachments for this size net.

I use these greenhouse frames to hold them up, since I have moved things around a lot within the larger electric fence perimeter, the 12x7x7 ones. https://www.amazon.com/Strong-Camel...lpcontext&ref_=fplfs&smid=A3GE0Z66T0KKNN&th=1

I just lay the netting over them and stretch it out some and attach with carabiners to the frames. Not attached with a lot of pulling force, but some. Then I stretch the edges out, or I've stretched an end across and out over & into part of a lilac bush and maple saplings which hold it up, and I had some step-in posts getting there, and ultimately hold all the edges down with stones and firewood. The lilac bush is on the far right of the pic below, near the white waterer.

The idea is to keep the hens in and give them a chance against hawks. They have learned the difference between the white electric fence and the black netting when they're outside the netting but inside the fence with me. I hook up edges during those times so they can run back in when they want. If a hawk attacked unseen near a low edge - or attacked straight into the wall of the net - theoretically the hen could be caught, but if there's any squirming away to be had, the netting will help I hope. It's only pretty low near the edge of the net.

They love it under the lilac maple saplings

 

[bgmathteach]

Darn Creature!

Curly is getting bold about being up on the high nest boxes - she hops up the stairs, across the roost, and then up on top of the nest boxes and hops down onto the shelf, checks out the nest box, the hops back up on top of the box... back and forth. And then she launched herself down to the floor - which really freaked me out!!!

Doesn't she know that she flies like crap ? and that she makes me panic to see her up there?!

Lay that egg and get down!

View attachment 3409670

Aw, mom, that's what you get for spying on us! Don't look and it will be fine! We may not fly, but we can do 'controlled landings' te he he!