Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[notabitail]

I think I'm gonna have to clean some poopy butts and trim some feathers today. Any tips for me?

Get their butts wet. Pull off the poop. I did this with my hands, then washed my hands super well. Leave angry chook in sun to dry.

This was a couple years ago, and they had poopy butt real bad.

They were angry I took photos of them. Especially because they're now on the internet.

 

[notabitail]

Just realized we don't have any safety scissors and I don't trust myself to not accidentally poke my girls with regular scissors

Grandma is planning on making a trip to the dollar store soon, she said she'll pick up a pair then.

Now I'm debating on whether I want to wait to trim, or wash them for now. Some of their booties are really nasty

Just wash. Trim later.

 

[TOMTE]

Get their butts wet. Pull off the poop. I did this with my hands, then washed my hands super well. Leave angry chook in sun to dry.
View attachment 4065046
View attachment 4065047
This was a couple years ago, and they had poopy butt real bad.

Oh, poor things

That'll work in summer but it's only 54⁰F and cloudy today. Poor things would freeze in the wind

 

[notabitail]

Oh, poor things

That'll work in summer but it's only 54⁰F and cloudy today. Poor things would freeze in the wind

Oh yeah. That photo was from June. Very warm outside then.

 

[Sylvester017]

I love all 3. I also brought home a piece of meatloaf from work for my dinner. As usual our 2 big pans sold out. It's ok though, my boss told me as soon as I walked in to stop waiting to see if there would be any leftover at the end of the night. I got my favorite piece, a corner. Today I will fix myself a burger or a salad. I will not touch chicken and dumplings due to childhood truama from my Uncle and dad. Daddy had over 30 hens and my uncle went out and killed my personal pet hen who was at the time around 8 years old and the only dominique hen on the place for chicken and dumplings for dinner. It was not daddy's fault, he told him not to touch my hen but my uncle was a jerk and got the friendliest and easiest to catch.

Similar childhood traumas happened to me ~ I'm 80 but those childhood traumas keep coming up anyway. I had 2 baby Pekin ducklings won at a bazaar that I brought home. We lived in the city at the time but my mom was a farm mom & had no objections, she had fun playing w/ them too ~ but at 8 weeks unknown to me she processed the juveniles & made soup & when I came home from school she served duck soup! I couldnt eat it! Not her fault ~ we couldn't really have poultry in the city & it was a way to solve the issue & not waste giving them away to someone else's table. But to this day I can't eat duck .

As traumatic as the ducklings were to me, chicken slaughter day on the farm when I was about 6 left an indelible memory w/ me. We had some relatives on nearby farms & we helped each other on processing days. My mom had no idea how watching the slaughter of so many chickens would traumatize my sensitive nature. I believe that's why she kept the duckling processing out of my view later ~ moms know their children's nature. In my mind I can rationalize farm life cycles but in my heart it still hurts .

My personal goal is allow all our chickens to live out their lives. They are useful to teach younger generations, keep flock order, fertilize garden soil, insect control, entertainment, & pet value. DH cannot eat any bird we have & the few we had to rehome only went to a couple farm friends we knew who felt the same way ~ one was a vegetarian & rescued unwanted animals & battery hens. Rare to find such people nowadays.

 

[Sylvester017]

Also what about Gapeworm? Anyone ever treat for that?

That was our 1st horror reaction expecting Gapeworm as the worst possible problem when we heard Mini wheezing. We expect the worst when we self-diagnose! Nope, she just needed an antibiotic shot & Metcam & she was fine. It was just something respiratory & we caught it immediately w/ treatment.

Mini had so many health issues. She was our experience in dealing w/ many chicken health issues ~ the vet saved her so many times but finally put her down at 6-1/2 yrs when she had a bleeding ovarian tumor stuck to a rubbery egg outside her vent. She is also the Silkie who scratched so hard in a wooden nestbox she tore off a couple toes & toenails. I think God was trying to take her home the 1st time she went wheezing to save us future health issues w/her but we stubbornly/lovingly kept saving her thru the years .

