Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[lightm]

You can put on oil at any time if it's relatively clean back there. It will feel good to her.

Noted. Thank you. It's been 3 days and her butt is still good.

 

[featherhead007]

I made alfredo recently - it was delicious!
What was the problem?

The tuna I added probably

 

[rural mouse]

Why do you know everything about breeds? This is a genuine question.

I've had to play "what breed of chicken is this chick?" I've also played "where did this trait come from?" In the process, I've read some of the breed histories. Those frequently spark curiosity about a breed used in development. I also tend to retain much of what I read (not everything). Example: Storm (pardon the moult).

She hatched out blue. Her parents: blue laced red wyandotte and olive egger. Her brothers were also blue. The wyandotte was pretty light....so had to be splash laced to produce all blue babies. He was rose comb, but she isn't so he had to be Rrpp to produce a straight comb. Neither parent had a crest. When she popped hers, I had to go back and check genetics of olive Eggers (varies from location): where did that come from? Concluded one of her grandparents had to be cream legbar. Other one likely a cuckoo marans as mom was black with thin white stripes and brothers all barred. The whole curiosity bug led me down the rabbit trail of assorted breed development. In the process, I found the kippenjungle (or however it's spelled) genetics calculator which was helpful in figuring out how Whiskey and Kren got their speckled breasts (Colombian wyandotte can pop it in some cross breeds.....who'd have thunk that!) I've run across some other genetic info like this

https://poultry.extension.org/articles/poultry-anatomy/poultry-genetics-an-introduction/

 

[lightm]

If you're that besotted with those boots, maybe you should get some of these....

https://petkeen.com/dong-tao-chicken/

OMG. Monsters!!!

Life span: 2 years

raised for their delicious feet ....

 

[ChicoryBlue]

Sally
Today has been a rollercoaster ride with my poor old Sally; the woman where I keep my horses when I am away, told me last night Sally wasn't acting right. She wasn't eating, and was just standing there.

This morning she still hadn't eaten and wasn't acting right. I asked them to call the Vet to come on out. Well things went from bad to catastrophic; she was doing 'head pressing' where horses press their heads into the wall, and she freaked out and tried to crash through the stall bars, in fact her head went through the bars and the bars had to be cut to get her free.

The Vet called me asking if she had a Rabies vaccine (YES! Always get rabies - it's a $10 shot which not only protects the horse but YOU and your family - rabies = death). The neurological symptoms she was displaying could be rabies, brain tumor, stroke..... So with Rabies cleared up and with no other thing he could find wrong with her, it was decided that the most humane thing would be to put her down. It would have done no good to try to get her in a trailer to go to the Vet College - that would have ended badly I am sure, I have seen horses freaking out in a trailer - not good. At her age also, she could have had a stroke, or even a tumor. Why let her suffer? and she was a danger to those around her, crashing around trying to bash through things

So my poor old Sally is no more. One needs to have nerves of steel to have kids and pets


View attachment 3386080

05 April 2000 - 25 Jan 2023

RIP Sally, we’ll loved, beautiful horse! @Ponypoor so sorry you have this loss long distance. That makes it particularly hard.

 

[Grandma The Chicken]

Whew, what a day it has been. You know what happened?

SNOW!

And a lot of it. Here are some photos of snow.
I am making a story so yes, I really did insert a picture of the door to start the story.
So when you first approach the chicken area, you'll notice a green door.

When you open the door, here's the area you've all seen before.

Where you'll meet Tony, Parmesan and Mozzarella.

Who try to avoid the snow as much as possible because it's too cold for their feetsies.

I don't know what's happening here but Tony likes to bite Parmesan and Parmesan is supposedly getting too close to the enemy.

So, you're probably wondering where Grandma is... She's not in the coop.
She's in the house! With a snowball by her side.

She cried for what felt like the dozenth time today so she headed to the room to learn some math... chicken math to be precise, while covering her head with a blanket.

Parmesan came by before this to remind every chicken to eat their vegetables.

And no, she did not eat the entire stack of spinach in one go.

