Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[RoyalChick]

It looks like there is some labored breathing...the amount her body is moving...but she seems calm and isn't acting like she is uncomfortable. ??

So, just a shot in the dark...especially given her age. Could she have PCOS? I had a hen like this. At the end she really had difficulty breathing. At first I thought ascities because the abdomen was a but distended, too...but had not vet to consult & I was terrified of syringing fluid out improperly & hitting an orgam/intestinal track. When she passed I did an informal autopsy. She was FILLED with 23 clear (all but 2) fluid sacs...ranging in size from a pea up to golf ball size! She was 5. (DC) I read after that approx. 20% of hens 5 & up fed non-organic feed will get this. I no longer remember f soy played a role, too, or not. This hen had standard/non-organic feed for the first 2 years of her life. After that I had been feeding organic almost exclusively (I couldn't find a good organic scratch, so that wasn't organic for another year or two,)

I will see if I can find the article again. I had saved it in my browser, but that computer died last spring.

What is PCOS? Do I want to know?

 

[Ribh]

Oh dear I sure hope all is ok. You should post a photo of her.

This is Soda getting a bum bath & her ulceration treated.
Her comb & wattles are a lot paler now but I haven't a recent photo. She's been skittish since the bathing.

 

[RoyalChick]

You need one of those trail cams might even see lions and tigers !!

Ah yes. Like this?

Or this?

 

[featherhead007]

I don’t think you have too many. They are a feature of the yard. Landscape rocks are all the fashion!

I have the Rocky Mountains only 45 minutes away!

 

[featherhead007]

You need one of those trail cams might even see lions and tigers !!

And Bears, oh my!
(Wizard of Oz reference)

 

[MaryJanet]

To Bed

Then she got up and went to bed like it was nothing.

@Ribh @Aussie-Chookmum @LozzyR @MaryJanet @Shadrach @micstrachan @ChicoryBlue

It looked to me as though she was out of puff. If her poops are black, I'd get her to the avian vet.

 

[MaryJanet]

What is PCOS? Do I want to know?

Polycystic ovarian syndrome?

 

[lightm]

It might help you to understand how complicated this are over here to go back to the time of the American revolution.

The USA was founded by people with a complete distrust of government. Therefore it was decided that decisions should be made at the most local level possible. The whole system was set up to devolve power to the smallest possible unit of government. The states that were the original colonies are set up quite different than those states that came along later. Let me explain.

In PA, we have the following levels of government in descending size, State, County, and Locality. A locality would be a town, a borough, a city, a township, etc. In addition, once it was decided that an educated populace was a requirement for a democracy to succeed, a school system needed to be set up. The people did not want the government involved in their children's education so they established School Districts to provide for the education of their children, outside of the government structure. These School Districts normally span multiple localities. They have elected members and also have the ability to tax in order to provide the education. This is the prevalent form of government in most of the original states.

In many newer states you will only find 2 levels of government, State and County and the counties will usually run the schools.

All of those political entities have the ability to tax. Each state's constitution will lay out what taxing authority each of the government entities will have. For example in PA, the Locality can tax my income, while the County or the School District may not tax my income but they can tax my property.

Which taxes hurt the elderly most? Property Taxes. They are set on the current value of the property and not based upon the ability to pay. You can imagine what this does to a School District's ability to raise money for teachers salaries, etc.

And because this is supposed to be a chicken thread. Here is Aurora hanging out in the chair next to me tonight.
View attachment 2411537

This is my new rule. If I am going to discuss things other than chickens, I will place a photo of a chicken in the post.

Now I've learned where the non-chicken tax is from! (page 2293)

Thank you for this post, Bob. It's very educational. I've been in the states for 15 years now but I did not grow up here.

I admire the founding fathers greatly and people should always distrust the government.

 

[Kris5902]

Something is Up with Lilly

Check out what she is doing. Part of the time she is a normal chicken and then she just stops and sits like this. She was free ranging like normal a minute before she sat down here.

I am concerned to say the least but she is not leaving her friends and going to roost like Hattie. I will give her tonight but I may need to act tomorrow.

I think you need to check for egg binding etc… she looks like she’s struggling to pass an egg to me… definitely give her a thorough check!

 

[BY Bob]

A hint. I don’t think the red circled prints are raccoon.

View attachment 2994203

I saw those and I thought fox.