Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[WhoDatChick]

SUCCESS!

The Littles went to bed in the Big coop tonight!
View attachment 1781084
You can just see them at the far end of the roost. Before anyone asks, for whatever reason, Hattie decided to sleep in a nesting box and I was not messing with any sleeping arrangements tonight!

I took down their coop in the run today. It was so sad went they went to go to bed and their house was gone. Such plaintive bawks you never heard. I hope I never hear them again. It broke my heart.


Once everyone was in the coop complex, I closed all exits and placed a lantern in the big coop. Then my wife and I settled in to watch. After much sadness it looked like the Littles were going to try to roost at the top of the ramp on the porch. Then Maleficent slowly made her way to the door from which the lantern light was coming. In she went. Aurora was not going to be alone outside so in she went. I pressed the button on the automated door and in they were. A few minutes later they were roosted and ready to sleep. And we were celebrating!!

Yay! And yall are too cute!
This is what I found the other night.. usually there is much assistance and rearranging.. but this night they managed wonderfully... after this there has been a few chaotic nights.. but last night and tonight it looks as though they may have it figured out .... the big gals are on top and bottom towards the back.. the middles are the three on top closest to camera.. and Nilky and babies are the four on bottom closest to camera...

 

[BY Bob]

Yay! And yall are too cute!
This is what I found the other night.. usually there is much assistance and rearranging.. but this night they managed wonderfully... after this there has been a few chaotic nights.. but last night and tonight it looks as though they may have it figured out .... the big gals are on top and bottom towards the back.. the middles are the three on top closest to camera.. and Nilky and babies are the four on bottom closest to camera... View attachment 1781152

That's just awesome. That orpington just has a look like a Mom. "OK, everyone in place? Then settle down and get some sleep!" Lol

 

[BY Bob]

Chicken Math

With the flocks integrating it was getting close to time for us to say goodbye to Aurora. The plan was for me to raise the pullets until they got big enough to integrate and then I would give one of the pullets to a friend of mine so my flock would balance back out at 4 and her's would get back to 3. I was dreading the thought of splitting the 2 up. Especially since Hattie and Lilly seem to have paired up. The whole point was to give Hattie a companion, however flock dynamics shifted with the new girls and having someone new to run off seems to have shifted Lilly's focus.

I made a promise and was ready to live up to the bargain. We met our friends for breakfast after church today and I steadied myself for the conversation to come. My friend took the bull by the horns and let me off the hook right away. She announced that she had purchased two pullets and was going to add 2 more to her flock. She told me she knew I would have trouble giving her up and could not ask me to do so.

Thank the lord I built the coop big enough for 10 birds. There will be no crowding and everyone gets to stay!


I offered the Littles coop for them to put their new pullets in and they accepted. I have all the parts together ready to go as I just took it down. What a nice outcome for everyone, especially Maleficent and Aurora.

It is so nice to have good friends and I am so grateful.

 

[Kris5902]

Awesome news! And more chickens for everyone There’s no downside. Build bigger than you think you need is my new motto, as it seems like I’m always playing catch up in building out more pens before the chickens outgrow their current quarters. From the incubator onwards I started with one incubator and ended up needing two... egg math? Is that a thing too?

 

[drumstick diva]

glad it worked out. Can't be easy for chickens to remember many changes, their brains are supposed to be a lot smaller than ours.

 

[BY Bob]

Awesome news! And more chickens for everyone There’s no downside. Build bigger than you think you need is my new motto, as it seems like I’m always playing catch up in building out more pens before the chickens outgrow their current quarters. From the incubator onwards I started with one incubator and ended up needing two... egg math? Is that a thing too?

Egg Math should be a thing. I hear it from others who are addicted to hatching.

I knew that when I decided to build I was going to over build. I can safely keep the whole flock in the coop permanently if I had too. I built it with the depth of winter in mind. If it were to stay below 0° for an extended time I could keep them safely indoors. It is really paying off today.

 

[BY Bob]

glad it worked out. Can't be easy for chickens to remember many changes, their brains are supposed to be a lot smaller than ours.

From my understanding they can differentiate up to 52 faces. That seems pretty smart to me. I wonder if I actually remember 52 different faces......hmmmm

 

[biophiliac]

Chicken Math

With the flocks integrating it was getting close to time for us to say goodbye to Aurora. The plan was for me to raise the pullets until they got big enough to integrate and then I would give one of the pullets to a friend of mine so my flock would balance back out at 4 and her's would get back to 3. I was dreading the thought of splitting the 2 up. Especially since Hattie and Lilly seem to have paired up. The whole point was to give Hattie a companion, however flock dynamics shifted with the new girls and having someone new to run off seems to have shifted Lilly's focus.

I made a promise and was ready to live up to the bargain. We met our friends for breakfast after church today and I steadied myself for the conversation to come. My friend took the bull by the horns and let me off the hook right away. She announced that she had purchased two pullets and was going to add 2 more to her flock. She told me she knew I would have trouble giving her up and could not ask me to do so.

Thank the lord I built the coop big enough for 10 birds. There will be no crowding and everyone gets to stay!


I offered the Littles coop for them to put their new pullets in and they accepted. I have all the parts together ready to go as I just took it down. What a nice outcome for everyone, especially Maleficent and Aurora.

It is so nice to have good friends and I am so grateful.

From my understanding they can differentiate up to 52 faces. That seems pretty smart to me. I wonder if I actually remember 52 different faces......hmmmm

Perfect! I didn't think it felt right to separate Aurora and Melly, plus they integrated to your flock already.

 

[BY Bob]

Perfect! I didn't think it felt right to separate Aurora and Melly, plus they integrated to your flock already.

It was a happy outcome for all for sure!

 

[WhoDatChick]

Chicken Math

With the flocks integrating it was getting close to time for us to say goodbye to Aurora. The plan was for me to raise the pullets until they got big enough to integrate and then I would give one of the pullets to a friend of mine so my flock would balance back out at 4 and her's would get back to 3. I was dreading the thought of splitting the 2 up. Especially since Hattie and Lilly seem to have paired up. The whole point was to give Hattie a companion, however flock dynamics shifted with the new girls and having someone new to run off seems to have shifted Lilly's focus.

I made a promise and was ready to live up to the bargain. We met our friends for breakfast after church today and I steadied myself for the conversation to come. My friend took the bull by the horns and let me off the hook right away. She announced that she had purchased two pullets and was going to add 2 more to her flock. She told me she knew I would have trouble giving her up and could not ask me to do so.

Thank the lord I built the coop big enough for 10 birds. There will be no crowding and everyone gets to stay!


I offered the Littles coop for them to put their new pullets in and they accepted. I have all the parts together ready to go as I just took it down. What a nice outcome for everyone, especially Maleficent and Aurora.

It is so nice to have good friends and I am so grateful.

Oh my gosh! I am glad I continued to read... I was about to stop when you said you were getting ready to say goodbye ... I couldn’t stand the thought if it... so I am SO HAPPY you get to keep her! I can see how much my middles rely on each other when escaping the BGs.. they are so close and need each other right now... I mean, how sad would it have been if she did go and you just took their “home”... no old home and no more pal ... oh, the thought of it ... I’m sad myself right now cuz I decided to get rid of one of my older gals... I got my first gals last spring and she was one of eight.. she has always been a bully so when I integrated I moved her to the mini coop and then finally decided to let her go.. my friend across the street took her to live with her nine gals.. so she is in a lovely place but I am having anxiety over thinking about her over there while she is wondering where she is and where am I... It’s very sad...
And I know.. they may not “think” like that.. but I do...