Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[featherhead007]

I wish these littlest peeps would stay off my hat (while I’m wearing it)

 

[Cynthia12]

View attachment 2634170 Here's Mapleton Mountain. On my way home. .

Wait..not on my way home..lol...I went out in the middle of the road in front of my house to get this photo.

 

[micstrachan]

I think this has something to do with it.
My belief is that the tribe know that the senior hens are the ones that should be passing their genes on. As I've mentioned before; one gets to be senior for a reason. It isn't just luck.
Integration of the offspring is a lot easier for senior hens.
In theory at least, the more senior, the more knowledge they will have to pass down to their young.
Here the senior hens and the experienced mums attack junior hens who try to mate with the senior rooster. This tends to make me think that they know who should be sitting and hatching and who shouldn't.

It’s fascinating, isn’t it?

 

[micstrachan]

Sunday morning chicken cuddles... Sunny (Sunshine) and Cashew!

 

[featherhead007]

Sunday morning chicken cuddles... Sunny (Sunshine) and Cashew!
View attachment 2634515

I’m covered in chickens in the morning (Every morning) can’t even take a pic because my hands are always full. I love your beautiful birds too!

 

[RoyalChick]

I wish these littlest peeps would stay off my hat (while I’m wearing it)

No you don’t!

 

[RoyalChick]

The rain has stopped and the Princesses have come out to do chickeny things including supervising my work as I try to bury the ground wire for the electric fence.
I am sufficiently confident now in my understanding of the fence that I want to make it a permanent fixture and be able to electrify the moveable fence when they are outside. So I need some ‘fixed points’ to connect back to the ground rod.
Anyway, suffice to say it involves digging in the mud so the Princesses are delighted with this activity and have many contributions to make.

 

[micstrachan]

I think this has something to do with it.
My belief is that the tribe know that the senior hens are the ones that should be passing their genes on. As I've mentioned before; one gets to be senior for a reason. It isn't just luck.
Integration of the offspring is a lot easier for senior hens.
In theory at least, the more senior, the more knowledge they will have to pass down to their young.
Here the senior hens and the experienced mums attack junior hens who try to mate with the senior rooster. This tends to make me think that they know who should be sitting and hatching and who shouldn't.

I wanted to comment a little more on this. Bridge is my senior hen. As you know, I have no rooster… I’m the closest thing they have to a rooster. Except for the fact that I don’t think she lays eggs, Bridge seems like the most active, vibrant chicken in the bunch. Thoughts?

Lucy and Chickie both went for Charlie when she was first broody, but given that she is now Alpha hen, I doubt anyone will give her a hard time anymore!

Now that I think back, Ruby picked on Little Mill, who is her bestie, when she (Little Mill) was broody.

 

[micstrachan]

The rain has stopped and the Princesses have come out to do chickeny things including supervising my work as I try to bury the ground wire for the electric fence.
I am sufficiently confident now in my understanding of the fence that I want to make it a permanent fixture and be able to electrify the moveable fence when they are outside. So I need some ‘fixed points’ to connect back to the ground rod.
Anyway, suffice to say it involves digging in the mud so the Princesses are delighted with this activity and have many contributions to make.
View attachment 2634545

I’m so impressed by your electric fence abilities and need to get on this train!

 

[micstrachan]

Yesterday's adventure was
We have a hammock in the chicken yard. They love sitting with us on it. Two evenings ago I was sitting in it and eldest son thought he would join me.
Normally this isn't a problem. The stand and sling are rated for like 1,000lbs. However, the material of the hammock itself has endured weathering.
So yeah...it broke with us in it.
We both landed on our bums, and thankfully none of the babies we under us nor in the hammock yet.

Hubby already replaced it with a new one.

I was enjoying the new, SAFE hammock yesterday when I see little Miss Meatbird making a beeline toward something.

It was a blue string from the old hammock.

I jumped from my recline to try to snatch it away, which only made her gobble it down faster.
It was stuck in her throat! She shook her head and stretched her beak open wide reapeatedly to try to swallow it down. Meanwhile I'm trying to catch her to attempt to help her.
FInally I catch her! She had a tail piece of it hanging out of her beak. If that tail end had been any shorter, there wouldn't be enough for me to pull on.
I pull and pull and pull.

There is about 18 inches of sting!

I set her down and she went about her normal chicken business.

These girls! *sigh*

Oh, my. Good save!