Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[RoyalChick]

This what I do now...it's a pain, especially if things are loading slow, but it does work!

I don't think I know how to refresh a page on my phone. I will investigate.

 

[RoyalChick]

The things I learn over and over.

By mid day Mel was looking depressed. Despite the door being open she didn’t show any signs of wanting to go out. She was eating, but looking very much as many moulting hens do; just flat and uncomfortable. The wounds I believe are a minor problem but combined with the moult they sum to greater than their individual parts.
Mid afternoon Treacle arrives and this at least generated a bit of life into Mel but nothing exceptional.

I decided to shell some walnuts partly to see if this would encourage Mel out of the house. Treacle was on it immediately and after I had done a couple Mel took a few tentative steps outside. Once out, there was a noticeable improvement in her demeanor. She was more alert, ate grass and scratched up some grit and bugs and went to shelter under the blackthorn bush. coming over to the house a couple of times for pieces of walnut.
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I could hear the rest of Tribe 1 heading slowly towards the house. One second Mel was under the bush and the next running full tilt to join her tribe at the back of the main house. Lots of clucking and herding shuffles by Cillin and no sign of nay problems.
Mel behind the main house happy to be with her tribe.
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About ten minutes later the whole tribe arrived and moved into the house. The transformation in Mel was astounding. She became alert, got next to Fat Bird and close to Cillin and groomed.
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Grooming has been for me a major sign of a recovery. Mel even groomed a bit under the wing with the infected puncture wound.

The acid test came at supper time. Tribe 1 get their treat food then. Mel was in the thick of it as she should be, driving off any juniors that got close.
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She’s gone home tonight with the rest of her tribe. Tonight is going to be the coldest night of the year so far; +1C if the weather people are right. While delighted to see Mel’s attitude improve and to see her head home with her tribe, I was a bit concerned about the cold.
I shouldn’t have worried. When I checked Tribe 1‘s coop Mel had her infected side squeezed up against Fat Bird and her other side against the coop wall. There is a noticeable gap between Fat Bird and I think that’s Fudge. This is no accident. Fat Bird is helping to keep Mel warm and the other away from her.
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I read over and over on BYC the advice that you should isolate a sick or injured chicken and I wonder each time I don’t take that advice if I’m doing the right thing. Gloria my vet and those who know about chickens here tell only isolate if absolutely necessary. Today once again I’ve witnessed the wisdom of their words.



It is true that an isolated chicken is easier to treat but the cost in recovery time it seems is considerable.

Yep, getting the antibiotics into her will be more difficult while she’s out and about and yes there is always the risk that a predator identifies her as a weak chicken. But, there is no doubt in my mind that the extra speed of recovery and the protection of the tribe far outweighs these inconveniences and risks.

Love that she is happily back with her tribe.

 

[featherhead007]

Tuned to Animal Planet!

Exactly!

 

[featherhead007]

Here’s my chicken tax for Sunday

 

[drstratton]

I don't think I know how to refresh a page on my phone. I will investigate.

On my phone (android) all I have to do is pull the page down and it reveals the refresh button on the top right of the screen! Then just hit it and let it reload!

 

[Shadrach]

Shad will likely say no, but I do believe that challenges can happen. I watched Sansa challenge Sydney and Sydney simply bowed down. Obviously it looks like Hattie is not going to back down to Aurora. Interestingly, when I went out, I hand fed Hattie a little corn. Sansa came over to eat out of my hand as well. Normally Hattie would simply look at Sansa and she would back down. Tonight, Hattie growled at her and Sansa did not immediately back off, she came back 3 times and Hattie growled longer and louder each time. Sansa did finally back away.

I wonder if Hattie appears vulnerable for some reason?

No he won't. Challenges do happen. I don't know the flock well enough to come to any worthwhile conclusion except Lilly is boss.

 

[drstratton]

My problem is that if he decides to “play” he just doesn’t kill them, then I have an injured mouse running around the trailer I have to catch and finish off. Charlie either kills them right away or let’s them go. Not that I think putting them outside really prevents them from coming right back in or anything.

Yes, I would rather not have to finish them off, but if they are severely injured I will as a mercy. This is more likely due to a snap trap malfunction than my cat though.

Yeah, I wouldn't want them in my house either!

 

[Shadrach]

Thank you for the updates, we are rooting for her! Question - How is she getting up and down from her indoor roosting box there? I can't really tell the angle of what looks like a ladder in front. Or are you carrying her somehow, maybe lifting her while she stands on your arm?

I lift the pet carrier off the nest box and place it on the floor.

 

[Shadrach]

@Shadrach can you please explain to a newbie what a hen getting isolated would mean? It would be a terrible state emotionally for that hen no doubt. Do they then decline physically just as badly? You mentioned it twice now, to watch out for that. I want to learn. And if you see it happening, what can you do about it?

Here it would mean getting thrown out of the tribe. It rarely happens but Myth got thrown out by Tribe 2. Fortunately she had a relative in Tribe 3 at the time and moved in with them. It happens more often with roosters if they lose a parent/sibling. Cillin, the now main man of Tribe 1 was rejected by the tribe he would have been taken in by if his mother had survived.
I don't know how it would work in a varied breed not related group of chickens.

 

[micstrachan]

Did you figure out what caused it?

Nope.

Aaargh! Maybe I need to put out more traps at the same time. I usually have the zapper inside the coop and a snap trap in the run. But I could litter the run with snap traps at night and try and get more than one at a time.
Go RC! Double down. YOU CAN DO THIS!

You can! One night I saw a rat go into a pile of bricks, so I surrounded it with snap traps. In the morning, a few traps were sprung, but I only caught one rat. I suspect it narrowly escaped a couple before getting caught. Poor thing.