Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[BY Bob]

I have happy news to share! Kiko laid her first egg today!

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Hooray!! First eggs are awesome!

 

[RoyalChick]

I think a massage might be best.

I am hugely relieved to report that Minnie’s crop was empty this morning (and full last night) so I did not need to help the worm along.

At least I think it was empty. I felt some tiny nodules but they felt like they were in the wall of the crop rather than food sitting in it. Is that normal? Does the wall of the crop have glands in it maybe?

Edited:
Found an article with detailed anatomy and the crop of a chicken does not have glands in the wall (geese crops do). Hmmm. Wonder what I was feeling. Inflamed lymph nodes maybe?

 

[RoyalChick]

They are sparrows and wrens. And the sparrows never leave here. They stay all winter.

Do hawks eat song birds? Do they catch them on the wing? I thought hawks were mainly after mice and squirrels and the like

 

[BY Bob]

It’s still Friday in California!

Cashew’s bum:
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Millie’s bum with Roxy’s molting bum in the background:
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Just splendid

 

[BY Bob]

Tomorrow’s our flight to Dubai.
I’ve been struggling with Pop for two days,as he needs to be fed 4 to 5 times a day.Today ive sent him and his mates to grans and have been strict about his feeding routine.Poor pop,I hope he’ll be ok,while I’m away.And this is the worst thing ever,I’ve just found out,after an hour of research,that Pop was born with an abnormal leg diseases, it’s mendable but due the falls and slipping he had to go through, I’m afraid it’s not anymore,I’ll never enthuanise him but I’ll need to do every single thing I can so that his suffering is reduced to the lowest level.Prayers for Poppy will help.Thank you all for replying to my comments,stay safe

I'm so sorry to hear that. I know you will do the best by him.

 

[Shadrach]

I am hugely relieved to report that Minnie’s crop was empty this morning (and full last night) so I did not need to help the worm along.

At least I think it was empty. I felt some tiny nodules but they felt like they were in the wall of the crop rather than food sitting in it. Is that normal? Does the wall of the crop have glands in it maybe?

Edited:
Found an article with detailed anatomy and the crop of a chicken does not have glands in the wall (geese crops do). Hmmm. Wonder what I was feeling. Inflamed lymph nodes maybe?

I did mention these little nodules in the crop in an earlier post. I'm not entirely sure what they are but every chicken crop I've felt had them.
The crop does secrete some chemicals more like the human mouth that helps to break down the food before it reachesthe gizzard. Perhaps these nodules are somthing to do with this.

 

[Marie2020]

Do hawks eat song birds? Do they catch them on the wing? I thought hawks were mainly after mice and squirrels and the like

We have sparrow hawks here.

 

[RoyalChick]

I did mention these little nodules in the crop in an earlier post. I'm not entirely sure what they are but every chicken crop I've felt had them.
The crop does secrete some chemicals more like the human mouth that helps to break down the food before it reachesthe gizzard. Perhaps these nodules are somthing to do with this.

I remembered you mentioned something but couldn't find the post. Sounds like they are normal although now I have read more about avian digestive anatomy than any non-vet really should! I learned a load of stuff but not what those nodules are!
Will assume it is normal and move on.

 

[BY Bob]

What do we define as a hatchery? I got the Roadrunners and the Philistines from a farm near me. He and his wife breed chickens and they sell chicks (I don't believe they ship anything but eggs). Does the fact that they sell them make them a hatchery? Or is it something about the scale of the enterprise?
I felt I was doing better than going to a commercial hatchery in part because of no shipping by mail, and in part because it is a small family enterprise, and because I like him and his wife and they seem to really care about the chickens. For example he wouldn't let me pick them up on the day of hatch because he wanted to watch them for a few days to make sure they were healthy.
On the other hand, I am sure he disposes of his cockerels. I believe he actually raises them and sells them at the local livestock auction where they presumably get turned into dinner.
I am not vegetarian (though I don't eat much meat) so turning the cockerels into dinner is not a complete no-no for me.
But it is all difficult to think through what is OK and what not.

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This is about the best you are going to find. Otherwise you need a rooster and need to raise your own bitsas.

 

[BY Bob]

Impossible to contemplate really, but did she get even fluffier?!

Yes. Her hair is even longer! She looks almost shaggy at times.