Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[BY Bob]

Territorial

I logged on the camera this morning before the automated door opened and observed them awake in the coop. Of course I caught something interesting. Maleficent and Hattie were on the coop floor while Lilly and Aurora sat together on the roost extension looking out the window.

Then Maleficent decided she would check out "the spot" on the roost. The video starts after Maleficent has jumped up. Watch Lilly's reaction to Mal going to her spot. Even though no one is going to sleep at this time.

 

[Kris5902]

The eldest chicken I know of here is 14 years old. He's a rooster and lives in a local town.
He wanders about the garden and has two hens to keep him company.
The eldest here is Fat Bird. She'll be 10 next year.
My elder sister holds the current old age record of people I know, with a hen that died a couple of years ago at 16. All her chickens are free range.
None of the chickens here or those on this mountain, or even in this region of Spain afaik are hatchery birds and that I believe is what makes the difference.
It is practicably unprovable but if you want long lived hens, don't buy hatchery birds, don't buy from US breeders unless they can provide a provenance sheet with their birds and don't buy high production breeds.
Imo the hatcheries are no better than the egg and meat industry.

With the common poultry focuses here being more towards the maximum “output” or a show breed, that’s a very hard goal for most North American Chicken keepers to achieve. I went to a smaller local breeder that deals primarily to backyard type keepers, started with hatching eggs, and tried to pick up dual purpose and heritage breeds for the most part, and want to establish self sustaining flocks after that sort of model. There just aren’t that many places where a person can find chickens with that sort of background around here. I’m lucky in that I live near some small family based agricultural areas.

Then there are the (now) 11 “rescues” I’m caring for, and though I’m interested in longevity and good husbandry, not everyone on this farm is on board with that. My mother the self described “chicken hater” has been looking in to the new Farm girls occasionally. They often are found to be without food, or water, and have been relocated to the small old coop and 100% confinement and supplemental lighting because they aren’t laying “enough” (the coop was jacked up leveling and rotting wood reinforced, but probably not adequately cleaned). There’s nothing I can do about it, and it breaks my heart. If I take them away they will just buy more.

 

[Shadrach]

This is Moon, daughter of Mel, granddaughter of Ruffles.
She's going to have her grandmothers good looks I think.

 

[Ribh]

This is Moon, daughter of Mel, granddaughter of Ruffles.
She's going to have her grandmothers good looks I think.
View attachment 1985178

She is beautiful, Shad.

 

[MaryJanet]

Yeh, a lovely girl.

 

[LozzyR]

This is Moon, daughter of Mel, granddaughter of Ruffles.
She's going to have her grandmothers good looks I think.
View attachment 1985178

Sweet baby

 

[Shadrach]

I'll tell her you all agreed.
Her sister (Tap), on the left is a good looking pullet as well but she doesn't have that soft look that Moon has.
Tap is very like her mother Mel. She's the smallest at the moment, but she's very determined and very focused (that's being polite) on getting what she's after.
Tap is a leg and foot tapper and needs bum pushes to get her moving along at times. I move all here by placing my hand on the backside below the vent and shove them along. Tap looks extremely indignant when I do this.

 

[MaryJanet]

Mary does a quick tap dance before running the pigeons off. It's quite funny.

 

[Shadrach]

So, I have a question for those of you who care to answer. Would you still keep chickens if hens didn't lay eggs?
I got asked this by one the chicken keepers here where I live.

 

[LozzyR]

I'll tell her you all agreed.
Her sister (Tap), on the left is a good looking pullet as well but she doesn't have that soft look that Moon has.
Tap is very like her mother Mel. She's the smallest at the moment, but she's very determined and very focused (that's being polite) on getting what she's after.
Tap is a leg and foot tapper and needs bum pushes to get her moving along at times. I move all here by placing my hand on the backside below the vent and shove them along. Tap looks extremely indignant when I do this.

I would too!