Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[CrazyChookChookLady]

Hi Grammy.. I hear you on health issues. Both of us have them. Right now I'm trying my hardest to keep up. Husband is worse than me with Alzheimer's and Prostate cancer. I personally need something to do that is enjoyable, and here at home. I am hatching and having a blast. I have friends that I can hatch for. Not sure how many I'll be keeping this winter, will see how things are going. I may become too busy with my husband. Son can help me out with a few here. But..will be fun seeing a few more out there this summer for sure!

Violet laid her first dozen of eggs. Would you like some to hatch? They are from my Phoenix pair.

 

[featherhead007]

This is getting crazy here now. The only way I can get my new hen to lay an egg, is in the house, listening to Bob Dylan “Lay Lady Lay” she also like John Denver. Figures. My mountains are only an hour away. Crazy chicken!

 

[featherhead007]

That actually sounds like a great idea. Maybe I will take a drive up there (tired of smelling cows at the moment) I may even take Jaffar my rooster with me. Life is good! I will be leaving this week to Utah again, but I will be in touch.

 

[micstrachan]

Both your Buckeyes - Minnie and Ruby - aren't well??? What's going on? The uncooked rice might have very bad consequences!

No... Ruby has a laying disorder. But Minnie recently stopped laying, too. I think. Darn hatchery stock,

 

[LozzyR]

I was starting to wonder. Gosh the post is slow these days! I'm so glad it made it to you finally. I so wanted it to be a surprise and did not want to ask if you had received it. It was driving me crazy waiting to hear.

Australia Post now only delivers every second day. I remember them being so reliable in the 90s; they really have gone downhill so much lately.

 

[LozzyR]

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For Mugshot Monday some more Ha'penny for Bob.
View attachment 2590698

What a beautiful girl! Cheeky miss though, nesting in the bag!

 

[LozzyR]

Comb Size

I just read the following sentence in the comb article from 2016 that is featured on the front page. It was kind of a throw away line but it caught my attention. Here it is:

"Usually, birds with the larger combs will be higher in the pecking order rank."

Does anyone believe that comb size has anything to do with pecking order? I am very curious and I am going to try and see if there is any actual research on this when I have a moment (I will add it to my long list of half started projects).

I am seriously asking everyone to look at their tribes and if you know their pecking order, compare it to their comb sizes. I would seriously like to know what you uncover.

Lucy had a decent-sized comb, but so does Charlie and she was bottom of the pecking order initially. River has a bigger comb than Tegan, but Tegan is number two and River is number three.

 

[BY Bob]

Oh, duh. Did you mean Bridge? Right... not a large comb, especially after the back tore off. I think she became alpha by being most senior and holds onto that spot with confidence. She’s such a calm, confident soul.

I did mean Bridge.

In my experience seniority is a huge factor in the pecking order, more so than anything else. In general I have seen debates among hens added at the same time but rarely outside of that. The Aurora/Hattie rumble being the only such incident. And that still may not have been pecking order related, it may have been a needed attitude correction.

Here is how it has worked for me starting with the greatest hen ever.

Daisy, the greatest hen ever, was here when we added Patsy and Lilly. Patsy was over Lilly in the pecking order so it became

1. Daisy (Seniority at this location)
2. Patsy
3. Lilly

When Daisy passed, Patsy took over and we added Hattie who fit in at the bottom.

1. Patsy
2. Lilly
3. Hattie

The Maleficent and Aurora joined us. When they joined Aurora was ahead of Maleficent.

1. Patsy
2. Lilly
3. Hattie
4. Aurora
5. Maleficent

Then Maleficent started laying first and took over Aurora's spot. Notice this is only within hens added at the same time.

1. Patsy
2. Lilly
3. Hattie
4. Maleficent
5. Aurora

Then Patsy passed and Lilly moved up.

1. Lilly
2. Hattie
3. Maleficent
4. Aurora

Then Maleficent passed and we added Sydney, Sansa, and Phyllis. The pecking order of the three new ladies was Sansa, then Sydney, and last Phyllis. They tagged onto the bottom of the existing order in that fashion although to be fair Sansa did try to take on Aurora. That was not smart.

1. Lilly
2. Hattie
3. Aurora
4. Sansa
5. Sydney
6. Phyllis

There was an interlude where Sydney moved ahead of Sansa by starting to lay first, but once Sansa started laying she forced her way back past Sydney. Notice again though that was within a same age group.

In my tribe it has clearly been seniority based. Not based upon comb size.

 

[Grammy60]

Hi Grammy.. I hear you on health issues. Both of us have them. Right now I'm trying my hardest to keep up. Husband is worse than me with Alzheimer's and Prostate cancer. I personally need something to do that is enjoyable, and here at home. I am hatching and having a blast. I have friends that I can hatch for. Not sure how many I'll be keeping this winter, will see how things are going. I may become too busy with my husband. Son can help me out with a few here. But..will be fun seeing a few more out there this summer for sure!

Hi Cynthia Health issues stink, but the alternative is worse . At we pretty much know what to expect with mine "most of the time". So
Sometimes I feel like I'm living in a cage, not allowed out to do anything alone . He doesn't want to hatch until it stays warmer at night, because we've had issues before. DH doesn't go to the doctor and doesn't admit when he's sick . That's one thing that just make me so upset.

I hope everyone is feeling better at your house. Being sick is no fun and sometimes you have a patient is not good at listening. I hope live is being nice to your family, except for being sick. That's cool, your hatching for others. What breed of birds do you have?

 

[Shadrach]

Intelligence in humans is a very uneven commodity anyway. I remember failing every IQ test I was ever given until they gave me a vocab test & I was suddenly Mensa material. It all means nothing anyway unless you are a decent human being.

IQ tests have never really been adequate for assessing intelligence. The clue is in the Q part which stands for quotient which is essentially a ratio. Add to this that after a certain age the quotient no longer functions.
What an IQ test may do is compare the results you get to an average for a given age.