Those are awesome!Just a note: I am NOT advertising for Vittles Vaults. I am just saying that they have worked for me.
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Those are awesome!Just a note: I am NOT advertising for Vittles Vaults. I am just saying that they have worked for me.
I love love Hattie. I want a lavender. Not going to happen this year. I don't think. Unless the eggs this guy brought by from clear up North hatch. I want to be done hatching. I have my Australorp going into lockdown on Sat. Live those birds. Now, these supposedly NN's he brought by are going to be quite a bit later. Most will go to a friend. If I get one that looks like the photo he had, which resembles my Uggums big time..I'll keep.More Flockservations
Hattie
First of all, whatever was bothering Hattie that morning is cleared up. I am going to assume it was egg related and she got the egg out. I have seen no weird eggs of any kind. She is definitely back to her old self. I personally just have this unease now and I am sure that I am staring at her when I'm outside.
My grand lady looking fit
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I have noticed two things about Hattie over the last few months.
First: She no longer joins the scrum
If I put out some leftovers or other snacks out for the girls, Hattie no longer joins in the piranha-like feeding frenzy that occurs, with exceptions. She stands back and waits until things calm down or everyone grabs a piece and runs away with it before she approaches the snack. Lilly has exhibited this behavior as well since taking over as Alpha hen. As I said there exceptions to this behavior for certain kinds of food, say pasta. I would say about 90% of the time, she hangs back.
Secondly: She is enforcing her position more vigorously
Hattie used to be very laid back when it came to her relationship with others in the flock. I almost never saw her peck at anyone else. It is not often but it is happening. Now I see her actually pecking at others and even going after others with what seems the sole purpose of reminding them of their position. I have even seen her make Aurora, of all hens, bow down in submission. I cannot recall this ever happening before in all the time Hattie has been with me. In fact only Maleficent had ever made Aurora bow down before. Even after the big fight when Lilly tried, Aurora did not submit to her.
An Odd Pairing
At first blush it makes no sense. They are truly odd when viewed together. I will explain more in a minute.
I have said many times that my tribe tends to pair off as they go about their ranging. This is one of the reason I am a huge proponent of even numbered "hen only" tribes. Roosters change the equation. I tend to watch with interest who is paired up with whom. It used to be that they pretty much matched up in pecking order. As I watch what is going now though I do believe that pairing up in such a fashion wasn't really pecking order but based upon "siblings". Maleficent and Aurora were not hanging out together because they were 3 & 4 in the pecking but rather because they grew up together and thus were friends.
So what is the current odd pairing?
Aurora and Phyllis
That's right. Let me break down why I think this happening.
The Odd Couple together
- Phyllis is no threat to Aurora's position. This is leading to Aurora really not pecking at her unless Phyllis actually steals something from Aurora. Which Phyllis will do from time to time. No dominance displays are required.
- Once the newbies arrived and Lilly dumped Hattie for Sansa. Hattie and Aurora had been the frequent pairing. After the big fight, the pairing dissolved. There was a lot of flux for a quite a while. With Hattie enforcing her position more now to the point of making Aurora bow down and submit, I think Aurora decided to look elsewhere for companionship.
- When looking elsewhere, with Lilly and Sansa paired up, that left Sydney and Phyllis for Aurora to pair with. Aurora and Sydney as a combination might make some sense. They are very similar in their quest for food. They will both steal food from anyone. However, Aurora feels the need to dominate Sydney. Now Sydney is a quick submitter but I am sure that is not a lot of fun for Sydney. Whereas Hattie is not as dominating a hen. I think Sydney may have chosen Hattie herself. This leads me back to point 1.
- Aurora and Phyllis are the weird looking hens. The odd balls. Between Phyllis' head of feathers and Aurora's beard and muffs, they just don't look like the others. Perhaps this is also playing some role.
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Hattie and her new partner just hanging out on the porch.
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I thought a decent microscope would cost much more.Thank you. I do very much value your review.
The microscope is almost exactly $200 right now. Isn't it amazing! I believe that home schooling has driven the prices down. There is demand outside of the scientific community for them now. This is a very solid scope. Not quite lab quality but I'm not running lab volumes through it either.
I’ve had my salmon Faverolles turn their beaks up at worms.Here’s an interesting observation I wanted to share.
Penny and Bok used to almost sit on my hand weeding fork when I was gardening and would grab worms quicker than I could see them.
Snow and Belle have absolutely no interest in them. I threw a few their way today and they looked and walked off to do other things
Do they not realise they are food or do they maybe have enough protein so aren’t gagging for more do you think?
Or the conclusion I came to, they are just a bit strange
Cuddle BunnyTrying to think if s by for my Polish. I keep calling the blue one ..Blue..Soo..real original there. . I call all if my leghorn Miss Piggy. Because they are piglets. She is already so friendly. Comes up to me. So, thinking on a name....
Quarantine them first, complete separate from each other, for 2 - 4 weeks. Then let them start free-ranging together over another week or two. How long do they have to be on starter grower?Ideas on how to integrate with Panda and Dandy? They have layer feed while these need starter grower.
The Float Test
Once you have your feces dissolved, fill up the test tube to the very top with float solution. You want the meniscus to be extending up slightly above the top of the test tube. This will enable your cover slip to have full contact with the liquid in the test tube.
#5 - So there is going to be spillage, definitely! + + 🖐 = At least if you're talking about pouring enough in there so that the only thing keeping it from spilling out is water tension, though thicker than usual, at the top of the test tube Not making fun of you here, it's me I see...Thus the mat accessory will be a must....Place a microscope cover slip over the top. There should be no air between the coverslip and the liquid. (If you are going to us a McMaster’s chamber do not place a cover slip on top.)
#7 McMaster's method, concept of capillary action - a pipette will draw fluid up by itself, correct? Like a tiny finger stick blood sample, some people have experienced that. Am getting at there's no need to siphon anything - no mouth on pipette please!Carefully remove the cover slip and place it on a microscope slide with the sample sandwiched between both pieces of glass. If you are doing a McMaster’s count, draw up the liquid on top of the test tube into a pipette. You will charge the McMaster’s chamber by using capillary action. Slowly dispense the fluid along the edge of the chamber. Capillary action will draw the liquid into the chamber. Once the chamber is full, stop dispensing liquid.
How is it that the more time you wait, the more things I assume we want to be looking for will float up and "adhere" to the cover slip, and yet "debris" doesn't adhere, and sinks instead? The parasitic eggs are always lighter than the general poo contents in the float solution? But what makes them "adhere" exactly? I can't see them actually sticking to the cover slip. They just stay inside the layer of thick fluid near the top because they are light, and the cover slip pulls that layer away? I think I'm hung up on the word adhere. Your call, of course.What is not an Egg?
There can be a lot of debris present in a fecal float. The more time you wait, the more debris will sink away from you cover slip. Still, you do not want to confuse the following with eggs or oocysts.
I am thinking by "cap" you mean the different colored / shaped bits, one on either side of some of the cysts (I can see them on the gapeworm and threadworm drawings and then on the photos). It might be helpful to point that out earlier, too, like in that b&w size difference chart above the colored pictures table.Fungal Cells
You can get fungal cells that look a lot like oocysts. They will usually only have one cap, not two. These are not eggs.