Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[featherhead007]

I suspect she’s perched on the chair! She’s so cute!

Do I see a sea bright sitting on the seat?

 

[bgmathteach]

Sigh, I am really missing Butter tonight. I did not realize just how much I depended on that hen and her peace keeping skills. Raven's chicks now know they need to roost in the coop. They want to, but those dang girls are evil to them. This evening Lilly was standing guard at the entrance and would peck them if they tried to run by her. I had to grab her behind and toss her on the roost so they could come in. They have been used to having the front roost to themselves as the girls had been until this evening content to stay on the back one. The chicks get on the roost, get settled and then Goose has to show herself. She flew to their roost and was aggressively pecking at them trying to run them off. I repeatedly put her on the back roost but she kept coming. I finally resorted to letting her on the front roost. Every time she went to peck at the chicks who were huddled at one side I used my fingers and pecked her head and neck to reprimand her. Finally after it had been completely dark for about 10 minutes she gave up and settled on the other end of their roost. I thought of bringing Raven in to use a buffer between the chicks but she has been reprimanding them herself when they try to gather closely around her. If Butter were here she would not have let Lilly bar them from entering the coop. She also would have placed herself on the roost between the chicks and the other hens and beat the tar out of any who tried to peck them. They have to sleep in the coop for now and I hope this does not become a nightly event. When they are older they may choose to sleep on the big roost between the horses. That seems to be the natural progression of things with some of them. I think if it happens tomorrow I will pull Branch off the big roost and see what he does. I know he will not be happy as he does not like sleeping in the coop anymore. I also believe though he will not let Goose or the others harass the chicks.

I gave the heart because you still have a wonderful flock. This, however, is for you and the changing dynamics that have to settle:

Question: Do you think Holly would have been a different kind of ruler?

I'm hoping that when you move Branch tomorrow evening, he will step up to the job of protecting the littles. Given how he is such a great daddy when mom gives them up, I suspect he will. Lets hope that once you move him one night, he continues to place himself there to protect the tweens until they are fully accepted by Raven and the rest of the flock!


Is Lily 2nd in command now? Or is she a lower ranked hen asserting to the littles that they are below her to ensure she remains above them?

 

[bgmathteach]

Oh, my gosh - this pic of the splayed feathers while preening is so cute - and it accentuates baby fuzz versus feathers!

 

[bgmathteach]

Do I see a sea bright sitting on the seat?

No, no, if it was a sea bright, it would be sitting at SEA, not land lubbing! (Unless, of course - it is waiting for the 'mess' of 'mess hall") That is probably a SEbright.




Okay, I'll just take my chair and hide now:


What ever possessed me to think I could compete with Alex on this front?

 

[bgmathteach]

Oh, I had a right go at netflix tonight I was fuming with them . Telling me i can't use my vpn. So I'm looking for another stream service. They are rubbish anyway

Tax
View attachment 3614540

That is a lovely pic of Tina, @Marie2020

 

[bgmathteach]

@Ponypoor When they were on my shoulder, and I'm standing on a pretty nice rug: "Nobody poop please! Nobody poop, okay? Nobody poop!"

And no one pooped!

Hmmmm....you might just want to put a sheet on the rug for safety sake - at some point your luck will run out!

 

[bgmathteach]

Any way you could expand the size of the big roost, to accommodate 4sq ft per bird? Add on more roosting space?

I wanted to give this an 'informative" "i", but 4 feet per bird is excessive (though more roosting space would be helpful), but square feet of roosting space?? She would need to make the whole coop a platform!!!! ( oh, silly me, that is what the coop floor already is!!)

Seriously, though, @RebeccaBoyd if you can add an additional roost, and on the current roost(s) put up (a?) barriers (sheet/pillow case hung strategically so there is a visual barrier to 'break the roost' into sections might help.

EDIT to add: Or, even like what @BY Bob did in the cluckle hut - a barrier of chicken wire so no pecking through it. - on the roost. Unfortunately with you, you have multiple hens that are antagonists - not just the one Phyllis, so you will probably need to add a roost (new, and slightly lower than the others, so old girls won't want it but newbies will have a space), plus put up 'barriers' on each of the current 2 roosts - that might give them enough places (5 ) to find a roost and not have the bullies harass them - especially if they learn to roost a bit later, once the bigs are settled and it is dark enough they may not switch roosts to harass.

 

[Ponypoor]

Okay, I caved and did it:

I still have 2 broodies that have been broody for over 5 weeks, aren't breaking, and will never hatch chicks as they are low on the totem pole, get pulled out of the nest boxes...so then hop into any open one that has eggs....hence the eggs end up starting, getting chilled, and dieing.....

So......






Here are my new additions...I will give the older 2 to one of the girls (my young, first time broody), and the 4 younger ones to my DC girl that is a proven mom. (They were on sale at TSC. This year, seems whenever they have a few 'fliers', on the weekend, they all go on sale......$1 each for the 2 straight run EEs - the two older ones) and $2 each for the 4 younger pullets (one an EE the other 3 black sex linked - they aren't as prolific a layer as a red sex link - regardless of the specific name - and are half BR (boys have yellow head spot and are barred, girls are not barred and frequently have a bit of red in their hackles - I'll cross them back with a BR roo)

Meet the newbies:

The whole bunch
View attachment 3614014

Mr. Scaredy pants he hugged my hand for a long time before he 'stood up' a bit. But I do suspect it is a boy based on early comb development - we will see, thoughView attachment 3614016View attachment 3614017


The second EE straight run (again, a bit older than the others. She has very pretty muted markings on her wings:
View attachment 3614022View attachment 3614024

The youngsters: 3 Black star pullets and one EE pullet:
View attachment 3614028View attachment 3614029View attachment 3614030View attachment 3614031

The last one has no white on her wings, and already has a bit of red seeping through as a rusty colour on her head. The first and second black stars have white on their elbow and wing tips, respectively. And the first is the EE pullet. It doesn't show well in the pic, but she has quite puffy cheeks, so I am sure will have a nice little muff going a she grows.

I needed more chicks like I need another hole in my head - I already have 57 (15 are slow-grow meat birds - the rest are 'keepers' except for the 'extra' roos) But, I just couldn't let my girl continue to sit - especially my sweet DC girl - she has lost so much weight, even with me making sure she gets up in the am and clipping both food and water to her nest box......and she is such a good mom - I just had to do this for her...and the young girl - fiercely determined to hatch...her too...now hopefully they will both accept the chicks. I'm pretty confident about my DC girl, but unsure about my youngster ( she is a black Jersey Giant pullet, just under 1 year old this week) I am putting the slightly older chicks with her because as long as they can find the food and water (which I will show them), they should be okay as long as they get to nest in the box with her at night for warmth ( meaning the closeness of the nest box - since they are partially feathered, and it isn't too cold, as long as they have that closed space and each other, I think they will be okay if she doesn't cotton to them. I can easily set up a crib so they will have their own protected space with food and water to get away from the bigs if she doesn't protect them/adopt them.

How are the chickies? Did both girls accept their babies ?

 

[rural mouse]

If any of those EE’s don’t work out for you, you can send them straight away to me! Thanks.

You want EEs? I can get you eggs for hatching...lots of eggs

 

[rural mouse]

I used to have a green chicken but she has been replaced by a blue one. Is that the new model? An upgrade? She isn’t saying!


View attachment 3614192

Sometimes she'll be purple, too.