 

[BY Bob]

The tuna I added probably

 

[BY Bob]

I've had to play "what breed of chicken is this chick?" I've also played "where did this trait come from?" In the process, I've read some of the breed histories. Those frequently spark curiosity about a breed used in development. I also tend to retain much of what I read (not everything). Example: Storm (pardon the moult).
View attachment 3386280 She hatched out blue. Her parents: blue laced red wyandotte and olive egger. Her brothers were also blue. The wyandotte was pretty light....so had to be splash laced to produce all blue babies. He was rose comb, but she isn't so he had to be Rrpp to produce a straight comb. Neither parent had a crest. When she popped hers, I had to go back and check genetics of olive Eggers (varies from location): where did that come from? Concluded one of her grandparents had to be cream legbar. Other one likely a cuckoo marans as mom was black with thin white stripes and brothers all barred. The whole curiosity bug led me down the rabbit trail of assorted breed development. In the process, I found the kippenjungle (or however it's spelled) genetics calculator which was helpful in figuring out how Whiskey and Kren got their speckled breasts (Colombian wyandotte can pop it in some cross breeds.....who'd have thunk that!) I've run across some other genetic info like this

https://poultry.extension.org/articles/poultry-anatomy/poultry-genetics-an-introduction/

If I ever have a question I will just ask you.

 

[BY Bob]

Whew, what a day it has been. You know what happened?

SNOW!

And a lot of it. Here are some photos of snow.
I am making a story so yes, I really did insert a picture of the door to start the story.
So when you first approach the chicken area, you'll notice a green door.
View attachment 3386318
When you open the door, here's the area you've all seen before.
View attachment 3386320
Where you'll meet Tony, Parmesan and Mozzarella.
View attachment 3386323
Who try to avoid the snow as much as possible because it's too cold for their feetsies.
View attachment 3386326
View attachment 3386329
View attachment 3386330
I don't know what's happening here but Tony likes to bite Parmesan and Parmesan is supposedly getting too close to the enemy.
View attachment 3386334
So, you're probably wondering where Grandma is... She's not in the coop.
She's in the house! With a snowball by her side.
View attachment 3386335
She cried for what felt like the dozenth time today so she headed to the room to learn some math... chicken math to be precise, while covering her head with a blanket.
View attachment 3386339
Parmesan came by before this to remind every chicken to eat their vegetables.
View attachment 3386341
And no, she did not eat the entire stack of spinach in one go.

That's wonderful!

 

[Ponypoor]

There is no doubt of that. She wasn't even 1 year old. We had such a short time together. It's harsh but at the time I was angry and scared. A weasel could have killed them all. Also because Aurora was her opposite. I will never be able to touch Aurora with her permission. I lost the one chicken who really liked me. It still feels unfair. Not that I am wishing that death on Aurora by any means.

I feel guilty because I was sick in bed and did not go out to put them to bed like I should have. So sick I wound up needing an IV but I still should have gone out and got her into the coop. She would still be with us if I had.

So no. I will never forget 1/24.

Would-a, could-a, should-a.... Hard things to not do as a human: dwell upon things that we can't change. I have plenty of those also, to this day I blame myself for my father's death 100% - as a Nurse I should have known; could have done something; or would have done better. And while I know that I can't go down that path - I do.

I am not going to tell you to not feel guilty - because you will - even though you shouldn't.
I am not going to tell you it wasn't your fault - you won't believe me - but you should believe me - it wasn't.

I am also not going to agree with you that Mal was the only chicken that really liked you - that just isn't true - all your gals like you, and you know how I know this?

All I have to do is look at the photos of them waiting by the back door, jumping for blueberries, sitting near you.... being around you. The smile on your face, the stories you tell.

All your chickens - yes even Aurora think of you as part of their flock, they just show it in different ways - the same as people show friendship or affection in different ways. Everyone is different and animals are no different.

Should you forget 24 January? Nope absolutely not - it is a defining point in your life. But please be gentle with yourself - non of us can predict the future.

And remember - it's always ok to get misty eyed when thinking of loved ones. Just don't dwell on the sad too much - try to think of the good most of the time.