Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[RoyalChick]

I am underwater at work, and exhausted by the time I would have a chance to participate here....know that I've missed a ton.
@Ribh I'm sorry for the loss of Patricia Poor thing.
@CrazyChookChookLady those chipmunks are adorable!
@RoyalChick lovely bums!
@micstrachan your workload is rivaling mine!
Everyone...I'm missing you all!

In the same boat - yesterday I started at 5am and didn't finish until 9pm and I am like a damp dishrag today. The fluffy butt pictures were from earlier in the week - I got no time to spend with the ladies yesterday.
Fortunately I have painters working outside and they let the chickens into their yard and fed them shrimp(!) and locked them back in when they left. So grateful!

 

[Marie2020]

No I didn't. I know almost nothing about prolapse except it sometimes happens, often to production layers. I figured that's what it was. The vet said they use sugar to shrink it before trying to put it all back. She hadn't been pecked, thank heavens! But she was a real mess, especially where I hadn't looked. I just bundled her up & got the 1st boat I could off the island. I'm not the super practical scientific sort & this stuff is totally beyond me. I wasn't even going to try. When they examined her there was a massive blood clot hidden by the prolapse, exposed blood vessels & she was haemorrhaging. They did say they could try but it was so bad they felt it was only prolonging the inevitable, exposing her to infection, & her quality of life just wouldn't be there. I hate making these calls but when the vet is reluctant to treat I usually trust their judgement. These guys have been in the district from when it was still all farmland so do a lot of big animals & see a lot of pet chickens. They were really good with both Patricia & me.

I'm sad to read of your poor hen a prolapse is a very tricky situation

 

[Marie2020]

We have 3!!

View attachment 2680865

She has now moved off the rest of the eggs and I believe she is done. I'm ok with 3, especially since she's a first timer.

Three little beauties, I would be ecstatic

 

[Marie2020]

Hello @BY Bob @featherhead007 @Lady Red @RoyalChick @everyone here in Fluffys

 

[BY Bob]

Some days, I wish my grocery store wasn’t 10 miles away. The chooks want more watermelon, and they are very persistent! I’m going now to get some

Good man.

 

[BY Bob]

I think from what I can see in the videos Bob, that this is normal behaviour. The tribes have had much more violent disputes over egg laying rights.

Ime the juniors will go off to find their own nest site eventually. Even those juniors who have laid a few eggs unchallenged and undisturbed for a while get driven off the nest by a more senior hen. Some wait until the more senior hen lays and goes, others will try and squeeze into the nest box despite the pecking and quickly lay their egg. Occasionally they will share, but this usually ends up with broken eggs as each tries to pull the eggs already laid to their side of the nesting box.

I start off with the assumption that hens lay eggs with the intention of sitting on them and hatching.
Next, hens would prefer to hatch their own eggs. Some of the tribes hens will push another hens eggs out of the nest, or to one side.
Fudge would break another hens eggs and Mel has abandoned a few nests when another hen has laid eggs in it.
So, I believe there is a bit more to it than meets the eye.

What I've found confusing is once one hen starts to lay at a nest site, the others of that tribe will lay there as well. But, it seems that at least with some hens when they are planning to sit, if one believes that they do indeed plan that far ahead, they find a new nest site and get quite secretive about it’s location. Donk and Knock did this a lot and both would lay at the same site.

I believe that if your hens were fully free range and had space, Phyllis for example would be looking for a nest site away from the others. Most of the junior hens I've watched in the past have done this eventually when laying in the regular nest boxes became too much of a struggle.

You could try a nest box away from the coop and see who finds and uses it. I had double nest boxes in two or three of the coops over the years and most of the time only one in each coop got used; sometimes by more than one hen. What usually happened is the other hens found other sites to lay at, but there were quite a few to choose from.

