Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[featherhead007]

Larry was trying to decide if she should go with the light chooks or the dark chooks...

Racism even in Canada

 

[Ponypoor]

Racism even in Canada

Oh no she wanted to ensure that as part of the chores line she was in the proper location, I told her she needed to be right in the centre with the dark chooks to her one side and the light ones to the other - that way she was the centre of attention

I don't think she believed me though!

 

[Ponypoor]

View attachment 4262117
This is similar to the one I have, mine came in a kit. The circled file is the one I used. I have small dog nail clippers that I used to trim the beak back, and this to shape it. Mine has 2 speeds clockwise, 2 speeds anticlockwise. It isn't very powerful but it is gentle.

Ooooo very handy - need one of those for sure!

 

[rural mouse]

This is a whole new field of expertise - reverse engineering genetics.
Lots of folk do the forward version (if I cross A with B, what might the babies look like), but this is waaaay more sophisticated than that!

I've HAD to do it this way. Hatch chicks, watch development, wait a min! Where did that come from? I though XYZ and ABC were the parents, but that's impossible, so who are the parents?

 

[featherhead007]

There’s no disrespect worse than being ignored. My new ladies show no interest in the two roosters (Rooster Cogburn and Gizmo) or any of their fancy dancing. It’s pathetic that they keep trying. The ladies stand firm, and just walk away when the dancing starts!

 

[featherhead007]

I graduated college in 3 years because of them.

View attachment 4259746

Teaching chickens to clean rain gutters Brilliant!

 

[Ponypoor]

Happy Caturday everyone
Éowyn’s Andean relatives caught on camera.

And a bit of the back story here.
https://www.thecooldown.com/outdoors/andean-mountain-cat-trail-camera-footage/

Amazing! Did you see how long mama's tail was?!

 

[RoyalChick]

Is this the tidbitting sound? Mr. Chips found leftover scratch grains that I scattered for Piglet while he was locked out to give her some peace.
That is Geronimo looking at her preferred nest box at the end.

 

[featherhead007]

Seems a bit Topsy turvy in there!

Left foot green, right wing red, wow it’s a game of TWISTER!!

 

[rural mouse]

Yes I have two settings on the ones I have too.

Possibly you can slow down heat loss and drafts by laying cardboard, a tarp or a blanket over the top of each roosting area, over the tops of the walls, or pinned to the inside and spanning wall-to-wall?

I like this idea as a little separator, a mental divider, for platform roosting, thanks! Don't need it at this time but good to know. It's just the board on its edge? They can hop over it if they want, correct? Is it a 1x6 or 1x4?

That's @SimpleJenn 's post

It is, isn't it? Having made myself slog through each discussion I can see glimmers of understanding poking through the mud in my brain, at least at the concept level.
Supposedly there are "rules" for each genetic component. What makes either forward or reverse engineering ridiculously hard is that the heritage of each "case" is not fully known, so what might pop up? How many generations of birds does one have to see to approximate certainty? @rural mouse

Depends upon the breeds. Cheetah came in as a gold penciled hamburg. Relatively uncommon. 90% of his offspring have rose combs (9 out of 10). The 10% (1 of 10) is Shan who has a walnut comb. The ONLY way that could happen is when crossed with a dark brahma (pea comb). This tells me 3 things: 1. Cheetah is pure rose comb (RRpp), not partial like many wyandottes are (Rrpp). 2. Dark brahmas are LIKELY pure pea comb (rrPP). 3. Shan is both rose and pea aka walnut (RrPp).

Inferences are 1. Cheetah's genetic make up is pretty straightforward rather than diluted to improve something (and introducing unexpected stuff). 2. My dark brahmas are likely in similar positions genetically, but not enough evidence to be definitive.

Whiskey, on the other hand, is from a multi generational flock with new blood of assorted breeds added from time to time. The new blood is from breeds that have been "tinkered" with and are readily available. That means that more variables are in play with every chick. If 1 parent is from one of the less commonly found breeds, it's easier to track down where a trait is from. More mixes make for more variables and greater odds of unexpected popping up....sometimes from quite a ways back. I'm still working on figuring out some of those ...and there's always the recessive traits (like mottling) that can hid for many generations before showing up again.