Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Ponypoor]

Got a cold snap coming. Have high wind warning for this afternoon: 30-40 mph winds, gusts up to 65.

Forecasts end of week/ over the weekend: snow, high of single digits (+ or -) F, lows of -double digits, almost -20F.

For those on C thermometer, that's high of appox -17, lows of -30.

Fresh bedding into coop tomorrow, extra protein treats for hunting in the coop (including live mealworms), and birds will NOT want out in the cold.

They will have something to do inside - keep them out of trouble!

I should see if Pet Smart has any live mealworms. Bet those would go down nicely!

Supposed to turn chilly here also, but nothing too dramatic. 12F next Tuesday/ 7F over night. Nothing too cold.

 

[notabitail]

We got the cold snap here and I think it might come again tomorrow. With wind and everything.

Got a cold snap coming. Have high wind warning for this afternoon: 30-40 mph winds, gusts up to 65.

Forecasts end of week/ over the weekend: snow, high of single digits (+ or -) F, lows of -double digits, almost -20F.

For those on C thermometer, that's high of appox -17, lows of -30.

Fresh bedding into coop tomorrow, extra protein treats for hunting in the coop (including live mealworms), and birds will NOT want out in the cold.

 

[Ponypoor]

Ooh. When did you start giving her the calcium? To gauge how long until it becomes effective. And does she eat it out of your hand, or are you putting it down her throat?

Eggshells tend to run thin in my flock- Becky’s and Quincy’s are also mighty thin. They, too, don’t seem to enjoy bulking up on oyster shell. Dottie, however, spends quite some time at the oyster cup in the evenings and when she does grace us with an egg it has a lovely shell.

I started about a week ago with Larry, I shove it down her gob she is pretty good about it, I just sort of nab her in a body hold between my knees to pin her wings, and quickly pull down on her wattles and shove it down the right side of her throat so I miss her trachea.

I cut my tablets in half so I make sure the smooth coated end goes down first!

Then she gets a treat of mealworms or horse feed, she likes her grub so I could likely just give her layer pellets and she’d be happy haha.

We shall see tonight when I get home if her egg is broke, she was in the nestbox when I headed out the barn door this morning.

Oh and on another note, Fluffy didn’t lay an egg yesterday and was holed up in a nestbox at roost time. She better not get any ideas on being broody!

 

[notabitail]

I started about a week ago with Larry, I shove it down her gob she is pretty good about it, I just sort of nab her in a body hold between my knees to pin her wings, and quickly pull down on her wattles and shove it down the right side of her throat so I miss her trachea.

I cut my tablets in half so I make sure the smooth coated end goes down first!

Then she gets a treat of mealworms or horse feed, she likes her grub so I could likely just give her layer pellets and she’d be happy haha.

We shall see tonight when I get home if her egg is broke, she was in the nestbox when I headed out the barn door this morning.

Oh and on another note, Fluffy didn’t lay an egg yesterday and was holed up in a nestbox at roost time. She better not get any ideas on being broody!

One of those Brahmas of ours stayed in the box taking a year to lay a egg. She stayed in past dark. Make sure her and Fluffy weren't chatting on Beakbook.

 

[RebeccaBoyd]

There are two preventives i have experience with. First a special air bed which might be a hard sell if she doesn't already have a sore depending on who is deciding. The second is a real sheep skin pad, it really helped with my mom.

The sore has not fully broken open, we thankfully have kept it from getting that far. She has 2 different donut pillows. Hates them, put them under her and they last 5 minutes. So we try to keep her off of it by putting pillows under her and rotating her to lay on her sides. That makes it about 10 minutes and she is crying wanting to lay flat of her back, but then she complains again that we got to get her off of her bottom. The nurse thinks some of this is dementia related the not-cooperating. She thought the compression mattress would be the best option. She witnessed our struggles and her complaining if there was so much as a wrinkle under the sheet and decided she would not have it so gel it is.

 

[RebeccaBoyd]

I started about a week ago with Larry, I shove it down her gob she is pretty good about it, I just sort of nab her in a body hold between my knees to pin her wings, and quickly pull down on her wattles and shove it down the right side of her throat so I miss her trachea.

I cut my tablets in half so I make sure the smooth coated end goes down first!

Then she gets a treat of mealworms or horse feed, she likes her grub so I could likely just give her layer pellets and she’d be happy haha.

We shall see tonight when I get home if her egg is broke, she was in the nestbox when I headed out the barn door this morning.

Oh and on another note, Fluffy didn’t lay an egg yesterday and was holed up in a nestbox at roost time. She better not get any ideas on being broody!

Sadly Fluffy may be talking to Goose. Goose is broody, has been for a few days. Nope, not right now girly.

 

[Sally PB]

Supposed to turn chilly here also, but nothing too dramatic. 12F next Tuesday/ 7F over night. Nothing too cold.

14F/8F next Tuesday for us. Since it's been so warm, that will feel pretty dramatic I bet!

I will probably not leave the people door open that day. I usually do for the light, as it's pretty gloomy these days.

 

[Ponypoor]

We are comparitively lucky with our weather. Snow, but just barely above freezing temps. It'll change to rain later. The threat of a power outage is ever present, though low for right now. Unless a car slides off the road into a power pole. It happens.

Next week, we could have low teens for highs, and single digits (above 0) for lows. The pullets will get their first taste of real Michigan winter. I'm hoping we get enough snow THAT STAYS to insulate the ground from the frigid temps. We had a winter like this in 1982 (65 on Christmas Day, then bitter cold, and snow on Memorial Day) and it killed all of a local orchard's peach trees.

Granted, peaches can be iffy in Michigan. Hoping the cold next week doesn't hurt local orchards, plants, and bees.

Oh I hear ya on the Peach trees, you and I get about the same weather, I don’t think you’re too far from me as the crow flies. On the same latitude it looks.

Last Spring I had a lovely warm Spring then in May I had and overnight of -7C and it killed all the blossoms on my peach, pear and plum trees, also damaged the leaves - I thought for sure the trees would die, but thankfully they didn’t, I am hoping this winter will be mild and a nice warm Spring with no extremes.

Meanwhile my chooks are loving it up in the barn, they have figured out that if the straw bale string is the least bit loose they can (and do) tear the whole thing apart this morning I made sure I was kneeling on a bale to re-tie the strings after I used part of the bale - and right there on the bale overseeing the whole thing was Eli-too. She is way too smart!

Eli-too as a chicklet
This still makes me smile

 

[Pastel the Rooster]

Very cold outside here today. Frost everywhere. My symptoms are not getting any better and I have no energy to do anything.

I’m sorry. Since I’ve only been stopping by for a few minutes a day (if even) could you remind me what you have? I’m pretty sure I saw something about Covid?

 

[Ponypoor]

Sadly Fluffy may be talking to Goose. Goose is broody, has been for a few days. Nope, not right now girly.

I just saw her filling her face so guess she isn’t broody, maybe she just didn’t want to get up on the ledge after everyone else did.

Meanwhile Marty, Henny and the babies are up on the ledge! not so worried with the babies they can fly really well! But Marty flies worth - and 30” is still a good ways down for wee silkie!

Looks so empty with just those four in there.