Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Ponypoor]

Coop upgrade: ramps and automatic door installed!!!


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Tweens running about while building occured:
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Great! Those tweens are hilarious

 

[RebeccaBoyd]

I was trying this afternoon to get updated comb pictures on the marshmallows. They were infuriatingly uncooperative and difficult.
I did get this though. Comb and action shot all in one.

I have some seriously deep holes on the creek bank now. The dogs are not to blame either.

 

[LhickenChicken]

I was trying this afternoon to get updated comb pictures on the marshmallows. They were infuriatingly uncooperative and difficult.
I did get this though. Comb and action shot all in one.
View attachment 3538161
I have some seriously deep holes on the creek bank now. The dogs are not to blame either.

that could be POW worthy...

 

[rural mouse]

You've got Cornish Crosses as well? You'll find they have a very high mortality rate... I lost at least six, maybe more.

The in-laws did. I'm not in a position to do that. At some point, I would like to start breeding most of our chicken, but that's not in the close future unless unexpected changes occur.

 

[featherhead007]

I was trying this afternoon to get updated comb pictures on the marshmallows. They were infuriatingly uncooperative and difficult.
I did get this though. Comb and action shot all in one.
View attachment 3538161
I have some seriously deep holes on the creek bank now. The dogs are not to blame either.

“you put your left leg in, you put your left leg out, “

 

[Ponypoor]

I was trying this afternoon to get updated comb pictures on the marshmallows. They were infuriatingly uncooperative and difficult.
I did get this though. Comb and action shot all in one.
View attachment 3538161
I have some seriously deep holes on the creek bank now. The dogs are not to blame either.

That’s hilarious! Great action shot!

 

[Ponypoor]

“you put your left leg in, you put your left leg out, “

Stop it hahahahaha I have too many songs in my head!

Who’s a handsome fella? Me that’s who!

 

[knoturavggrl]

I was trying this afternoon to get updated comb pictures on the marshmallows. They were infuriatingly uncooperative and difficult.
I did get this though. Comb and action shot all in one.
View attachment 3538161
I have some seriously deep holes on the creek bank now. The dogs are not to blame either.

Great capture! They really turned into beautiful birds

 

[Ponypoor]

Stop it hahahahaha I have too many songs in my head!

Who’s a handsome fella? Me that’s who!
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FYI that mirror is handy so I can see who is roosting behind my chair…. Of course one needs to remember the mirror is there!

 

[bgmathteach]

Gosh those chicks are just huge now! Sorry about the cross beak - poor wee thing. Can you take a pic so I can see I have not seen one before.

I tried. Not sure if they came out good enough to really see - it just wouldn't hold still when it's head was up so you could see the beak.

This one is blurry, but you can see the cross beak here, even though it is a fuzzy pic.

This one is just because - it is the cross beak girl, but you can't really see it in this photo. (@RoyalChick : See the green legs on the bottom one! ) And @Ponypoor notice the little round bump on the inside of it's leg? That is where the spur will be if it grows one.

This is another one of the cross beak girl. Out of 15 photos of her - this is really the only decent one of her face/beak.

My understanding of cross-beaks is it can have 3 causes: genetics, positioning in the shell, and feed ( some nutritional deficit)

I am sure it is not feed, otherwise more than one would have at least a little cross beak. So, that leaves genetics or positioning in the shell. I'm hoping it is not genetics. I haven't had any chickens with cross beaks - I had one chick from a set of ordered chicks that had it, but I did not keep her. I had to hand feed her multiple times a day as hers was bad enough she couldn't really eat on her own. It was really hard to let her go, as with all the handling for feeding, she became very friendly...and when I would go out to check on the chicks (or because I was going to get her for feeding), she would fly up onto my arm or shoulder while I was bending over filling he waterer or feeder. I tried to see if I could get it to be aligned better - at night I would put an elastic on her beak (think retainers). However, she wouldn't keep it on - so that was a real bust. When I finally gave up, she was less than half the size of her hatch mates, and she was the same size as them when she arrived.


It is looking more and more like she is the only pullet - and her beak is bad enough that she can't eat grass, etc. She tries, but she never gets anything - she can only eat the crumbles when it is in a dish (i.e. not spilled on the ground - darn scratching chickens!) so she can push her beak far enough in that she can get the food.