The conflict in the videos isn't too bad from my experience. I’ve posted a few pictures below of nesting disputes.
Knock, laying in Tribe 1's nest box and being very defensive about it. I tried offering Tackle an alternative but she waited until Knock had left in the end.


I think from what I can see in the videos Bob, that this is normal behaviour. The tribes have had much more violent disputes over egg laying rights.

Ime the juniors will go off to find their own nest site eventually. Even those juniors who have laid a few eggs unchallenged and undisturbed for a while get driven off the nest by a more senior hen. Some wait until the more senior hen lays and goes, others will try and squeeze into the nest box despite the pecking and quickly lay their egg. Occasionally they will share, but this usually ends up with broken eggs as each tries to pull the eggs already laid to their side of the nesting box.



I start off with the assumption that hens lay eggs with the intention of sitting on them and hatching.

Next, hens would prefer to hatch their own eggs. Some of the tribes hens will push another hens eggs out of the nest, or to one side.

Fudge would break another hens eggs and Mel has abandoned a few nests when another hen has laid eggs in it.

So, I believe there is a bit more to it than meets the eye.

What I’ve found confusing is once one hen starts to lay at a nest site, the others of that tribe will lay there as well. But, it seems that at least with some hens when they are planning to sit, if one believes that they do indeed plan that far ahead, they find a new nest site and get quite secretive about it’s location. Donk and Knock did this a lot and both would lay at the same site.

I believe that if your hens were fully free range and had space, Phyllis for example would be looking for a nest site away from the others. Most of the junior hens I’ve watched in the past have done this eventually when laying in the regular nest boxes became too much of a struggle.

You could try siting a nest box away from the coop and see who finds and uses it. I had double nest boxes in two or three of the coops over the years and most of the time only one in each coop got used; sometimes by more than one hen. What usually happened is the other hens found other sites to lay at, but there were quite a few to choose from.

The conflict in the videos isn’t too bad from my experience. I’ve posted a few pictures below of nesting disputes.

Fudge and Tackle. Fudge drove Tackle out in the end. Fudge is mum and Tackle is daughter.
View attachment 2680098
Knock laying in Tribe 1's preferred nest box and being very aggressive towards Tackle who was waiting to lay. She laid in the nest box despite my efforts to provide an alternative site after Knock left.
View attachment 2680099

Hurry preventing Moon from laying and then Mel shows up and drives them both out.
View attachment 2680101

Fat Bird driving Tap out of the nest box.
View attachment 2680103

Thanks Shad. That is reassuring. I have built another nest box out in the run for Phyllis specifically. She made a nest under it for a while but gave up on it all together after a few days. No one will use it.

Phyllis does have times where she runs around yard looking for a nest site before she gives up and goes into the coop to lay.

I may try and build one outside the complex for her. My only fear would be winding up with a broody outside the complex but I guess I could deal with that if it happened. Something to consider.

 

[BY Bob]

Everyone: Thank you thank you thank you for your caring & friendly words, it is helpful and comforting. You all know how devastating it is, I appreciate you all writing notes. Please forgive me if I've missed anyone here. These thanks are so late, sorry. It was and sometime still is so overwhelming.


@featherhead007 Thank you for your words that describe it exactly, and for the poster words and sweet picture that lit a way forward from this awful place for me.


Thank you @Scrambles83 for saying this, and acknowledging it's okay to take the time to grieve, and to separate the pain of loss, let that flow, and the pain of blaming myself, let that go.


@Ribh Thank you and you are right, and don't worry I'm still caring for them and that does help some. It's all sad and healing at the same time to be with them, plus I'm afraid for them. She did have more time here, and great quality time, than she would have had starving into the winter where she was.


Thank you, and thank you for the heart, @micstrachan , it is a big hurt. She did an amazing integration into this group, didn't she? And really figured out how to fit in and thrive. She had flock/tribe smarts and a great personality. I loved her voice! Her eager huffing caws. And until recently she was the only one who would do the escort call. But just two weeks ago I heard a duet of escort calls - one of the Buckeyes was doing it too! Maybe they kept each other going, because it went on for a long time. Queenie was loud, strong and clear, the Buckeye was a little raspy but doing pretty well keeping up her end. Then yesterday I heard a raspy short version of it from someone! So maybe they will carry on with it.


