Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[rural mouse]

No recent water pics. Had the hose out yesterday, didn't take pics. Had some drama

This one didn't want to lay an egg with anyone else in the coop, regardless of which nest was occupied. The buk buk bukawk incessantly started again. She chased Storm out....3 times....Pear came in, Nellie couldn't do anything to her. I got tired of the ruckus so sat out there and gave her (Nellie) the hard, close stare every time she started in. Pear just sat quietly, tossing straw over her back, and laid an egg. Nellie finally laid hers, then sat for a while before heading out to the hose. Meanwhile, Storm finally went off to the carport to lay hers. I checked on her once. She's so deeply buried that she was almost level with the ground. If she (or one of the others) turns up broody there, I'm likely to let them.....please not this year, please not this year please not this year....

Held each of the littles, had a snuggle with them too

The little chippy likes roosting at night....holding names on all of them until we know genders for certain.

Caught this the night before. Watching the process to get up there was fun!

 

[BY Bob]

Thirsty Thursday

How about a drinking cat?

 

[featherhead007]

Oh no, are you ok? I know exactly how that feels, and while I miss Pangoo I do not miss his aggression, and I still show the marks of those hard bites.

I would say it's Spring time and he is feeling his oats - are your gals going broody at all? Will you let them hatch eggs if they do?

Seems that I miss Pangoo too! I don’t want any of them to set this time. Maybe next year.

 

[RoyalChick]

Thirsty Thursday

How about a drinking cat?

Love that. She looks even more like a Lynx now - when she turns to the camera her face is pure wild cat!

 

[RoyalChick]

I am trapped inside the Chicken Palace. No, not a faulty door catch but tree trimmers.
The chain saws and the chipper make quite a racket and the Princesses are not at all at ease with it.
In brief updates
- I think maybe maybe Bernadette’s leg is looking a bit better. Definitely not normal but less useless.
- Minnie continues to look awful. She showed interest in a piece of shrimp yesterday so when I am able to get out of here and back to the house I will cook her up a few shrimp and see if I can get her to eat. I got as good a look as I can at her ears - it is really hard because the feathers protecting the ear canal are reall stiff like a scrubbing brush so almost impossible to look underneath. But she definitely has no ear discharge or gunk

 

[ChicoryBlue]

Well done. For my part I cobbled together a ground level Hooligan enclosure so now I need them to go to sleep so I can transfer them over. I hope this works and gets them out and about. Bernadette's leg is no better, but also no worse and I am convinced it is holding them all back because they won't go where Bernadette can't go.

I don't think it is a sad thing that they want to stick with her (just my opinion). I like that. It may help if she gets into trouble with the Bigs. Your chickens aren't free-range to begin with, so they will increase their exploration at their own/Bernadette's pace, given that her company is more important to them. It's not quantity but quality, no? Give them disabled-friendly things to explore and they'll be happy. Throw a reasonably-done compost pile in there, for instance. Dig a little hole in your lawn, put that in a bucket or wheelbarrow and dump it just beyond her current range, see how she does?

 

[Ponypoor]

Thirsty Thursday

How about a drinking cat?

Is the other kitty not allowed out?

 

[lightm]

Some pictures to share:

3 out of the 4 new chicks, who are going to melt your heart

They are babies of our current flock.


And below is broody Inky, who is looking more beautiful than ever!

 

[Kris5902]

Yes it is. Why is it not in Canada?

Not a clue… I’m going to have to eventually get around to visiting your fine country for some shopping, sightseeing, or a convention or something…

 

[Kris5902]

Oh no. Tell me how.

At night with a good strong headlamp sneak into the coop and look for little crawling nasties along the roosts, nest boxes, and in crevices. They pop if you squish them and will sometimes leave little red smears if they have been feeding off your chickens. They are awfully common, as they can come from wild birds, they tend to live in the coop not fully on the chickens, and come out at night to feed. Think the chicken version of bedbugs. Occasionally they may hang out on a chicken during the day, usually around the face I have found, and when I see a lot of head shaking or scratching I know its time To check and treat for them again. My temporary coop/trailer arrangement has a problem with them, but the layer tractors don’t.