Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[featherhead007]

Any sort of dad is a hard life.

No "KID"ing!

 

[BY Bob]

Alpaca? Shetland pony?

Ha. Ha. Ha.

 

[Shadrach]

I love how Cillin is sitting on an egg.

He hasn't broken one yet.

 

[featherhead007]

And (NO, I don't wash my chickens in a washing machine)

 

[Shadrach]

The Roosting Chronicles continue.....

I filmed about 30 minutes of roosting last night. Don't worry, I cut it up into significant events. My top observation is that Hattie is much more active on the roost. While frequently sitting and resting, she was very active patrolling it.

This first cut involves Sansa and Phyllis. Hattie has "encouraged" Sansa to leave the main roost. Hattie, Phyllis and Lilly are all settled and Peaceful while Sansa eats. Sansa then goes after Phyllis who, in trying to get away, runs into Hattie who then pecks her before she jumps down.

This second cut shows what happens to Sansa after Phyllis has gotten back on the roost and Sansa thinks she can eat in peace. Someone else has another idea. Watch how she methodically corners Sansa.

The third cut shows the results of Phyllis being knocked down. Does she get back up and onto her spot?

Nope!

For some reason Phyllis goes to the other side of the roost. Now she is the meat in a Hattie/Sansa sandwich with that dill pickle Aurora on the side. Despite the challenges facing her, it's Phyllis dismayed? No way! She rises to the challenges and runs the gauntlet finding a clever way around Hattie. (watch closely and you can see Sydney sneak onto the high roost while everyone else is occupied)

In this cut, just when you think everything is settled, Hattie and Aurora decide things are not yet settled. Sansa and Sydney are the targets. You will not see Sydney get down as Sansa is blocking the view.

This final cut shows Sansa in a nest box having given up on roosting and Sydney trying to get back on the high roost. Sydney waited over 5 minutes for Aurora to be distracted before she jumped up. It worked and after a few pecks, roosting is finished for the night.

I need to watch more but it seems that Hattie and not Aurora is responsible for Sansa in the nest box. An active Hattie is certainly a new development.

I'm pleased to write that although there is some pecking and shuffling about with all the tribes at roost time it is over with very quickly.

 

[BY Bob]

No llama! Dangerous, foul tempered things... just as bad as an Emu! Here comes some more chicken Tax photo shoots, but back in the day here, there was a llama.

(for any readers without prior context for this story, 600 acres of Sheep and Cattle farm, partially wooded, on a small and sparsely populated island in the Pacific North West of North America. No large land predators, just mink, Raccons, and Otters.)

It was before we (DH and I) came to the farm, back in the early 90’s. During the “time of the Wolf”. It was quite fashionable then to have wolf hybrids as pets, and someone brought one to the island. It was at least half, if not 3/4, Wolf. Although Dogs are predictable, and Wolves are predictable, the hybrid offspring are not. They require huge commitments of time and energy, extremely secure fencing, and a very attentive keeper (I once lived next door to a breeder, and was looking into getting one, and Andrews Great Uncle had one, that’s another story though). Anyhow, long story short, this person did not have the experience or skills necessary to the task. The wolf dog went feral. The “owner” left the island. It was taking down the feral goats and deer at an alarming rate, and with the undefended and often free roaming Sheep flock, the family was concerned that the wooly buggers would soon be next, once the beast made it down the ridge/mountain to the farm.

Something had to be done to defend the sheep. With no predators (and what I’ve realized is a near complete inability to train and control Their own dogs) there was “no need” for the farm to have a livestock guardian dog. They aren’t fans of LGDs here, too hard to control... they are very dangerous dogs, you know! So they got a llama, a grown one that was used to sheep. It will defend the flock, be a well adjusted herbivore guardian animal, without all the added work and expense of a dog. All was well, a hunting party was arranged, and eventually (as in more than half a year later) the Wolf Dog was killed. The next spring though, there were almost no lambs! Many of the ewes just weren’t pregnant... the ones that bore lambs, did so as usual. Twins, the occasional triplets, but more than half the flock was barren.

It turns out that only the very quiet and sneaky Rams were daddies that year. The llama was defending the flock alright, from Marauding wolf dogs, and amorous rams alike! The llama was rehomed, and no real long term harm was done, but the absurdity of the sudden lack of fertility that year will be remembered here for a long time! Beware the llama!

My youngest daughter's father in law has a farm in MI. They have sheep and had llamas to protect them. Had. One of their distant neighbors had a vicious dog, I no longer remember the breed. It got loose and the llamas were each crippled while fighting it to keep it from the sheep. They all had to be put down (I think it was 3 of them). It broke his heart. I could tell as he told us the story. Of course the dog was put down but restitution was minimal as llamas have no real production value.

I will ask but I don't think the llamas caused any reproductive drop off.

Chicken tax

 

[BY Bob]

Any sort of dad is a hard life.

He speaks truth!

 

[BY Bob]

I'm pleased to write that although there is some pecking and shuffling about with all the tribes at roost time it is over with very quickly.

My tribe is warped somehow. I'm sure all I need is a good rooster, right?

 

[featherhead007]

My youngest daughter's father in law has a farm in MI. They have sheep and had llamas to protect them. Had. One of their distant neighbors had a vicious dog, I no longer remember the breed. It got loose and the llamas were each crippled while fighting it to keep it from the sheep. They all had to be put down (I think it was 3 of them). It broke his heart. I could tell as he told us the story. Of course the dog was put down but restitution was minimal as llamas have no real production value.

I will ask but I don't think the llamas caused any reproductive drop off.

Chicken tax
View attachment 2499110

I love that bird!

 

[featherhead007]

My tribe is warped somehow. I'm sure all I need is a good rooster, right?