Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[BY Bob]

First Frost = Good News for the Ladies

If you see that sparkle on the roof of my shed, that is our first frost of the year.

How is this good news for the ladies? Depending on the amount of damage, I may just open the garden up to them again. Lot's of delicious leftovers and soft earth to dig in.

 

[BY Bob]

Lilly wins the Coveted Roosting Spot

One of the sad things about fall is the lack of time I get with the girls in the morning and evening. Last night I was sitting out with them as they started to go to bed. Way too early for my tastes but the sun was going down.

As you know, I have been interested in what is going on with the pecking order since I saw everyone huddled together on the roost. So I watched for who would go in first.

Hattie was first to bed. Once Lilly saw Hattie had gone in for the night, she sprinted accross the yard to the coop. Of course she was too late and Hattie had the best spot on the roost as determined by Daisy, the greatest hen ever, back when the coop was new.

Now I can't see what is going on inside the coop but I can hear Hattie's yelps. It is clear that unlike the normal bed time shenanigans, Lilly is hurting her. Hattie never yelps like that. I assume that Lilly found a spot sans feathers where she could inflict pain in order to get Hattie to give up the spot. So I flipped on the coop cam and started recording so I could see what was going on.

In the 2 minute video below, you will see Hattie eventually give up and hop down off the roost, use her step to get back up and settle near the roost extension with Mal & Aurora.

You will see Mal roost up on the extension as well as Aurora look in, change her mind and come back out to check on me, run past the door a few times, and then go in and settle for the night. You will also note that despite all of the pecking order meaness going on between Aurora and Mal, there is none on the roost. I am not quite sure what that means.

 

[MaryJanet]

Hattie's tail is quite sparse from her moult! She may be feeling a bit over-sensitive if she has new feathers coming through. At the same time, Lily is quite persistent and mean.

Any ideas why that's the best spot?

 

[MaryJanet]

First Frost = Good News for the Ladies

If you see that sparkle on the roof of my shed, that is our first frost of the year.
View attachment 1942493
How is this good news for the ladies? Depending on the amount of damage, I may just open the garden up to them again. Lot's of delicious leftovers and soft earth to dig in.

Wow! They'll be so hapoy!

 

[Ribh]

Mine love getting in my garden. Lots of nice leaf litter to rummage through. Me, less than happy. They can spread a little a long, long way...

 

[BY Bob]

Hattie's tail is quite sparse from her moult! She may be feeling a bit over-sensitive if she has new feathers coming through. At the same time, Lily is quite persistent and mean.

Any ideas why that's the best spot?

It is the best spot because Daisy, the greatest hen ever, decided it was the best spot. Hence everyone wants it.

Actually it probably is because it is the furthest spot on the roost from the automated coop door. Fortunately it is closet to the door I open on the coop to gather them up. So that works well for me.

 

[MaryJanet]

Hmmm so if the roost was orientated acroos instead of lengthwise, there might be two optimal roosting spots, except for their recollections of Daisy's preferences.

 

[BY Bob]

Mine love getting in my garden. Lots of nice leaf litter to rummage through. Me, less than happy. They can spread a little a long, long way...

I no longer till my little garden. I pile everything into two large piles and they spread it all back out for me. We will do that multiple times until it freezes and then again right after it thaws. The flock will spend hours in the garden. They love to really get those feet in deep.

Daisy, the greatest hen ever, was funny in that she did not like to dig so much on her own. She would just stand next to Patsy. Patsy loved to dig. Daisy just took first claim of any goodie that Pasty dug up. Priviledge of the Alfa. In the photo below you can see Daisy taking dibs from Patsy while Lilly is off to her own.

 

[BY Bob]

Hmmm so if the roost was orientated acroos instead of lengthwise, there might be two optimal roosting spots, except for their recollections of Daisy's preferences.

Could be. We will likely never know as well.

The roost extension was put on so Lilly could get away from Patsy. that's where I believe Lilly learned her nastiness at roosting time. Patsy was so bad that Daisy, the greatest hen ever, would have to stop her from pecking at Lilly by grabbing Patsy's comb and holding it. Even shaking Patsy's head by her comb sometimes. That always seemed to settle things down.

 

[MaryJanet]

Yikes!! I thought Janet was bad, but she's comparatively mild.