Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[featherhead007]

Sorry, but with all this dog stuff going on, I forgot to pay my chicken tax:

 

[featherhead007]

Isn't a "straight run" of chicks going to be 50% cockerels 50% pullets, in general? I mean this kindly - seems like some sort of chicken roulette to order a bunch of chicks and really be hoping for only one sex Or maybe you don't care and it's really exciting to find out (true that, I'm enjoying watching them grow and finding out). These card emojis aren't really accurate - you can do better predicting the odds in a game of Blackjack with one deck than you can do with chicks in any single order though

I have better odds. The feed store chose females when stocking from the breeder. The owner of the store is good with sexing them, and gave me first choice.

 

[Scrambles83]

I have a scenario I would like your opinions on.
From what I can tell the pecking order here is Bok then Belle and Snow is last. Snow is the biggest but also least assertive.
The last few days I have noticed Belle squaring up and giving Snow 1 or 2 pecks on the head. Snow doesn’t fight back, lowers her head and cops it and then removes herself from the area.
Is it possible that Belle can sense Snow’s maturing to lay and feels she has to assert herself more to keep her position or that she is just being the enforcer (bitch) so Bokky doesn’t have to, she’s just being a good number 2?
Thoughts?

 

[featherhead007]

I have a scenario I would like your opinions on.
From what I can tell the pecking order here is Bok then Belle and Snow is last. Snow is the biggest but also least assertive.
The last few days I have noticed Belle squaring up and giving Snow 1 or 2 pecks on the head. Snow doesn’t fight back, lowers her head and cops it and then removes herself from the area.
Is it possible that Belle can sense Snow’s maturing to lay and feels she has to assert herself more to keep her position or that she is just being the enforcer (bitch) so Bokky doesn’t have to, she’s just being a good number 2?
Thoughts?

Jealousy! I have had that trouble in the past.

 

[featherhead007]

I have better odds. The feed store chose females when stocking from the breeder. The owner of the store is good with sexing them, and gave me first choice.

 

[Cynthia12]

That's so sad.

I just went out to the post office to check on the mail. Still raining, but I found this by my front gate. Speaking of stray dogs: never mind, I won’t show you the picture. But in explanation. Part of a truck undercarriage skirt, and a dead 40lb Labrador retriever. ( why can’t people just be responsible for their animals???)

No!!

 

[ChicoryBlue]

I am not the authority on all things chicken. You know your situation better than me. I think it's a good idea to get them out as soon as you can.

I did my chicks in the summer. There were no cold nights. Plus I put the heat plate out with them so they could duck under "Mum" if they did get chilly.

And some guidance / watching over by someone is needed, isn't it? Some chicks get all frightened and stressed when suddenly outside and need to be shown where to go to warm up, where the food and water is, etc. Like replicating what they know from their brooder time, but in the new environment. They have the flocking together instinct but I think a lot is taught...some chicks might just pile up together and die otherwise. Availability of time to supervise & fill that broody hen role is important, imo

 

[Ribh]

I am sorry for your chick losses. And the Vorwerks! It's a lot to handle.
I should read ahead, and maybe I mentioned it, but the only things that came to my newbie mind were some crop or digestive problem if they didn't have access to chick-sized grit along with their chick starter (unless you're sure they are getting it outdoors), and possible heat/cold stresses, but that depends on your temperatures. 4-week-olds need access to warmth, they aren't fully feathered, so need somewhere they can go to get warmed up. Roughly a spot around 75-80F? Figuring 95F in Week One, minus 5F for each subsequent week is a common rule of thumb I've read. But how critical it is depends on the surrounding climate and their housing & run situation.

There is the catch-all "failure to thrive". So @Shadrach has a good point about the breeder - maybe this breeder has a lot of early losses (that you wouldn't know about) in the breeding line, or due to their chicken keeping. So the customers who usually buy POL - those are the survivors who've made it. In that scenario the higher price that POL commands covers those losses and there's no reason to change practices or improve the stock.

Good points. Temperature I think was a factor. Her birds were off heat but our temps suddenly decided to do extreme swings & on top of the stress of moving plus anything else that might have been going on I think the smallest didn't cope. Lesson learned. Won't ever be getting them that small again.

Depending on rarity of breed I expect to pay quite a bit more for POL. That is the usual practice round here. Chicks are cheap & there are lots of loses. POLs have proven their hardiness. One thing I look for is cleanliness. Despite the numbers of birds there is absolutely no smell @ all. Someone that careful about their keeping practices is probably careful in other matters too.

I'm not discounting the breeder could be @ fault but if I'm honest I think the fault is most likely mine. I'm sorry the birds paid the price for my ignorance but I will know better another time.

 

[Ribh]

I have a scenario I would like your opinions on.
From what I can tell the pecking order here is Bok then Belle and Snow is last. Snow is the biggest but also least assertive.
The last few days I have noticed Belle squaring up and giving Snow 1 or 2 pecks on the head. Snow doesn’t fight back, lowers her head and cops it and then removes herself from the area.
Is it possible that Belle can sense Snow’s maturing to lay and feels she has to assert herself more to keep her position or that she is just being the enforcer (bitch) so Bokky doesn’t have to, she’s just being a good number 2?
Thoughts?

That's how I would call it. Is Snow showing signs of being close to lay? Hens know these things & in my flock a laying hen has way more status than a non laying hen. When a new batch of girls start coming on the lay there are subtle shifts in the pecking order.

 

[BY Bob]

There seems to be more and more people totally self oriented. They won't help anyone or anything. Where is the love going. Thank goodness for for the few that still have compassion in their hearts

Thank goodness indeed.