Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Marie2020]

Missy knows she is the princess, she only sleeps on feather duvets

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Ruddy heck I didn't know what I was looking at for a minute. I just saw these black bits on white I just woke up for no reason

 

[Marie2020]

Princess is back in the main coop. She's being a good girl except in the mornings when she causes havoc as usual in the run and screaming my neighbours awake. I'm thinking of getting a silencer for her loud beak

 

[featherhead007]

Ruddy heck I didn't know what I was looking at for a minute. I just saw these black bits on white I just woke up for no reason

No reason?

 

[rural mouse]

They are pretty clever being able to follow mum up there! And the two of them on her back..Swoon-worthy!

The younger one won't be 2 weeks old until tuesday. The one she hatched: first seen 2 weeks ago tomorrow. I even got to handle one: it kerplopped to the floor. I picked it up and set it back up there near mama. Only time she hasnt fussed if i got near her.

 

[BY Bob]

Daisy is having a good day so far today, I've not saw her show hardly any discomfort at all. She's ate, dust bathed, picked on the hooligans and been in the creek eating minnows.
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How I wish this truly was just a nice fluffy booty.
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She looks beautiful. I'm glad she is having a good day.

 

[BY Bob]

I am very puzzled and have to be on alert constantly. We keep the lawn cut short and the edge of the pond trimmed.

I can only imagine. Those actions make good sense.

 

[BY Bob]

They say a picture is worth a thousand words....I don't have storage space for ANY videos, so here's a picture story (backstory: they all somehow got locked out of the coop, and the hobbit lot proved they can drink out of the nipple waterer.)

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Babes back there too. Enough of this hullabaloo !

Spoiler: The rest of the story

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They finally settled under her, one outside her feet, covered by her wing and the other between her feet, both facing the other way from mama.

Look at them roosting. Just wonderful!

 

[Kris5902]

My dad always said 'there is no excuse for moldy hay!' If it rains shortly after the cutting, just be sure to dry it well. If it rains on the hay when half or more dried (ish), no good for feed, but again, dry really well...that is landscapers' and highway company hay! We had an implement shed that, if hay was almost dry, but not dry enough to be baled, & was going to rain we would pick up the field by hand/pitch fork, toss it onto the trailer(s) loose [at least the good stuff, not so much the outer windrow] and back the trailers into the implement shed...tractors stayed out with a tarp.

My father was adamant about hay being dry so not only wouldn't mold, but wouldn't catch fire! (but not so dry it was just straw)We used to do about 3-4k bales a year for a while there. Only a few hundred on our property, but there was a large farm next town over that no longer farmed, and we hayed it to keep the fields open. First couple of years my siblings and I spent DAYS going through the freshly cut fields pulling milkweed and such out. We also hayed part of the reservoir near us when their teamster retired...and another farm we would split the hay. They owned field& mowed it, we raked & baled.

Of course, dad always had lots of FREE labor in us 5 kids....

I also like your dad… very sensible guy. Our hay is about on par with our equipment maintenance. Until we had to buy some in town (and got the cheap, sun bleached, sub par stuff which was rejected by the horse owner crowd, at that) I didn’t realize how bad ours was. Last year when it got stacked pretty wet I was so worried all fall that it was going to go up in flames… we like to wait until every single field is ready, before even thinking about mowing it can only be done the last week of June and first week of July because that is when it has always been done.

Basically, the two fields closest to me End up crispy and straw like, with no seed heads to speak of, because of the drastically different soil conditions on this end of the farm. Last year it rained on the cut and ready to be baled rows and they didn’t re-fluff it or let it dry properly. I tossed out a lot of moldy hay to the cows, (and when a Bale was half moldy or full of Sedge I would just add another bale to the total. I always break it up some too, to be sure it was mostly edible. They didn’t eat the awful hay, don’t worry… but they did sneeze a lot while looking for edible bits. We also really enjoy baling up thistle (we have lots of Canadian and Scotch Thistle), sedge, foxtail, and full on rose bushes (I U not), which makes Feeding oh so much more fun! I just stay out of the haying as well now. I’m not “lazy”, but if they want to exclude me from hard labour in mid summer I’m more than happy about it. Shearing is on the 25th, I’ve also not been invited to that… sometimes being a black sheep isn’t all that bad. And now I’m going to have to spend too long tomorow gathering tax payment pics again… sigh

Chicken tax: why sleep under a heat plate when you can sleep beside it?

 

[Ponypoor]

Ruddy heck I didn't know what I was looking at for a minute. I just saw these black bits on white I just woke up for no reason

Yes I know what you mean, she is really snowy white hahaha. She tends to take up 2/3 of my queen size bed, she keeps me up at nigjt, she uses her feet to push me off the bed!!

Oh I was wondering why you were up at 4am (I think..) your time hope it's not a Moggy keeping you up!

 

[Ponypoor]

I also like your dad… very sensible guy. Our hay is about on par with our equipment maintenance. Until we had to buy some in town (and got the cheap, sun bleached, sub par stuff which was rejected by the horse owner crowd, at that) I didn’t realize how bad ours was. Last year when it got stacked pretty wet I was so worried all fall that it was going to go up in flames… we like to wait until every single field is ready, before even thinking about mowing it can only be done the last week of June and first week of July because that is when it has always been done.

Basically, the two fields closest to me End up crispy and straw like, with no seed heads to speak of, because of the drastically different soil conditions on this end of the farm. Last year it rained on the cut and ready to be baled rows and they didn’t re-fluff it or let it dry properly. I tossed out a lot of moldy hay to the cows, (and when a Bale was half moldy or full of Sedge I would just add another bale to the total. I always break it up some too, to be sure it was mostly edible. They didn’t eat the awful hay, don’t worry… but they did sneeze a lot while looking for edible bits. We also really enjoy baling up thistle (we have lots of Canadian and Scotch Thistle), sedge, foxtail, and full on rose bushes (I U not), which makes Feeding oh so much more fun! I just stay out of the haying as well now. I’m not “lazy”, but if they want to exclude me from hard labour in mid summer I’m more than happy about it. Shearing is on the 25th, I’ve also not been invited to that… sometimes being a black sheep isn’t all that bad. And now I’m going to have to spend too long tomorow gathering tax payment pics again… sigh

Chicken tax: why sleep under a heat plate when you can sleep beside it?
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Can't fix stupid.... Around here most farmers have sold off their cattle and now just do cash crops like corn and soybeans - which of course is used to make ethanol.

There has been a niche market for horse hay and those selling it learn fast that we horse people want good hay. I was paying $70/round bale (5'x4.4') Timothy first cut. Normally we get 3 cuts in an alfalfa crop. Last year most only got 1 cut it was so wet....

The person I get my round bales from has already warned me of increase in price due to fuel costs. I am trying to get my two grass paddocks cut so I can at least get some small squares. I have no choice but to buy hay, but I feel my gals are goimg to be on the lean side - which is actually a good thing for Sally and Lulu as they were both extremely overweight. I have spent the winter getting weight off them right now they look awesome and I have been keeping a real close eye on Lu for signs of founder, so far she has been good.