Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Butterscotchbitesfinger]

This is a new addition to the girls run, or should I say ‘Hen-itentiary’
View attachment 2155514
Someone living in our area posted on Facebook that their three hens had been stolen. There was no question it was anything but theft, as opposed to predation, as there were big boot prints around the coop and the door had been closed and secured after the fact.

The poor lady was saying that she could only put it down to the difficulty in buying eggs at the moment. Unfortunately, the hens were all around 10 years old and no longer lay; they were purely pets and of no ‘use’ to anyone.

This was just heart breaking to read. Hence we have now put two padlocks on our run door as the thought of someone nicking our girls make me feel cold all over

I can’t imagine anyone actually succeeding to get into my coop. For starters my Great Dane is TOTALLY nuts! And there are huge bull ants that are almost 5 cm long, scientifically proven that a bite from them the pain is as bad as being shot by a gun. I have only been bitten twice but my dad was bitten and lost all feeling in his finger for almost a year and a half. Anyway they crawl around the chicken coop (the chickens eat them) and I had one fall in my hair, as a girl with relatively long hair you can imagine how freaked I was. And the australian wildlife...hmmm I don’t think I’d take on my place for a few eggs which aren’t even there lol

 

[MaryJanet]

I've mentioned Lock on these threads before. She is a hen but she doesn't lay eggs and doesn't do hen stuff. I was watching her tonight at supper time. Her behaviour is extraordinary but even more extraordinary is the the rest of the tribes tolerance and reaction to her.
Lock neck grabs other hens and she does it to roosters as well. One would have thought such behaviour would elicit instant retribution from the roosters in particular. I watched her do the neck grab to Mag this evening and it did stratle him; he was eating at the time. He leapt up and spun around, but as soon as he saw it was Lock he just gave her a single not very hard peck and went back to eating. Lock then did the same to Bracket. Bracket just complained and moved around the feed bowl. If a young cockerel does that to Bracket she'll go for them full tilt and chase them around for a bit.
Lock does what a junior rooster would do at feed time and hangs back with Mag. She doesn't keep watch as such, she just doesn't eat with the other hens until there is space and that usually means the seniors have finished eating.
I tease some of the chickens by gently swatting their tail feathers. This normally produces indignant noises and immediate moving away. Lock doesn't bat an eyelid.
She has mock fights with Mag who is incredibly gentle with her. I was watching them today and Mag will leap up at her when she attacks him but he doesn't strike. He has never raised his hackles at her. Punch the senior rooster doesn't bother her. Neither try to mate with her.
Lock follows the tribe during the day at the same kind of distance a junior rooster would. At roost time Lock doesn't have a position in the who can go in the coop in which order.
I would need a few fairly long video clips to show her behaviour, but it's obvious just from watching her with the tribe that she is different.
The noticeable physical differences are her legs are stouter than the hens and overall she's a heavier build.
What I find fascinating is the rest of the tribe just seem to accept her as she is.
Anyway, here she is.
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This Bracket, Hinge, Nolia, Punch, Tack and the young cockerel all eating while Lock and Mag are standing next to me on the top step.
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This is Lock eating after the others had thinned out.
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This is Mag waiting to eat. He keeps watch and eats last in general.
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I love how Lock is simply part of the family. Doing her own thing and loved by her tribe.

 

[LozzyR]

Marmite, Vegemite, Bovril......I'm a Marmite person.
Better still on hot buttered wholemeal toast is this.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gentleman's_Relish
If you like a taste bud assault the above will do it.

I've had Vegemite on toast the last two days because of all this chat!

 

[Momof8chicks]

Hi, By Bob.
I am a new chicken mom. I have been reading your thread here. Your thread is the reason I started an account. I am only on page 200 but thought I'd introduce myself, knowing you'd be getting tons of alerts for all my "likes".
My girls are about 10 weeks old. I cannot believe how fast they grow and I am quickly becoming a "crazy chicken lady". I could sit and watch them for hours.
I'd love to join your flock here.

