Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[featherhead007]

How about thinking outside the box?

I have no funny pun pictures for that.

 

[featherhead007]

Here’s the Rock garden today:
Jaffar is keeping them in check!

 

[Sally PB]

This is Stormy, just checking things out.

 

[Ponypoor]

This is the heated waterer I ended up getting, it's a 3 gallon unit, which is really too big for my few chickies but it does the job,bit was -21C outside today, around -10C in the barn and it has been ice free woohoo!

My big complaint is the power cord being too short... I had to use an extension cord with it. At night I unplug and put in my office/feedroom

So now horses and chickies all have frost free water. Now if Spring would just hurry up and arrive I would be one happy gal.

My three silkie gals modelling their new waterer

 

[Ponypoor]

I have no funny pun pictures for that.

Here goes

 

[featherhead007]

Here goes

View attachment 2966758

Thanks. I added it to my picture library

 

[Ponypoor]

I think that the winter nights are too long for them. They get hungry. I am supposing that they feel safe enough to not be afraid to un-roost eat, lay, and go back to bed.

My big worry is my silkie gals I worry they might get get hurt getting down from the 4' top roost they now insist on using!

They were good cautious little gals until my cousin's hens arrived - then they turned into risk takers and just had to do everything the big ladies had to do!

I cringe when they fly / scramble up onto the round bales!!! I started coveringh them with sheets to protect from chickies doodoo

 

[RoyalChick]

My big worry is my silkie gals I worry they might get get hurt getting down from the 4' top roost they now insist on using!

They were good cautious little gals until my cousin's hens arrived - then they turned into risk takers and just had to do everything the big ladies had to do!

I cringe when they fly / scramble up onto the round bales!!! I started coveringh them with sheets to protect from chickies doodoo

My lot have definitely taken some tumbles in the dark. The most scary is Minnie who just launches herself off into the dark from 4' up so I definitely understand your concern!

 

[ChicoryBlue]

My Princesses are confused about night and day.
It started with Dotty who several nights got up in the middle of the night (once at 2am, once as early as 10pm) and found her way to the nest boxes to lay an egg. Both times she spent a long time in the nest box but eventually, while still deep dark outside, emerged and went back up to roost.
Minnie has done the same thing a couple of times and once laid an egg right on top of Maggie who has taken to sleeping in the nest box and hasn't broken that habit yet.
Now they are all up and about in the dark. This morning at 5:30 or so (still a good 2 hours before dawn) they are all wandering around and going about their day.
This coop cam photo shows Maggie down at the feeder having breakfast and on the right you see Minnie's rear end with her tail fully fanned out as she seems to use it for balance going down the ladder in the dark.
There is no artificial light anywhere near them - we are only a week or so off of full moon so I guess there is more moonlight, although also lots of cloud cover as it is snowing heavily.
Has anyone else experienced chickens not behaving according to daylight? I know of Hattie and her midnight snacks and a few who lay eggs from the roost while asleep. But I have not heard of a fully active flock in deep dark!

View attachment 2966508

If the Buckeyes are up I don't know as I don't have a coop cam (I wasn't up to dealing with all the information about wifi or not, data cards, cloud storage, etc) and they can't do anything about it as they are locked in their coop until the auto door opens.
The moon was very bright this last week. A wolf moon, whatever that means.

 

[bgmathteach]

I wonder if the leghorns there lay fewer eggs in a year. They must go broody in order to make more leghorns. I truly wonder how close to true Italian leghorns they might be. Maybe I should retire and go study them.

Maybe you could go for a visit and *befriend* a few