 

[TOMTE]

That was our 1st horror reaction expecting Gapeworm as the worst possible problem when we heard Mini wheezing. We expect the worst when we self-diagnose! Nope, she just needed an antibiotic shot & Metcam & she was fine. It was just something respiratory & we caught it immediately w/ treatment.

Mini had so many health issues. She was our experience in dealing w/ many chicken health issues ~ the vet saved her so many times but finally put her down at 6-1/2 yrs when she had a bleeding ovarian tumor stuck to a rubbery egg outside her vent. She is also the Silkie who scratched so hard in a wooden nestbox she tore off a couple toes & toenails. I think God was trying to take her home the 1st time she went wheezing to save us future health issues w/her but we stubbornly/lovingly kept saving her thru the years .
View attachment 4065098

 

[Sylvester017]

I got a mixed bundle of chicks, it could have been any of the breeds they offered. I ordered 10 and they sent 13.

Shipping went smoothly and they communicated very well. Every chick made it safely to Ohio.

All were straight run but I got lucky and ended with only 3 boys. I kept one he was Copper Maran but unfortunately he became quite aggressive after one of the hens got taken by a hawk. I really do think this is why he got so aggressive protective but he was also only a yr old at the time so perhaps it was also hormones. Because I had young children and the high level of aggression I did have to rehome him with the disclaimer about his behavior. He was stunning though.

I didn’t lose one bird to illness and they all laid well. I ended up with 3 2nd gen Olive eggers they call Moss Eggers, 2 Azure eggers, 1 Silverudds Blue, 2 Welsummers, 2 copper Marans, and 1 Ameraucana.
It was a lovely mix of colors in the basket.

I think Alchemist Farms are good breeders and try hard to do well by their customers and their birds.

It's cool to work w/ these smaller family farm breeders but it's been my experience that there is sometimes a wait to get the order filled & does cost more than production hatchery chicks. I waited 9 months for my Buckaboo Farm three DNA-sexed Silkie order to be filled to my specifications. & I found a breeder w/i driving distance so I could pickup my order. At $85 per chick I was not risking shipping.

 

[Sylvester017]

I will not touch chicken and dumplings due to childhood truama from my Uncle and dad. Daddy had over 30 hens and my uncle went out and killed my personal pet hen who was at the time around 8 years old and the only dominique hen on the place for chicken and dumplings for dinner. It was not daddy's fault, he told him not to touch my hen but my uncle was a jerk and got the friendliest and easiest to catch.

Dominiques are very outgoing, unafraid, talkative, people-friendly, flock-friendly breed from chicks to adults ~ no wonder they are easy to catch. The adult feathers are also very soft for mattresses & pillows & fly-fishing. It's no wonder the Pilgrims raised Dominiques ~ egg layers, self-sustaining broodies/foragers, bedding feathers, smaller rose combs/wattles fare better in cold temps than straight or floppy combs, easy to catch for meat processing ~ basically a good all-around farm bird w/many uses. I love them because they are so sweet ~ great temperaments.
JEWLZ

 

[featherhead007]

I love all 3. I also brought home a piece of meatloaf from work for my dinner. As usual our 2 big pans sold out. It's ok though, my boss told me as soon as I walked in to stop waiting to see if there would be any leftover at the end of the night. I got my favorite piece, a corner. Today I will fix myself a burger or a salad. I will not touch chicken and dumplings due to childhood truama from my Uncle and dad. Daddy had over 30 hens and my uncle went out and killed my personal pet hen who was at the time around 8 years old and the only dominique hen on the place for chicken and dumplings for dinner. It was not daddy's fault, he told him not to touch my hen but my uncle was a jerk and got the friendliest and easiest to catch.

That must have hurt you bad. Sorry for your pain