Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[BY Bob]

Return Visit

The hawk was back just 10 minutes ago. It has come in the same way now every time, from the NE parallel to the back fence.

The littles are still locked in their coop and run but the big ladies were out. I saw the hawk from pretty far out and decided to warn the tribe but how? I don't have the call down like @micstrachan does. So cleverly, I just yelled HAWK! HAWK! It worked! Everyone dove for cover.

The hawk turned tail and flew off. This is not sustainable. What am I going to do?

 

[BY Bob]

Anyway today's Friday, so here's Peggy.

View attachment 2874311

That is one exceptional bum.

 

[BY Bob]

And here are a few butts, featuring Ruby, front and center.
View attachment 2874356

Wonderful shot of the tribe!

 

[bgmathteach]

A mini Minnie update
It is still dark and I am just back in from my morning coconut oil and massage routine. There really wasn't anything to massage because her crop was completely empty. A situation she is currently remedying by picking the cabbage off her breakfast buffet in the hospital ward.

She was also more feisty than other mornings including being more vocal and getting down off the roost and wandering off before I could grab her (another myth busted that chickens don't see in the dark!).
Her poo overnight however is still mainly liquid. The optimist in me noticed two things: there are definitely urates and they are nice and white, and there is some 'stuff' in the splatter - it is no longer just fully clear water like a few days ago.
How she can have had a big breakfast 3 days in a row - and eaten other things when she forages during the day - and not produce meaningful solids in her poop is a real mystery to me.

The vet called me yesterday and if nothing else good comes from this whole episode I am really happy that I have found a vet who is a chicken lady. She totally got the whole morning coconut oil and massage thing and why it was a delightful way to start the day. She called it 'mutually therapeutic' which is about right!
She also seemed really interested in things like Minnie's mood and is clearly a believer in minimizing her stress by letting her be with her friends and getting exercise. She was very happy that Minnie spent most of the afternoons outdoors with everyone else scratching around.
The poo sample was clear - no parasites, no abnormal bacterial load. The vet is as puzzled as I am about why the poo is not returning to normal and suggested increasing the amount of chicken food mash in my beef, egg, yoghurt, cabbage mix as maybe those will help give her poo more form (assuming she eats it of course).
Thinking ahead to next week when I am away I am thinking of doing a trial without coconut oil and massage over the next 24 hours to see how she does on her own.
It will hopefully reduce my anxiety about leaving her while I am away. Wish her luck!

Hope both you AND Minni survive the 'no massage/no morning cuddle' without any depression. I know my chickens are always good at lifting my mood!

It sounds like Minni is doing just pretty well, in spite of the diarrhea, then...that is good news...though sometimes we want a definitive answer we can act on.

 

[BY Bob]

So…broody much?

Poor Snow is like, "where did she go"............."never mind, I got food to eat"

 

[BY Bob]

A mini Minnie update
It is still dark and I am just back in from my morning coconut oil and massage routine. There really wasn't anything to massage because her crop was completely empty. A situation she is currently remedying by picking the cabbage off her breakfast buffet in the hospital ward.

She was also more feisty than other mornings including being more vocal and getting down off the roost and wandering off before I could grab her (another myth busted that chickens don't see in the dark!).
Her poo overnight however is still mainly liquid. The optimist in me noticed two things: there are definitely urates and they are nice and white, and there is some 'stuff' in the splatter - it is no longer just fully clear water like a few days ago.
How she can have had a big breakfast 3 days in a row - and eaten other things when she forages during the day - and not produce meaningful solids in her poop is a real mystery to me.

The vet called me yesterday and if nothing else good comes from this whole episode I am really happy that I have found a vet who is a chicken lady. She totally got the whole morning coconut oil and massage thing and why it was a delightful way to start the day. She called it 'mutually therapeutic' which is about right!
She also seemed really interested in things like Minnie's mood and is clearly a believer in minimizing her stress by letting her be with her friends and getting exercise. She was very happy that Minnie spent most of the afternoons outdoors with everyone else scratching around.
The poo sample was clear - no parasites, no abnormal bacterial load. The vet is as puzzled as I am about why the poo is not returning to normal and suggested increasing the amount of chicken food mash in my beef, egg, yoghurt, cabbage mix as maybe those will help give her poo more form (assuming she eats it of course).
Thinking ahead to next week when I am away I am thinking of doing a trial without coconut oil and massage over the next 24 hours to see how she does on her own.
It will hopefully reduce my anxiety about leaving her while I am away. Wish her luck!

So glad that she seems to be improving. Exceptional news regarding her poo be clear of issues. I like the idea of giving her 24 hours to see if she can finish and set herself to right. I think it's a good idea.

 

[BY Bob]

Had to go Google it again. from 17 best hatcheries listView attachment 2874422

Thanks for posting. Sunnyside Hatchery. I will remember that.

 

[BY Bob]

Friday fluff from the only reliable ones.View attachment 2874426View attachment 2874427Everyone else persists in facing me. These two will at least turn in circles so i stand a chance at getting shots from all angles.

Those are serious close ups! Lovely bums.

 

[RoyalChick]

Return Visit

The hawk was back just 10 minutes ago. It has come in the same way now every time, from the NE parallel to the back fence.

View attachment 2874440

The littles are still locked in their coop and run but the big ladies were out. I saw the hawk from pretty far out and decided to warn the tribe but how? I don't have the call down like @micstrachan does. So cleverly, I just yelled HAWK! HAWK! It worked! Everyone dove for cover.

The hawk turned tail and flew off. This is not sustainable. What am I going to do?

Oh dear God!
I know that all the things people use like dummy owls and reflective tape don't work over time because the individual hawks get used to them - but on the theory that this is a juvenile they might work to teach it to go elsewhere as a habit.
How about you festoon the yard with reflective tape and CDs and that sort of stuff and just make generally less hospitable.
One thing I did (which you may have noticed in my photos of the Chickens in the long grass) is put a lot of stakes in the ground - I am using the step in fence stakes that @CrazyChookChookLady and I both love for temporary fencing (I hate that we haven't heard form CCCL recently but I assume you are in contact and would tell us if anything was amiss).
Anyway, I read a lot and watched a lot of video about how hawks dive bomb their prey, and although they can be very adaptable they do prefer open ground. So I made my ground less open by creating a forest with all these stakes (about 4' high) so it requires some precision for a hawk to land and take off. The chickens navigate them just fine at ground level and they are just far enough apart for me to squeeze through (they are also easy to pull up and put back). I make some of them even more visible with reflective tape flying from the top.
For you it could only be a temporary thing because it makes it harder to move around your yard - but I am guessing it might just teach the Hawk to look elsewhere if you had them up for a month or so.
Stakes are not expensive - I bought a big batch on line but you can get them individually at TSC.

 

[Lady Red]

I was a bit sad TBH - I think I need to start subjecting the others to the morning massage so I can get my cuddle fix!

Good thinking!