Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Ponypoor]

Poor Tina has been in pain but she's eating and after I cleaned her bottom today and oiled her this is what she passed.

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I think the medicated feed had a bad effect on her but I may be wrong

Aww poor wee chookie, hope she is feeling better now. Give her hugs

 

[Marie2020]

Aww poor wee chookie, hope she is feeling better now. Give her hugs

Oh I did. She's not offended by a cuddle bless her.

 

[RoyalChick]

Rub a Dub Dub

We have been chatting about when chickens feel most vulnerable, roosting time for example. I also think that dust bath time is another. So imagine my joy when Betty decided to take a bath today. I was watching on the camera when she walked over to it and dug a hole right in front of it. This will be the closest dust bathing video you might ever see. She was still bathing after 1/2 an hour. She must be feeling pretty dirty.

Wow - she surely makes an event out of it!
I wonder if having frizzled feathers impacts dust bathing at all. Maybe they need to bathe more often for example?
@Ribh would presumably know.

 

[RoyalChick]

Happy Fluffy Butt Friday everyone from Diana. She doesn’t normally have a very fluffy butt. She is more of a skinny shanks kinda lady. But after her molt and in the cold she seems to be showing a fair bit of fluff.
They are all eating chick starter (23% protein) made into mash with kefir whey. They all love it but I was particularly happy to see skinny Dotty chowing down with enthusiasm and speed.

 

[RoyalChick]

Oh and I brought in a new shovel of snow for Maggie. After tonight she won’t need me to do that as plenty will blow into their runs and she will be able to have a grand old time with it.

 

[Ribh]

Wow - she surely makes an event out of it!
I wonder if having frizzled feathers impacts dust bathing at all. Maybe they need to bathe more often for example?
@Ribh would presumably know.

Ribh doesn't know. I've never noticed mine bathing more than anyone else. What I reckon is probably going on is it's been a while & she finally feels comfortable enough to have a really good dust up. Mine often taken a prolonged dust bath after a lot of rain when they haven't had access to nice dry ground.

 

[Marie2020]

Oh and I brought in a new shovel of snow for Maggie. After tonight she won’t need me to do that as plenty will blow into their runs and she will be able to have a grand old time with it.

She'll be making snow roo's next

 

[RoyalChick]

Ribh doesn't know. I've never noticed mine bathing more than anyone else. What I reckon is probably going on is it's been a while & she finally feels comfortable enough to have a really good dust up. Mine often taken a prolonged dust bath after a lot of rain when they haven't had access to nice dry ground.

That makes sense.

 

[Marie2020]

Ribh doesn't know. I've never noticed mine bathing more than anyone else. What I reckon is probably going on is it's been a while & she finally feels comfortable enough to have a really good dust up. Mine often taken a prolonged dust bath after a lot of rain when they haven't had access to nice dry ground.

Princess loves a good old wet muck dip

 

[MaryJanet]

I could handle it now I think. I remember the times as needing to not add more stress if I could help it and stopping was the best solution there. Not your fault in any way. Just life, and how it happens. You are a wonderful story-teller, and I love stories!

I might have the timeline all off, but I was planning to start a little flock as a newbie and getting all OCD about it, then caring for the Buckeyes while learning and still all OCD, the pandemic had begun and become full-on raging and life brought big changes. My uncle died from Covid in 2020, all isolated in a nursing home, my aunt there too in the assisted living side but they kept them apart until he was at death's door. Suited her up like a spaceman and he had dementia so I doubt he recognized her like that. It was horrible for her and for my cousins who couldn't figure out a way to even comfort their mother beyond phone calls because they weren't allowed to see or touch her either, and this made her fail even more. She died this last year. Back in 2020 one of his son's, my cousin died also (complications of cancer/chemo but could have been Covid-related, a heart attack), then another cousin (different family) died of Covid, then the uncle, father of that cousin, died of Covid too. I had loss of both music and day gig work, and I was still dealing with my mother's estate and belongings from her death in 2018. Two other people I knew more tangentially died from Covid. Not that different from so many people's experience, but a lot of loss.

I have better internet now than I did then, here's some pullet pics!
I think this first pic is Butters, I remember she liked to perch there. August 2020.
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