Great post, Bob. The purring is music to my ears!Flockservations
Molting Update
The following hens have completed their molts.
Hattie has couple of feathers to go but she is fully covered and her behavior shows that. She right into the tussel when treats are available. She is not standing away and laying around like she used to. She is chowing down on any and all food. In short, she is Hattie again.
- Hattie
- Phyllis
Fully Covered
Partially Naked
- Sydney: She is still growing feathers but no longer has bare patches. She needs a new tail mostly. She is not however mixing it up with the flock. She is standoffish, will not eat from my hand, or even come within arms reach. She stays separate from the flock and does not mix it up.
- Aurora: She has lost her tail but is still completely covered. However, starting your molt in November is not a good idea. It will be getting cold very quickly and I am very concerned as to what the weather will be as she loses her feathers. Very concerned.
Of all the nonsense, Legertha and Sylvie are getting new head feathers. Their new head feathers now include the orange color where they were only black and white before. So I need to keep the heater on a little longer. I need to get it turned off soon though.
- Legertha
- Sylvie
- Lilly
- Sansa
Lilly has entered full molt she has lost most of the feathers on the back of her neck. She usually does not get large bare patches. Since it is rapidly turning colder I that remains so this year. Sansa continues with her super lengthy molt but I am finally seeing some bare patchs fill in. The really good news is that Lilly is not a stand off or weird eating molter. I do think that because her bestie is now molting too, Sansa has come back into the fight for treats and us clearly eating more. Her and Lilly are now back to traveling side by side again.
Dramatic Shift in Weather
October around here was actually very warm and wet. Well that changed on Tuesday. A little light rain came through and then the temperature dropped like a rock that night. We skipped frost and went right to a freeze. I left a cup of water outside and found this in the morning.
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This is something which the ladies really appreciate because now the garden will be theirs. My tomato jungle has been killed. I will be clearing the garden on Saturday and then it will be theirs. This kind of cold worries me with my late molters.
Routine
The entire tribe (including Legertha and Sylvie) has spent time all locked up together recently. Among other reasons I am hoping that this break in routine will dissuade the hawk from coming by here to hunt. I know they like to follow a standard patrol route and if there is no access to food here on a reliable basis, why keep swinging by.
What I found this morning was very interesting. The entire tribe of fully grown hens was hanging in the big run while the littles scratched around in their coop. This is new as they are usually scattered about when I release the older ones to free range in the morning. Some in their coop, some on the porch, some under their coop and occasionally someone in the big run. I'm not certain it means anything but I found it interesting.
Asa far as routine goes the Phyllistines are very reliable. From the time the coop door opens and Phyllis delays until some point after 9 am, they stay in their coop eating and drinking. They will then take a rest to digest everything they have eaten. They usually take that test on the roost in their coop. After that it is out to the run. They will spend the majority of the day in the big run. Between 4:00 and 5:00 pm I will open the door and let them out for supervised free range protected by a heavily armed guard. They are now letting Phyllis roost and staying out later until they come in after sunset to eat, drink, and roost. It is the same thing every day.
I have a great for everyone as today I recorded them taking the break after the morning meal. Listen to them purring on the roost. It is so adorable.
As far as the big girl behavior… could it be related to the shift on weather?
On the molting note, I have total confidence you will provide whatever they need, be it protein, heat, or just a safe place. My Flo is in a heavy molt and taking it like a champ! I find that very interesting, as she is also quite assertive. I’ve said this before, but she’s an alpha in the making (unless Bridge outlives her). I am very curious about the link between behavior, rank and health.
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