Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[My Pretty Pekins]

It was a sunny day here at the Chicken Palace but there is still a lot of snow so I have to balance on my scrap plywood road to get over the snow mountain to visit the Princesses.
I really thought they should go out and get some fresh air.
Dotty solved the problem of wading in snow the obvious way. And being Dotty she headed straight for the food.

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She hadn’t realized the nasty white stuff was all around the feeder. So she did a sort of mid-air u-turn overturning the feeder.

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And made for the high day roost.

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Where she admired the view just like she had intended all along (of course!). Hold on, where did Minnie spring from?!

Hold on, is Dotty a Crested Cream Legbar? She looks just like my Pecan and is clearly equally bonkers!

 

[Aussie-Chookmum]

A Little bit of sad news. I lost the last chick that hatched last night, they one mom cracked the egg on thinking it was a dud. 3 days of round the clock care and it seemed to be coming around until it just crashed yesterday evening and started seizing and was gone in 2 minutes. I have horrible guilt over this. But on a happier note, the other 4 are thriving and being little pigs. After the final brooder clean up last night I refilled their feeder for them and woke up this morning to find out they were ready to try dustbathing. Over night they threw half of their feed out and were trying to roll in it. So I went out and got a tub of sawdust for them and while I took out their brooder box to clean again gave them their tub of sawdust. It was a big hit, and going to let them play in it several times a day now so maybe, just maybe they will not empty their feeder again for fun.View attachment 2515951



https://www.facebook.com/100003915274138/videos/pcb.2031739356966554/2031738643633292

So sorry you lost the chick you were fighting so hard for.

Your remaining four look healthy as well as adorable. I look forward to seeing them grow.

 

[Aussie-Chookmum]

All of them are Plymouth Barred Rocks and. I’m under attack. They are all on top ov me on the floor chirping and pooping. So beautiful!

Sounds like they have adopted you very quickly Alex.

Now we have 2 sets of babies to watch grow up. Yours and Rebecca's.

 

[MaryJanet]

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I am naming her Lucky. Poor Baby... she ate a little bit and drank, but didn’t gorge herself which seems good. The dingleberry from hell is how I would describe her back end. I clipped one growing in feather that bled a bit in cutting it off. She didn’t really seem to mind. She was also unable to preen her back end at all, and the lice were completely Out of control. I rarely bother with gloves, as I’m usually half covered in poop, and have just accepted this as my natural state; I broke out the nitrile gloves for this one. She’s too weak to really evade me yet which helped a lot. I powdered her with some of my precious remaining Carbaryl powder I found hidden in my cargo trailer. Her tail is a little cockeyed now.View attachment 2515248
Here is what she was under... with Zip Tie (of course) modeling in it.
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Our current theory is that she was trying to stand on the edge and drink and managed to flip it over on herself. US Size 10 men’s boot also for size reference. I still feel incredibly stupid. I’ve been walking past her for days. Arduinna was jumping on it. She is going to get a lot of treats, I’m sure. She’s sleeping in the chicken trailer, confined to a tall dog crate for now. I didn’t want her getting pushed around too much at Roosting.
Edit to add: or spread any surviving lice. I was ok with the thought of her having been taken by a predator, but the level of guilt I’m feeling right now... I don’t have the words to express it. That this happened under my nose.

Let's focus on the 80+ chickens who thrive under your care every day.

 

[MaryJanet]

Here is one
Her name is Shanny

Hi Shanny!

 

[featherhead007]

Sounds like they have adopted you very quickly Alex.

Now we have 2 sets of babies to watch grow up. Yours and Rebecca's.

What’s not to love about me?

 

[featherhead007]

One of my new little ones couldn’t get to sleep, so neither could I. She’s been peeping in my ear for 10 minutes now
I guess it must be hard on baby chicks who hatched without a mama hen. She’s probably very confused. (But this little girl has me now)

 

[Scrambles83]

Ask and ye shall receive... I don’t know if I should put these behind a spoiler, or if I can even pay chicken tax with these pictures. If you could smell them, a spoiler would be needed for sure! If the smell doesn’t go away in the next few days I will be breaking out the chicken bathtub and blow dryer for sure; also for sure, if it comes to that, I will be doing it without any help. It could get interesting as these girls have clearly not been handled at all. In all fairness, my own meat gals need their bums cleaned or trimmed, and their roosting box is overdue for a good cleaning, again, but nothing compared to these poor girls! These pics are before I moved them to the “good grass”, in what I consider to be filthy conditions here. They aren’t really wet in these pictures... that’s all filth. When I picked Roostie up he was in similar shape, but he had cleaned himself up within a few days. (Still no meds in the mail for him, And I’m seriously starting to think about lancing his foot)
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So, this is what $200 will get me in rescue chickens. For a “farmer”, I am a bit of a bleeding heart, aren’t I? I just can’t stand to see an animal suffering. I could have gotten 20 Ameraucana chicks for about the same cost! And those would fit in with my breeding program/business plan but... dumb decision or not, I would rather have my morals and these poor girls, I guess, because here they are! As of this evening they are already starting to look a bit better... their legs and feet aren’t fully covered anymore.

Oh @Kris5902, what a marvellous thing you have done for these ladies

 

[Aussie-Chookmum]

Pepper's Friday Fluffy butt

 

[BY Bob]

Me too.

Thanks ByBob.

Tsuki tax
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She was very white in that photo. Looking sharp.