Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[featherhead007]

Fall Phyllis

I mentioned that I got some Phyllis shots the other day. Here is our little super model posing with the mums.

Let's play name the pose again.

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BLU just fell off his perch, seeing those pictures of Phyllis.

 

[the3quail]

I read this all day yesterday..
My favorite is the 2 chickens smoking, haha

 

[RoyalChick]

RC, I might need to pick your brain on the fence!

Whatever I can do to help. Be clear I am not an expert. I read on line that an electric fence 'is an easy DIY project' and rather foolishly believed it. It took some figuring out and was initially a bit scary - but in the end it was totally doable. I am now going to extend it for winter all the way around. And in the spring I am wondering whether to give them a big free range area protected by an electric fence.

 

[RoyalChick]

To those of you struggling to keep up like I am,

I apologize for just adding three pages of replies, but I just can’t help myself!

So I better contribute. Here is Ruby purring a bit of a warning a couple weeks ago. I see a feed scoop, so this must have been when I first let them out of the coop in the morning.

Love the sound and love that Bridge doesn't care about the warning!

 

[RoyalChick]

Yep! It’s Ruby, the Buckeye standing on the ground. Minnie is the Buckeye standing on the little roost. Buttercup (Brahma, not in video, I think) did a similar call recently, but it started out more like a trill and then came down to that rumbly sound (unless I was mistaken and somebody else made the trill).

I forgot you had a Minnie too!

 

[Kris5902]

My Brahma can clean her feathered feet ok, but the feathers hide foot issues. I think she has a weird, deformed mini toe and she had a little cyst or something. OH! And once she bled a LOT from the roost... like blood everywhere. I think it was a broken feather.

Same here with my Black Copper Marans Rooster... his pinky toes look odd, and several times I have thought he had a bumble or cyst, but it turned out to be a feather. And the feathers raise the scales on a way that causes SLM flashbacks! Chickie Hawk has feathered feet too, sort of. His girls don’t though and they Pluck his feet bare! Just the feet... and he lets them???

 

[Kris5902]

The thing I just can't get over is their complete lack of fear of me. These hawks will let me walk right up to them. I swear I could grab them. They have no fear of humans.

I had one attack Daisy, the greatest hen ever, once. Daisy ducked into our lilac bush for cover and the hawk got tangled in the bush. I ran over to defend her. By the time I got there the hawk had extricated itself and roosted on top of my shed. I could not scare it off. I stood at the shed door flapping my arms yelling. It just stood there staring at me until it decided to leave. They are the only animal that seems to have no fear of me.
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Hmmmm, I know you’re not allowed to shoot them with anything stronger than the nerf gun. But that you can get that close reminds me of poking the owl here. Drop the “Shoot” in SSS pest control method and sub in another “shovel” for it? That’s how my neighbor got one of the Racoons that was taking his hens. It got into his coop and had a girl, and he just used the only thing to hand. I don’t know that I could premeditate that, but if I walked in on an attack... I would probably do the same. Also he is not permitted firearms, so he just has a BB gun with pointed balls. Which is often not enough for a clean dispatch.

 

[Kris5902]

BLU just fell off his perch, seeing those pictures of Phyllis.

You had me worried there for a moment... until I remembered is infatuation...

 

[Kris5902]

Yesterday was ridiculously stressful... 3-4am wake up, next to no sleep, and I didn’t get finished unloading at the trailer until midnight! But I have a plan of attack for my toilet involving disposable chopsticks for the flush, a new pair of gloves for doing the work, and I hope to tackle it today. I have lost my purse with the back-up buy a new toilet on amazon pre-paid CC. Which is a little scary, but I know it is on the farm at least.

The most stressful part of coming home on the late boat was having my Mother and the kiddo here closing up the chickens. First I got the call that there was a big white chicken in with Sammy they didn’t think belonged there, I said there should be two white ones and Tailess, plus all the little black Red Rock Pullets, don’t bother trying to count those, I trust Sammy to put his girls all up. Well they had dropped the tractor down early and Locked poor Two Dot out. Maybe she went up with Dean and Cass? No Way, the younger 5 of that flock are still not fully integrated when it comes to Roosting, thanks to my Bully girl and one of the Black Sapphire Marans girls being a “little domineering”. Younger little Two Dot, who isn’t a part of the flock in there? I would be able to hear that commotion over the phone for sure.

I got home at 11:15, spent 15 minutes or so unloading BIL’s car of my groceries etc. then it was off to re-close all the chickens and look for the missing one. I did a quick sweep of the yard as I went and checked everyone. Looking at all the likely roosting places she may have settled in. I found her in the second to last tractor I checked... tucked in with Roostie and his girls! How they missed her I don’t know. I was pretty specific Roostie and 8 big brown meat girls... umm tiny white TwoDot stuck out like a beacon! I don’t think they even tried to count or checked them like I asked, just closed up the ramp...

Everyone made it through safe and sound, but I can say it’s going to be a long time before I trust my Mom to do that again... Meat birds were “beautiful, clean, and exceptionally well mannered” at the plant. I may have a line on someone who wants to go in together on some Chicken and hatching egg orders next year. And a breeder that has lavender Orpingtons....

 

[BY Bob]

She seems very good at posing she really very pretty!

She loves the camera that one. She a big photo bomber as well. My little ham.