Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Shadrach]

I absolutely LOVED working as a vet tech. The vet I worked for is a very caring and smart veterinarian. I still take my animals to him this very day.

Anna has wanted to be a veterinarian since she first understood was jobs were. I have video of her kindergarten graduation where she states she wants to be a veterinarian when she grows up. I will do everything in my power to help her reach that goal.

It's a very hard road. A friend of my Neice wanted to be a midwife from a very early age. She was made for the job. Both vet and midwife are reputedly tougher courses than being a medical doctor.
My neices friend did manage it and in another country having to learn another language as she studied.

 

[ChicoryBlue]

This is exciting. If Hazel is getting ready to lay that would also explain her irritation. Here's hoping she delivers that first beautiful egg soon!

There was another egg in the box at 10am this morning. In a new nest-bowl away from the first nest-bowl. It is slightly lighter in color, and a more elongated shape than yesterday's egg. I could take a picture of them both if you want. I believe it arrived earlier than Queenie's arrived yesterday too. Can a hen that is starting laying have different-shaped eggs from one day to the next? Or could this be Hazel's? I will check again now (about 4pm) but at 2-3pm there was not another egg. I thought that they could be smaller than they will be later as a hen grows into the process, but can they be a different shape and color too? Hazel has quieted down when I was out there (Queenie too), still greeting me but not the incessant moan call of before.

 

[CrazyChookChookLady]

There was another egg in the box at 10am this morning. In a new nest-bowl away from the first nest-bowl. It is slightly lighter in color, and a more elongated shape than yesterday's egg. I could take a picture of them both if you want. I believe it arrived earlier than Queenie's arrived yesterday too. Can a hen that is starting laying have different-shaped eggs from one day to the next? Or could this be Hazel's? I will check again now (about 4pm) but at 2-3pm there was not another egg. I thought that they could be smaller than they will be later as a hen grows into the process, but can they be a different shape and color too? Hazel has quieted down when I was out there (Queenie too), still greeting me but not the incessant moan call of before.

I'd say Hazel started laying! Yes pictures please!!!

 

[RoyalChick]

I'd say Hazel started laying! Yes pictures please!!!

Yes me too - though it is the case at least with my Princesses that the eggs from one hen are far from identical day to day.

 

[LozzyR]

I really love all these stories! Can anyone help me out by helping me identify the sex of my 11 week old chicks? I treasure anyone's opinion!!! Here is the link.https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/help-my-chicks-are-11-weeks-old-any-ideas-not-cockerals-i-hope.1437919/#post-23811994

I don’t have any experience with cockerels. I see the consensus says they’re all female. They’re also all gorgeous!

 

[featherhead007]

This was the right thing to do. Please let us know how he is doing this morning.

Jaffar is back to his little Cochin self today. But he sure liked sitting on my chest watching movies with me last night.

 

[LozzyR]

What a knack for understatement!

Understating is a very Aussie thing.

 

[Shadrach]

There was another egg in the box at 10am this morning. In a new nest-bowl away from the first nest-bowl. It is slightly lighter in color, and a more elongated shape than yesterday's egg. I could take a picture of them both if you want. I believe it arrived earlier than Queenie's arrived yesterday too. Can a hen that is starting laying have different-shaped eggs from one day to the next? Or could this be Hazel's? I will check again now (about 4pm) but at 2-3pm there was not another egg. I thought that they could be smaller than they will be later as a hen grows into the process, but can they be a different shape and color too? Hazel has quieted down when I was out there (Queenie too), still greeting me but not the incessant moan call of before.

I would think you have two layers.
New layers tend to start off with smaller eggs and lay bigger as time passes but the shape usually stays the same.

 

[RebeccaBoyd]

Well I can't put it off any longer, tonight at roosting time going to have to put the leg bands on the Marans. If not soon i'll not be able to tell any of the girls apart. This is especially true between Daisy and her daughter Clover. Clover is the spitting image of her mother, and as she's maturing and her comb and wattles are turning redder if they are next to each other the only difference is Clover has a tad more copper in her hackles. I took these pictures a few minutes ago. You tell me if you can tell them apart lol.

 

[ChicoryBlue]

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I don't know if your a baker or not, but everything tastes better if you you fresh eggs in your recipe. Through the holidays me and mom made about 10 New York style cheesecakes, numerous cookies and pumpkin rolls only using my fresh eggs. You could tell a difference, especially with the cheesecakes, they are so much better with fresh eggs instead of store bought ones. The first time we made them we tested it out, made one with store bought and one with fresh....family voted, fresh from now on.

We've been getting our eggs and a few frozen meat chickens from a nice family farm about a half-mile from here, they free-range their chickens on a large amount of acreage, though the chickens tend to stay by the coop area (there isn't any cover in the open fields except for a couple of shade structures). They sell their eggs out fast, so I think they've not been storing them long when we get them.

So when they started selling eggs and we made the switch from store-bought about two years ago I noticed the flavor right away. I like them so much better, I recall making a pudding and being impressed. I also use eggs in bread and sweet quick breads. I just made a key lime pie with three yolks. It is a fuller flavor than store-bought, and now I'm used to it and expect it! So although this first egg was a darker orange and it tasted delicious it wasn't much different from the farm's eggs. I wonder, our chickens haven't been eating grass and bugs lately, maybe there will be a difference again come Summer?