Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Grammy60]

Hi everyone. I've avoided BYC for the last week and I see i've missed a lot. I hate that a lot of the fluffy butt family are dealing with illnesses and recent passing of beloved birds. I feel bad for adding more sadness but could everyone please pray hard for my beloved Butter. I fear i'm going to loose her very soon. Monday evening the horses were playing and she got kicked. Nothing got broke, but she lost the use of her right leg. She's been on pain meds and anti-inflammatory's but she is declining. I know injuries and stress can stop laying, but she's starting to get a puffy belly and i'm afraid a egg got crushed inside of her and setting up a infection. And now her toes on her bad leg are starting to curl inwards leading us to suspect nerve damage. So far she's also had 3 20 minute soaks in epsom salt water bath which she loves but she's loosing her desire to eat and drink. Me and mom were prepared to give her all the time she needed to recover, but, we are coming to a point where it may be kinder to euthanize. This is devastating to mom as Butter is her heart chicken and she's not even a year old until the first of may. If over the next 24 hours she keeps refusing food and water willingly we are calling it quits.
View attachment 2631365
Butter Monday night, still full of her attitude. I'd give anything right now for some of that spunk to return.

So sorry

Good grief..sick again. I ended up in the ER last night. I've been having stomach problems the past couple of weeks, and what I call woozy head. Did go in for fluids Monday before last. I was dehydrated. Helped. Guess I didn't get enough. Needed more last night plus my Potassium and magnesium was way low again. Potassium was at 2.6. . Fluids helped again plus giant potassium pills should help with the help of more in a prescription. I think I'm stressing too much. (husband) They are trying to figure out what's up with me and the diarrhea. Seeing a gastroenterologist next month unless my Dr. ..that I'll be making an appointment with, can get me in sooner. Stress is a bad thing for me I guess. I'm still having a hard time standing with feeling like I'm going to pass out. Made it out to my chickens this morning. Thankfully they only needed fresh water.

 

[Cynthia12]

Has anyone ever noticed that chickens rarely walk backwards? When they scratch for food, it will be a quick back step but then forward again. I've seen a bit of backward if there's a tug of war back and forth over a live treat. A hen maybe when an apron is being put on. But notice, when you walk toward them, do they back up..or do they side step? Or turn and walk away? Do they back up from the rooster? Or run. lol. Or squat. Thinking that maybe it's because they are "the hunted." Best to keep their eyes .. forward. Little birds in the wild, same way. They don't hop or step backwards.

 

[Marie2020]

Have a good evening or night wherever you are . Goodnight everyone

 

[Shadrach]

They are quite high up that tree! Do they eat figs? I may be wrong, but I think the leaves visible on the right are a fig tree.

You are right. That is a fig tree. The chickens eat when they are slightly rotten.
Lots fall to the ground.

 

[Grammy60]

Have a good evening or night wherever you are . Goodnight everyone

Good night Marie

 

[Shadrach]

Mine have access to food all day but they are being let out to free range early in the morning & what I find is the lower order girls use the free range time to access the food unmolested. At present most of my moulters prefer to fossick for stuff than eat the commercial feed.

Are you sure they fossick rather than furtle?

 

[Shadrach]

Ok, friends of BYC, I’m going to reveal something of myself and know I do it because I feel I need some non chicken related support.
I started smoking when I turned 18, so silly. I continued on until I found out I was pregnant with Vi at 31 and quit instantly.
I was smoke free for nearly 3 years (my husband still indulged) then the bakery we both worked at in Melbourne shut down so we made the choice to move back to Geelong where I grew up. The stress of it had me having one now and then once more which made me feel nauseous, like starting again.
We moved in with my parents for a few months so we could get a deposit together to buy a house(which we did) but damn, living with your parents again with a toddler and being the middleman between them and my husband took its toll.
I had gotten a pastry job in a wholesale bakery I absolutely hated but it paid the bills, anyway, somehow I was back to a smoker again much to my displeasure but by then the body craves what it craves.
Now I’m at the school, I obviously don’t smoke during work hours, but still either side I do and I’m just sick of it. I just turned 38.
Violet has never seen either me or my husband smoking but she’s getting old enough now that she will work it out eventually.
As of tomorrow, I am trying to quit cold turkey. I know it will be really tough but I am hoping I can stay strong and achieve the goal of not smoking again.
Wish me luck

chicken tax
View attachment 2631006

I'm not going to wish you luck Scrambles because luck has nothing to say on the matter. I will wish you strength and a long enough period without stress to complete your mission.
I'm a smoker. I started later than you and I've given up a few times in my life only to fall back into addiction at times of stress.

 

[Ribh]

Are you sure they fossick rather than furtle?

Quite sure. There's nothing gentle or tentative about what my lot do!

 

[Shadrach]

Quite sure. There's nothing gentle or tentative about what my lot do!

Oh, okay then. Just checking.

 

[Shadrach]

Has anyone ever noticed that chickens rarely walk backwards? When they scratch for food, it will be a quick back step but then forward again. I've seen a bit of backward if there's a tug of war back and forth over a live treat. A hen maybe when an apron is being put on. But notice, when you walk toward them, do they back up..or do they side step? Or turn and walk away? Do they back up from the rooster? Or run. lol. Or squat. Thinking that maybe it's because they are "the hunted." Best to keep their eyes .. forward. Little birds in the wild, same way. They don't hop or step backwards.

One of those rare times I see hens walk backwards here is when a rooster has made a neck grab hoping to mate and the hen isn't interested. I saw Bracket do it this evening when Punch grabbed her neck. Bracket must have walked backwards over at least a metre before she managed to turn and give Punch a warning peck.