Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[RoyalChick]

I don’t think I do look good in glasses .
They are a bother to wear and find if lost.

Most often they will be on top of your head.

 

[RoyalChick]

This does feel somewhat positive. Their prices seem to be in line with my vet if that helps. I don't understand why the sand would not move on through on its own. That's feels odd to me.

I have read about that somewhere. Too tired now to dig it up.
Will try and look tomorrow.

 

[GregnLety]

Looks like @Lilion isnt the only one getting heat warning alerts, heat and humidity ramping up here tomorrow, along with storm warnings, and more tornado warnings.

What sort of emergency planning does everyone have for say flooding or tornadoes?

View attachment 3589244

I do t really have a plan for before or during, but I have a place I can relocate to.

For flooding seek shelter on high ground. For tornadoes seek shelter in a solid room on the interior of a building, a closet or bathroom being examples.

 

[RoyalChick]

Today we brought Light to the vet. She has had an impacted crop for about a month at this point.

Inside the car before the two hour car ride. She was a very good girl.
View attachment 3589142

Patiently waiting at the vet
View attachment 3589140

Overall I am not impressed but it is hopeful.

The vet did an overall physical exam which seems routine for all patients they take in. The clinic is avian and exotic only (no cats and dogs) but I am afraid the vet we have is not an expert in chickens. I feel like I know more than him on many topics.

After physical exams, he suggested x-ray, blood work, fecal test, and crop wash, all of which are diagnostic. Crop wash is to push some saline water down her crop and then take out a sample of what's inside her crop. It is not meant to clear the crop. I was really hoping that he would at least empty the crop somehow.

We chose to do crop wash and fecal test. Light was even sedated a bit (we were told it is pretty safe) during crop wash. After lots of waiting (we arrived at 10:20am and left at 4pm... it was a slow doctor according to the technician... lots of unnecessary waiting), the vet came back saying that it is all sand in the crop. He found lots of bacteria in her poop and her crop sand. With the crop wash, he also went ahead and took about half of the sand that was in Light's crop. So her crop is smaller now. He also gave us three medications, two liquid medicine that will help flush stuff down (one called slippery elm and the other called metoclopramide), one antibiotic. We are also supposed to tube feed her some sealed bird meals that he gave us.

I am hoping that getting her crop half cleared can be a good starting point and two liquid medication will be a better version of stool softener. The whole visit cost $400.

I didn’t find any scientific research papers on sand in the crop but a few posts by people whose chickens had similar issues.
The sense I got was that sometimes chickens eat sand to use as grit but it isn’t as effective as grit so they eat more and it all sludges up.
Treatment was similar to other blocked crop issues - oil as a lubricant and regular string crop massages along with providing plenty of the right size of grit.
I do hope she recovers.

 

[akroberts1085]

S

Maleficent's coloring is beautiful. Look at the brown in those black feathers. Just beautiful.

View attachment 1708948

Maleficent's coloring is beautiful. Look at the brown in those black feathers. Just beautiful.

View attachment 1708948

She's so beautiful

 

[BY Bob]

Getting Storm and babies into the coop was a 2 hour process. When went out (7pm), she was warming the babes just outside the hatch. Instant understanding. They couldn't get in. She moved. Under the olives.
View attachment 3589354
I builtView attachment 3589348Also did a similar one inside in front of the big door. Not good enough. She snuck them back out to her nest. I circled out and approached from the opposite side. Wound up almost "stepping" on her so she could attack the bottom of my shoe and get uncomfortable with her nest sight getting torn apart (breaking the grasses). Eventually, she headed back to the olives.
View attachment 3589356Reluctantly

View attachment 3589347Settled here for a bit (one of the popular dust baths). Then tried sneaking back out to the hillside. I beat her back around and stood out there. She retreated to next to the bricks where I wound up adding smaller pieces, shrinking the steps. Finally got dark enough had to pry her up with a stick (she BITES), carefully so as not to hurt babies under her. 2 had made it up the step/ramp, but they kept trying to follow her voice (inside) while they were outside. She kept coming back out before I could snatch the babies for a lift to the top. She'd then settle back on them to warm them again. Finally saw her eyes closing so one last attempt. She headed in (after some effort with the stick), back out, back in...snatched a chick up...2...3...4....gosh darnit! The little blonde snuck under a brick! Storm, STAY IN THERE! Where is the little rascal? Moved the brick, 5 up! Nudge nudge, in you go littles. Finally hopped in. Followed Storm across the coop. I reached through the hatch to unlatch the inside hook. Storm went for me, AGAIN. She's showing good instincts. Ok. Got in unlatched and pulled shut. They're are ALL in the coop. Going to have to be good enough. I'm not going in to latch from the inside. Storm is likely to go for me again and stir up all the others. (I did put a couple of banana boxes in for more shelter this afternoon, too.)

Hector and Enigma did a side by side size comparison tonight too.View attachment 3589359

I never thought about moving her home base to inside the coop. Great work on your part to get them successfully inside.

 

[BY Bob]

S



She's so beautiful

Thanks for saying so

 

[Ponypoor]

Getting Storm and babies into the coop was a 2 hour process. When went out (7pm), she was warming the babes just outside the hatch. Instant understanding. They couldn't get in. She moved. Under the olives.
View attachment 3589354
I builtView attachment 3589348Also did a similar one inside in front of the big door. Not good enough. She snuck them back out to her nest. I circled out and approached from the opposite side. Wound up almost "stepping" on her so she could attack the bottom of my shoe and get uncomfortable with her nest sight getting torn apart (breaking the grasses). Eventually, she headed back to the olives.
View attachment 3589356Reluctantly

View attachment 3589347Settled here for a bit (one of the popular dust baths). Then tried sneaking back out to the hillside. I beat her back around and stood out there. She retreated to next to the bricks where I wound up adding smaller pieces, shrinking the steps. Finally got dark enough had to pry her up with a stick (she BITES), carefully so as not to hurt babies under her. 2 had made it up the step/ramp, but they kept trying to follow her voice (inside) while they were outside. She kept coming back out before I could snatch the babies for a lift to the top. She'd then settle back on them to warm them again. Finally saw her eyes closing so one last attempt. She headed in (after some effort with the stick), back out, back in...snatched a chick up...2...3...4....gosh darnit! The little blonde snuck under a brick! Storm, STAY IN THERE! Where is the little rascal? Moved the brick, 5 up! Nudge nudge, in you go littles. Finally hopped in. Followed Storm across the coop. I reached through the hatch to unlatch the inside hook. Storm went for me, AGAIN. She's showing good instincts. Ok. Got in unlatched and pulled shut. They're are ALL in the coop. Going to have to be good enough. I'm not going in to latch from the inside. Storm is likely to go for me again and stir up all the others. (I did put a couple of banana boxes in for more shelter this afternoon, too.)

Hector and Enigma did a side by side size comparison tonight too.View attachment 3589359

Herding cats has nothing on herding chickens!

Wow Hector is a big boy , and handsome eye candy

 

[Sally PB]

Fog up in winter, or coming into air conditioning...and of course they get all covered with little water spots if you sweat or cry or go out in the rain...and grease if you fry anything.

I hate wearing glasses.

I'm not fond of them (often don't wear them in the house), but at least twice they have saved my eyes from very serious injury.
Tax:

Another two-fer of Pip and Sunny.

 

[Ponypoor]

Looks like a scorcher today, I better get going!

Another reflection

"Brevity is the soul of wit.“
(Shakespeare: Hamlet)