Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[bgmathteach]

It does help. How long a strip of vet wrap? Multiple strips? Does the direction of the wrap matter? Eg: opposite the direction the toes are curving?

Not so much that, as snugly wrapped (but not so tight to cut off circulation!) So, honestly, the length I use depends on the size of what I am wrapping. Roughly 3 times around for starters to get it secured. This should be good for each toe (1 apiece) Then, once it is secured, I use a longer one that will wrap the middle toe, around the leg @ ankle, then back around toe. (to clarify, one FULL wrap around toe plus another 1/2 wrap so it holds..then up around ankle from back, over front of foot, around back of ankle, down front of foot, then around same or different toe. Do this again in opposite direction using another toe. His toes will be pretty thick with vet wrap, but it will hold for a while. Caveat: Try to make vet wrap end either under foot or inside back of leg, hardest places for them to get at end. IF they manage to peck the end of the vet wrap and get ahold of it, nothing will stay put for long as they will peck constantly until it is off.

Hope this is clearer than mud!

 

[BY Bob]

Betty is one determined lady.

She surely is.

 

[Kris5902]

Hey all! You are all so lovely to reach out here (and my inbox is filled with kindness too).

All is well here. I kinda feel like a jerk just popping in to say "I'm sorry I'm MIA" and "I'm so busy."

However, yes... I am sorry and I have been crazy busy. Work has been relentless for the past 6 months (yay job security!).
I've been generally awful about being kind to myself and allowing little luxuries to make all the efforts more endurable, so I've been working on remedies.
Actually took time off and went on a retreat (think yoga and hiking). I came back with a better outlook. And Covid. Thank goodness it was a mild case bc it really sucked. As in it sucked any desire to not be sleeping out of me. Fortunately I was able to segregate enough from the family and no one else caught it.

Kiddos are great! Eldest is thinking about what career path to delve into or if an advanced degree is a good call. He's got a year before graduation, so lots of conversations have and will continue to happen.
Youngest will be leaving the nest in fall for year 1 of college. He has been working and earning some crazy bank dog walking and sitting.

Hubby and I are looking forward to a trip of a lifetime in late summer (you know the details BGMath!) and I couldn't be happier to have it on the horizon.

The chickens are all in great shape and just such a joy! Naenae sometimes will take a nap on my lap if I can get outside in the afternoon. One day she had stretched out and layed sidewides and just snoozed. It was enough to make my heart burst that she trusts me so implicitly.
Even my most skittish girl, Pingu, is warming up to me. She will hop up and stand next to me when I sit on the bench. I think by end of summer she will crawl on my lap too

I cannot even pretend to be up to date on everyone - but I sure hope life has been kind to each of you.View attachment 3061871
Chicken tax... Piscia peering out of the newest and most desirable place to lay eggs. Who needs nest boxes??

Glad you’re doing well, and don’t worry… you weren’t the only one to drop off completely for a bit luckily everyone here is lovely, understating and *forgiving*, right y’all?

 

[Kris5902]

That is a lot of goats!

Oh, shortly after posting this I went and was working on the camper only 16 of the not so little, VERY stinky boys came right on up. I was crouched down working on wiring, the chickens kept doing their “dumb” alarm it’s halfway between “danger” and “I laid an egg” and everyone gets going. I had been storming out looking for mink or BBB etc and had just decided they were being silly. I stood up looked out and HOW did Arduinna lose her collar, Harness, and Tie out!?!!! Hold on, that a little uglier than my Princess… WTFudge! My usual Morning visitors and four friends are back in the field right next to the trailer (that empty one in the goat pic) and 8 younger guys are between the camper project and the chicken trailer and looking right back at me! Afternoon goat herding/shooing ensued. And then I went back to working on my project (more insulation and wiring fun) and have just quit for the day now. goats… I am willing to ship those and the wet anywhere! At least the stanky Billy herd that is making life entertaining. Jimmy doesn’t like them, Arduinna wants to play with them, I want them at least two more fields away from where they usually are. Capricious little things.

 

[Kris5902]

Just did baby inspection: approx 5 week mark. Hector has red chin streaks, one of the Sussex has a tiny smudge of pink, the other even smaller, and the hobbit lasses can barely find where they will eventually be. Also tried taping Hector's toes (they have started curling sideways). Epic fail on that. Getting a vitamin supplement tomorrow after work to see if that will help (they weren't crooked to begin with so guessing vitamins). Meanwhile, have some leftover "corn"bread that's actually grain free (mostly almond flour and eggs). In googling foods high in B 2 (?), the likely source of the toes, both of those came up. In fiddling with them (he was remarkably patient, but has ticklish feet), they aren't curling as much so, hoping the vitamins will do the trick. If not, going to try popsicle stick toe braces as toothpicks are IMPOSSIBLE!

In other news, took a dozen and a half eggs to the MIL. She's starting up her incubator and wants some of Thing's eggs. As I can't really tell her eggs from the rest of the white, she got some of everyone's , even with Jess going broody. doubling up on Cheetah being a daddy. Estimated hatch date: May 4th (does that mean that I need to go with Star Wars names if I bring any home?)