Thank you, @Aussie-Chookmum . Thank you for the hugs! She did really get into her new tribe, just the day or two before, she had a great time dustbathing with everyone. Actually, she tried to join the others who had started first and there wasn't enough good bathing space in the dirt hole so she left and waited. When they were done she went over there and started a solo dustbath. But then the others saw her and joined in - only this time she was in the good center area and she wasn't letting herself get pushed out with the other's squirming. I filmed the beginning part with my phone, BYC says it's the wrong format but I will try to post it another way.


Thank you. You are right, @RoyalChick , nothing is 100% safe if they also are to be chickens too. Even in their run it's not 100%. It has been helpful to remember that, but the risk is higher than I gauged before.

Queenie may have warned Butters enough so that she moved a bit and the hawk's first strike was off, allowing Butters to squirm away, losing feathers (she looks like a NN when she ruffles now. I've checked her over again, she also has some feathers gone from her shoulders but I see no piercing wounds). Partly it's Queenie's previous ranging experience and gusto for leading the ranging that swayed me to give them more ranging time, but not attending to them enough was a huge mistake. But even close attendance is not 100% fail-safe either.

Thanks for the hugs. The rest of the tribe has been a joy still.


Thank you @Lady Red for this, and the hugs, I'm trying to be kind. It seems I can forgive others more easily than myself.


Thank you @Marie2020 , and thank you for the hugs. I'm watching her, Butters seems okay so far. I have not tried holding her or stroking her since checking her twice for any wounds, in case she's sore and bruised under the feathers. She is not squatting for me like she used to, so I'm guessing she is sore and doesn't want to be touched.


Dear @BY Bob , thank you. I know you know, and you did warn me of this possibility. Thank you for wishing to take the pain away. Thank you for the hugs!


How true about nature, @CrazyChookChookLady ! It was all a series of factors, in which I played a role. Trying to realize that included successes besides failings.


That is such a sweet thought, @RebeccaBoyd ! Thank you. I wonder if Buff Orpingtons are usually so personable? She had a special way about her.


@Blazinga I know you do. Thank you. I'm so sorry for your loss and pain too.


Thank you for your note @LaFemmeKatia , yes it does seem like there's been a rash of losses one way or another. I'm nervous too!


Thank you so much, @MaryJanet . Thank you for the hugs too.


Thank you @LozzyR , yes, there was a long stretch of caring specially for her as she "quarantined" and then was integrating, and beyond. Thanks. The choices I made that contributed to her death in her time of need make it especially hard. I couldn't get aviary netting up everywhere there that I wanted. The area was evolving. And this is how it happened this time. Maybe in some other version of it, Butters would have been unable to get away and would be the one killed, if there was only one, and the fence aspect of it wouldn't hurt so much. But in that version I would be grieving horribly too. I didn't know my limits. Thank you for the hugs!

 

[BY Bob]

I've just fully integrated my babies & it's nearly full dark before they go to roost. The crying! And they have trouble finding the roosts because it's so dark. Then they squabble over who's going to roost with whom & knock each other off the roost. Then the Big Girl's get cranky because they were already asleep!

It is wrong that I'm glad you have some crying and angst and all is not perfect.

 

[BY Bob]

It's Friday here, so here's my fluffy butt contribution.


Mirror, mirror on the wall
Who has the fluffiest butt of them all?
View attachment 2680207​

We have a winner.

 

[BY Bob]

I am dealing with an emergency. Prayers for Patricia, please. Sorry for graphic. Can't find the spoiler on my phone.
View attachment 2680523​

Oh no. I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I wasn't on last night.