Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Kris5902]

Not dead or injured. Just catching some rays and having a deep philosophical discussion with a friend. Diana and Maggie having a moment together.
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I love sunbathing photos! I’ll have to share some of my favourites. These are wonderful pictures!

How many times with visitors, even some other chicken owners, have I heard “what is wrong with that chicken? Is it ok? That doesn’t look right!” To both sun and dust bathing activities! I’ve also heard similar reactions to crows on anthills. The crows in Vancouver will sometime do this sort of thing over an active ant hill. The ants will literally take the pests (lice, mites, etc) off of them!

 

[BY Bob]

GAAH!

Aurora is still limping, standing on one leg. If they are eating and Hattie comes by, Aurora quickly skidders away.

However.......

She is back to terrorizing those under her. It started with Sansa at feeding time. She aggressively kept her from food. Then at roosting time she would not let Sansa in the house. She ran Sydney out of the coop 4 times until I went out.

I am back to frustrated. What am I going to do! I have no idea right now.

 

[Kris5902]

I think their knowledge of cows may have been limited as the cow pees through the udder and is described as 'cow well hung'. Just saying. But in spite of bovine anatomical ignorance, I thought it was hilarious.

Oh, I agree on the hilarious point! It had me In stitches to be sure... but at the ‘cow well hung’ comment I just couldn’t stop picturing our herd (Especially poor Gus) scratching their heads and thinking “ummmm, you’re doing it wrong!”

Funny aside, our friend who also had cattle (still working out what to do about his last lonely cow) called us when she last calved to help tag and use the elastrator on “him”. After much finagling, separating her from mom, and catching her, DH (both of us now covered in mud and holding the calf) started trying to find the testicles... we were told it was a bull, just trying to help out our friend, but there was nothing there to remove! And a fun time was had by all! (Umbilical cords can look a lot like male cow parts!)

 

[Kris5902]

Hardback ordered today & looking forward to it!

I’ve sent an email to hubby with the details of the book as a very subtle Xmas hint.

yep... I’m so sensing a book club forming already!

 

[BY Bob]

I keep debating the ethics of training Gus like a warhorse, or at least to accidentally nudge unpleasant in-laws off steep cliffs... but he’s just so sweet (when he isn’t storming my chicken housing for snacks!) I have recently encountered some “small issues” with flying chickens. Not just Tailless, but Zip Tie, my flying MEAT bird! I have seen her gain altitude; how, with those stubby wings I do not know... She has now learned that if she flies to the top of the plastic snow fencing and lands on it, with her awesome 8-10lbs of weight, she can drop it enough for her sisters to also manage a jailbreak! Unfortunately this separates them from their cover from Ariel predators, and dry covered run area in rain.

Might I suggest clipping her stubby wing? I am not a fan of this but maybe that would convince her that flying is not easy.

 

[Kris5902]

GAAH!

Aurora is still limping, standing on one leg. If they are eating and Hattie comes by, Aurora quickly skidders away.

However.......

She is back to terrorizing those under her. It started with Sansa at feeding time. She aggressively kept her from food. Then at roosting time she would not let Sansa in the house. She ran Sydney out of the coop 4 times until I went out.

I am back to frustrated. What am I going to do! I have no idea right now.

Hopefully this will all settle down once the molting is over, I don’t know what else to say. I don’t think you can increase your flock size much more, or that available roosting space is a pressure. A rooster addition wouldn’t even be a guaranteed fix... she is just right out of sorts.

 

[Kris5902]

Might I suggest clipping her stubby wing? I am not a fan of this but maybe that would convince her that flying is not easy.

Oh, that’s exactly what DH said when I told them what she has done the last two days! Naughty girl... but they are used to free ranging, they are only temporarily contains because of Roosties foot problems. As long as she doesn’t hurt herself... I mean really, she is too fat to be flying!

 

[Kris5902]

Well, count me in on the book club! I really, really, tried to be good... and although I agree with you @Shadrach on the superiority of a Hardcover... I just couldn’t accept the price jump here! Kindle $15, Paperback $25. Hardcover $78! (It didn’t even say if it was a signed first edition or something???) basically all my livestock and pasture/grazing/gardening books are paperbacks though, so I suppose it’s not the end of the world.

 

[LozzyR]

Well, count me in on the book club! I really, really, tried to be good... and although I agree with you @Shadrach on the superiority of a Hardcover... I just couldn’t accept the price jump here! Kindle $15, Paperback $25. Hardcover $78! (It didn’t even say if it was a signed first edition or something???) basically all my livestock and pasture/grazing/gardening books are paperbacks though, so I suppose it’s not the end of the world.

Yep, I went with paperback too. I will make sure I look after it though.

 

[Aussie-Chookmum]

You probably won’t get it in time for Chrissy though.

As long as I get it eventually that's the main thing.