DH says 100% yes in Starwars themed May the Fourth names… I volunteer him to help with choosing if you need a hand. He hasnt been able to Troop/Costume since 2019 and misses conventions and costuming and all things nerdy and Star Wars.

 

[Kris5902]

If you wouldn't mind, could you share how you handle Hector while you tape his toes? Bernadette's toes are still taped up by the vet but I am supposed to take that off and inspect and if necessary then do it all up again.
I was with the vet when she did it so I know what needs to be done - in fact she and I designed it together - but she had the miracle vet tech animal whisperer who managed to hypnotize Bernadette such that she was very well behaved.
I am facing the prospect of doing this on my own. If that is not possible I will need to figure who of my friends/neighbors would be 'least bad' but I worry that the helper will make things worse by panicking.
So I am thinking through the logistics of doing this all one handed.
I thought about doing this at night as I do for the big Princesses if I need to do something, but the babies wake up in the night and it would also mean dragging her out from under the heat plate which I feel would be traumatic. Also, it will be harder for me to do fiddly work in the dark/red light.
My other thought is to immobilize Bernadette somehow maybe using a sling, or wrapping her up. I could make her into a vet wrap burrito.
Anyway, any tips welcome. She is 3 weeks old so still quite tiny. But also very feisty.
I have a utility sink that is not too deep, but deep enough that she won't be able to jump out with her bad leg. I thought I would put a towel in that and have that as the main place to work so I can see how she walks and not lose control of her.
Yes, I am a bit stressed by this - mainly because I don't want to traumatize her.

Soft cloth chicken burrito… I agree on going in at night burrito her in a tshirt or something and drape it over her head too. This should let you immobilize her and keep her calm while wrapping her tootsies. Always easier said than done though!

 

[Kris5902]

Grumble Grumble

Betty was throwing a fit this morning and it took me a minute to figure out what was happening.

I realized that only Phyllis and Lilly were ranging. Everyone else were laying eggs.

In box #1 we had Aurora
In box #2 we had Hattie
In the Cluckle Hut we had Sydney

So where was Betty to lay her egg?

Maybe nest box #3?

Apparently that was unacceptable.

So she chose to lay her egg here.
View attachment 3062063

That's right.

In a box with Aurora!

And Betty is the one grumbling. Listen to her in this video. You can hear Sydney in the background having laid her egg and celebrating.

Has anyone ever heard a hen do that before. I have not. Even Hattie seems perplexed by the goings on!

All the freaking time… I have small plastic nest boxes (ease of cleaning and free because my cat littler used to come in them) they could all be empty and I can have up to three chickens stuffed in one trying to lay at least Betty has an excuse with most of the other nest boxes occupied… and this is how I get broken eggs, that and attempted broodies.

 

[Kris5902]

Wrap her up with a washcloth or hand towel...like a baby in a bunting, with just her legs out, wings tightly held against her, but loose by her head to breathe...but flopping over it so also dark & calming.

With littles I’ve had good success with t-shirts, and t-shirt material cut into smaller strips for chicken burritos, you can get a little stretch in them that seems to help swaddle without wrapping too tight. For Roosters it’s a towel or nothing… t shirt is too stretchy and they have too much wing strength and agility for such paltry confinement.

 

[Marie2020]

Once I get that kitchen put together… there will be sauerkraut and kombucha and maybe even dandelion wine and home brew beer one day!

I will drop by for all of the above

 

[Marie2020]

Hey all! You are all so lovely to reach out here (and my inbox is filled with kindness too).

All is well here. I kinda feel like a jerk just popping in to say "I'm sorry I'm MIA" and "I'm so busy."

However, yes... I am sorry and I have been crazy busy. Work has been relentless for the past 6 months (yay job security!).
I've been generally awful about being kind to myself and allowing little luxuries to make all the efforts more endurable, so I've been working on remedies.
Actually took time off and went on a retreat (think yoga and hiking). I came back with a better outlook. And Covid. Thank goodness it was a mild case bc it really sucked. As in it sucked any desire to not be sleeping out of me. Fortunately I was able to segregate enough from the family and no one else caught it.

Kiddos are great! Eldest is thinking about what career path to delve into or if an advanced degree is a good call. He's got a year before graduation, so lots of conversations have and will continue to happen.
Youngest will be leaving the nest in fall for year 1 of college. He has been working and earning some crazy bank dog walking and sitting.

Hubby and I are looking forward to a trip of a lifetime in late summer (you know the details BGMath!) and I couldn't be happier to have it on the horizon.

The chickens are all in great shape and just such a joy! Naenae sometimes will take a nap on my lap if I can get outside in the afternoon. One day she had stretched out and layed sidewides and just snoozed. It was enough to make my heart burst that she trusts me so implicitly.
Even my most skittish girl, Pingu, is warming up to me. She will hop up and stand next to me when I sit on the bench. I think by end of summer she will crawl on my lap too

I cannot even pretend to be up to date on everyone - but I sure hope life has been kind to each of you.View attachment 3061871
Chicken tax... Piscia peering out of the newest and most desirable place to lay eggs. Who needs nest boxes??

Good to know you are well and taking care of yourself. Good news on your eldest too so all is well