Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[BY Bob]

That is lovely Bob, but my favorite photos are the two you posted in your previous post.
Just two old friends sauntering along by the pool enjoying each other’s company.
How is Lily doing?

Her and Hattie hung out during free range yesterday. They had a sit down together under the apple tree in the leaves. It's really hard to tell. She seems active enough and she held everyone off from a handful of corn as I gave a little for a cold night treat.

 

[BY Bob]

I'm thinking chicken roosting politics are a lot more complicated than we realize.

And Aurora is a nasty hen at roosting time with only 1 check on her now. What she did to Hattie........very sad.

 

[BY Bob]

I need a nap after watching that. Exhausting!

It took hours to complete the cut up and post. Exhausting as well.

The whole thing took them from 4:20 until 5:05 pm to complete. Not exactly quick either.

 

[bgmathteach]

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What a great photo...and a wonderful expression on her face!!!

 

[Ponypoor]

I’m in Aus. My Sussex girls hatched roughly mid November 2020 (tail end of spring). Snow laid her first egg at end of June (winter) and Belle laid her first on the first day of spring so…
I guess when they are ready, they are ready haha sorry I’m no help!

Yep anything goes I am thinking!

 

[Ponypoor]

I’m in Aus. My Sussex girls hatched roughly mid November 2020 (tail end of spring). Snow laid her first egg at end of June (winter) and Belle laid her first on the first day of spring so…
I guess when they are ready, they are ready haha sorry I’m no help!

Yep anything goes I am thinking!

 

[Ponypoor]

And Aurora is a nasty hen at roosting time with only 1 check on her now. What she did to Hattie........very sad.

Lots of drama at bed time, I have been stepping in for the sake of the chicks as I want them to continue roosting on the roost rather than in the nest boxes.

I have pretty much figured out who gets along with whom, and I physically put them there - I know its unorthodox but I really didn't want poop in boxes and chicks getting picked on

 

[bgmathteach]

Roosting from 12/28

I have been working on this series of roosting videos from before Sansa passed. With how everyone roosted last night I thought I would finish this up now. There is a series of video clips showing how the process goes. Be prepared, Aurora does not come out well in the end.

Clip 1
This shows the process beginning at 4:22 pm with Lilly and Sansa roosting. Notice that Lilly chooses the spot that was Daisy's.

Clip 2
In this clip Sansa moves to the other end of the roost and leaves Lilly behind. This has me wondering if Sansa isn't the reason Lilly roosted on the high roost..

Clip 3
This clip shows Lilly on the high roost and Sansa now alone on the main bar.

Clip 4
Hattie now comes in and roosts.

Clip 5
Sansa joins Lilly on the high Roost

Clip 6
This is a very long clip. In the end, everyone is roosted Sansa and we are not finished yet, not by a long shot.

Clip 7
Aurora forces Hattie down and Sansa gets up.

Clip 8
Aurora, having knocked both Sansa and Hattie of the roost finds her way to the high roost.

Clip 9
Sydney has jumped over to main roost to escape Aurora. Hattie roosts and Aurora gets down to chase her back out. Sansa comes in and roosts on main bar while Sydney gets back up high.

Clip 10
Aurora gets down, wanders into a nest box, and then chases Hattie out of the coop. Hattie comes back in to roost. Aurora then chases both Hattie and Sansa off the main roost.

Clip 11
We jump ahead a little. Aurora jumps to high roost, Sydney is knocked down. She decides to eat and drink and then gets back on the high roost.

Clip 12
For whatever reason, the high roost does not suit Aurora. Instead she jumps down and takes Daisy's old spot. Hattie runs down the roost away from her. These will be their final roosting locations. Aurora must have been tired from all that pecking and chasing.

@Ribh, @Aussie-Chookmum

So, I see lots of 'motion' and avoidance, but it wasn't too brutal. Just Aurora determining where everyone could roost but Lilly. How long did all of this take to 'sort out' final roosting spots?

And, I know this is a bit off topic, but the back right corner of the coop's roof looks really dark. Is there perhaps a leak, or is it just an odd variation in the plywood?

 

[bgmathteach]

Chicken tax
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I'm sorry to do this but I found this one when looking for a tax payment and started crying. I feel that I need to print this one and hang it. It says it all.

Best friends forever.

Lilly will never look right without Sansa by her side.

Farwell Sansa. You will never be forgotten.
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Lovely photo, synchronized pecking and everything! They look very lovely next to each other, as well - something about the contrast in colours!

Hugs for Bob. I'm sure that additional photos will do that, too. May you remember the love more than the loss.

 

[RoyalChick]

And Aurora is a nasty hen at roosting time with only 1 check on her now. What she did to Hattie........very sad.

It is strange - her goal seems to be to disrupt everyone else - it isn't like they have something she wants, she just doesn't want them to be happy!
That is like Maggie climbing up to scatter the Roadrunners only to climb back down and sleep elsewhere.
I assume it is a form of enforcing a dominant position. "I will make you move because I can"