Laura
Chicken mom to: Luna, Raven, Hallie, Annie, Daisy, Heizel, Alice and June

 

[micstrachan]

It requires a particular type of dwelling to work....not to mention a particular type of person to allow it.
It used to be a very common occurrence in the farm houses here. There are still others around here that have chickens ducks and goats wandering in and out of the houses. Climate has a big influence and of course whether or not the house is part of a farm or smallholding.
Believe it or not, the most difficult thing to cope with is the noise. Two roosters crowing and seven hens shouting in a small space is pretty loud.

Hahahaaa!!! I can imagine!

 

[micstrachan]

Ok, I try to keep my posts chicken related, but had to share this. I did something really stupid this morning. I want to grow veggies and Jeff bought me a couple small, pre-fab raised beds. I decided where they would go and realized they needed more sun. So, naturally, I grabbed a 12-foot ladder and a hand saw and started at the tree. Of course I would do this while everyone else was still in bed and didn't tell anyone I was out there being dangerous. Well, I was about 10 feet up on the ladder sawing away and thought, "Hmm... this branch looks really heavy. I should probably get down before it starts falling and re-evaluate from the ground. Might need to reposition my ladder."
Well, right then the branch swung down and it certainly was heavy! It knocked my ladder over. I hung on with one hand and held the ladder in place with my legs. I started frantically trying to saw my way out of the predicament I found myself in... ten feet up in the air with my ladder getting away from me and Jeff came outside. I called across the yard, "Will you help me? I'm in trouble here." Jeff came over, steadied the ladder and asked what on earth was I thinking?

 

[micstrachan]

Hi, By Bob.
I am a new chicken mom. I have been reading your thread here. Your thread is the reason I started an account. I am only on page 200 but thought I'd introduce myself, knowing you'd be getting tons of alerts for all my "likes".
My girls are about 10 weeks old. I cannot believe how fast they grow and I am quickly becoming a "crazy chicken lady". I could sit and watch them for hours.
I'd love to join your flock here.

Laura
Chicken mom to: Luna, Raven, Hallie, Annie, Daisy, Heizel, Alice and June

Welcome, Laura! This is a really great group here. My first couple years on BYC I mostly hung out in the emergency forum, but now I spend more time here! I think you will enjoy it.

 

[micstrachan]

A long while now. I had to go back to the "lace" one from you yesterday on your thread. It did not show on the app until someone else commented on it yesterday. I used their post to link back to yours. Frustrating.

Apparently it’s a bunch of us!

 

[micstrachan]

Hey now. I was thinking chicken tail.

Do you have pictures of her with her tail fanned out? I loved when Daisy, the greatest hen ever, had hers fanned out in what I called full shark fin. If she had her head down and her tail fanned she looked like a (great) white shark moving across the lawn.

I can't find a picture of it, but here she is on my leg with her ratty pre-molt tail out a little.
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Whenever I go back through old photos I find something cool. I found a picture of Daisy from June 2016 walking in the tall grass in front of the old coop complex. She is "highstepping" it. Check out that leg lift!

And that neck!

View attachment 2155250

She appears to be on s mission!

 

[micstrachan]

This is a new addition to the girls run, or should I say ‘Hen-itentiary’
View attachment 2155514
Someone living in our area posted on Facebook that their three hens had been stolen. There was no question it was anything but theft, as opposed to predation, as there were big boot prints around the coop and the door had been closed and secured after the fact.

The poor lady was saying that she could only put it down to the difficulty in buying eggs at the moment. Unfortunately, the hens were all around 10 years old and no longer lay; they were purely pets and of no ‘use’ to anyone.

This was just heart breaking to read. Hence we have now put two padlocks on our run door as the thought of someone nicking our girls make me feel cold all over

That’s awful! Just disgusting. I’m glad you’ve secured yours.