Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Ponypoor]

Not with the mice that bold.....wait a min...

"Thoughts everyone??" Don't you owe SHRA for that?

Hey it wouldn’t matter if you sprinkle scratch on the floor, I bet they know where that feeder is!!

Tax
I seriously think Petunia is a pullet

 

[Lilion]

@Lilion the location of the feather damage looks like its a bit high for damage from breeding. However, I've seen it occasionally there, usually from young (inexperienced) roos.

Hector, my australorp roo, has some feather damage on his shoulders at the moment. It's not quite as close to his spine as hers is. His is down his sides a bit. Where his is at makes me think he's scraping them on the bird hatch when he goes dashing through it to rescue a girl from unwanted attentions.

Is it possible she's scraped her back against something?

The tut-tut-tut she's doing, combined with the rapid pecking of food does make me think she's broody or seriously considering it (egg laying = not 100% there yet, probably about 75%).

Mouse....really weird thought: could she be getting semi-into the broody trance and having a mouse chew on her feathers while she's tranced? I know REALLY weird thought.

It's been a while now she's run from Manny every chance she got. At least I thought it was Manny...but Meanie is always with Manny or following close behind. Maybe she's living up to her name and picking on Eenie? I don't know what she child have scraped on that the others wouldn't have. I suppose she may have run under something in a panic.

Not with the mice that bold.....wait a min...

"Thoughts everyone??" Don't you owe SHRA for that?

Yeah...we actually cover the food at night. They are VERY bold. And they love the nesting boxes. I've had to stop them from doing their own nesting.

Tomorrow I'm redoing my Bucket of Death ( the Bucket trap) to try to get rid of some more.

 

[Ponypoor]

Ahh! They had Bielefelders at the TSC today! I FREAKED out!! Mainly roos, but three or for pullets. Ohhhh I wanted them so badly!!

Oh I miss mine soooo much

 

[Ponypoor]

It's been a while now she's run from Manny every chance she got. At least I thought it was Manny...but Meanie is always with Manny or following close behind. Maybe she's living up to her name and picking on Eenie? I don't know what she child have scraped on that the others wouldn't have. I suppose she may have run under something in a panic.

Yeah...we actually cover the food at night. They are VERY bold. And they love the nesting boxes. I've had to stop them from doing their own nesting.

Tomorrow I'm redoing my Bucket of Death ( the Bucket trap) to try to get rid of some more.

Oh I would love to see your bucket of doom! I need a few here in the hay loft.

 

[Ponypoor]

It's been a while now she's run from Manny every chance she got. At least I thought it was Manny...but Meanie is always with Manny or following close behind. Maybe she's living up to her name and picking on Eenie? I don't know what she child have scraped on that the others wouldn't have. I suppose she may have run under something in a panic.

Yeah...we actually cover the food at night. They are VERY bold. And they love the nesting boxes. I've had to stop them from doing their own nesting.

Tomorrow I'm redoing my Bucket of Death ( the Bucket trap) to try to get rid of some more.

I remove the feed also, dreadful creatures mice, rats… esp the rats.

 

[Ponypoor]

Ahh! They had Bielefelders at the TSC today! I FREAKED out!! Mainly roos, but three or for pullets. Ohhhh I wanted them so badly!!

Ok kiddo update is on your broody hen and your bumblefoot gal.

We can dream of chicks another time

 

[Pastel the Rooster]

AND...the mystery deepens. Eenie is definitely laying. View attachment 3553401
I only have 3 hens and I picked up a blue and a brown yesterday and a blue the day before. Broody hens don't lay, right? This is the 2nd time since Sunday I've gotten 3.

Also, I just went to shut the others out just now. Usually, I toss them a treat to keep them busy as I close the door. Today, it was a few cherry tomatoes. Eenie came down the ramp like her tail was in fire and nabbed the first tomato she saw. Meanie was having NONE of it! She puffed up like a Tom turkey and chased Eenie back inside with Manny joining in! I closed the pop door and Eenie was back on the nest. She jumped out and gobbled down the two tomatoes like she hadn't eaten in a week (bit my hand on the way) and got right back on the nest as soon as she was done.

So now I'm wondering if she's being picked on. Would she hide in the box they ALL use? That doesn't make a lot of sense, when there are boxes she'd be left alone in, but what do I know? I'm not a chicken.

I thought she was my dominant hen...as much as any are. I've never seen any fights. If not her, then Sheba. I've literally never caught Manny "attending to his job" with Meanie whereas he's on Eenie abd Sheba all the time. She's the only one with all her back feathers; pretty unruffled. But she was a scary chicken for a minute there. They REALLY like those tomatoes!

This is maddening. I can't afford to put in video cameras to figure out what they do all day while I'm at work.

You are likely all tired of this saga. But it's such a mystery to me! I suppose though, worst case scenario, I've wasted 6 eggs and I'll have to figure something else out.

I really hope someone more knowledgeable on chicken behavior can chime in.

I would check for mites and/or lice. If you don't see any, I would do a low dosage of Permethrin just in case.
Maybe if you think that your rooster is over breeding her, buy a chicken saddle.
A few weeks ago, Bolts feathers were all messed up. I put a chicken saddle on, and after a few weeks, she was all good.
All of my birds are infested with lice. (chickens at least, couldn't see any on the guineas. Their feathers are so much thicker than chickens.)
I bought some Permethrin today, and did a SLIGHT more than I should have, just to make sure I killed the lice. I sprayed (to the best if my ability with a broken bottle) all of my chooks, and five if my guineas.
I'm probably going to give them a bath with a bit of it if the spray doesn't work.
It's just annoying, because BBQ is in awful shape, and Splotch is right behind her. I've seen lice on everyone else too. I'm going to need to spray Willow and her chicks (if any hatch)
I really hope that you can figure stuff out with your girl.

 

[GregnLety]

Luckily Copperheads aren't as venomous as other snakes, such as Timber Rattlesnakes, Pygmy Rattlesnakes, Eastern/Western Diamondback Rattlesnakes, and Coral snakes. I would much rather be bitten by a copperhead than those. Oh, not to mention Cottonmouths. They are quite venomous.
Unfortunately I have all those venomous snakes (except western Diamondbacks AND copperheads. I'm stuck with the big, venomous snakes.)
Although I have some non-venomous snakes that I try to catch, until my dad looks my way....

In your area I'd definitely be more worried about eastern diamondbacks and cottonmouths. When I lived near Albany, GA I killed several diamondbacks over 4 feet long and one that was almost the width of a highway lane, I almost wrecked my POS car when I hit that one.

 

[Pastel the Rooster]

Ok kiddo update is on your broody hen and your bumblefoot gal.

We can dream of chicks another time

Haha, Willow is safe and dry. She got me a few times with some nice sharp pecks. Ouch. As far as I know, nothing has hatched. I'm gonna wear some gloves tomorrow and look for any pipped or cracked eggs.
BBQ is doing well. Ohh, when I unwrapped her foot it was so cool. The infection has already started to draw to the surface, and so it made a "volcano." The scab was the "lava" at the top, and her skin was the side.
She has a really bad lice problem. I sprayed her (quite pathetically) with some diluted Permethrin. I'm probably going to give her a bath of it in a week or two.
Can I bath her, or spray her with Permethrin with wounds on her shoulders and her bumblefoot?
I put vaseline on her shoulder wounds to try and prevent the Permethrin from getting on it.

 

[Ponypoor]

Haha, Willow is safe and dry. She got me a few times with some nice sharp pecks. Ouch. As far as I know, nothing has hatched. I'm gonna wear some gloves tomorrow and look for any pipped or cracked eggs.
BBQ is doing well. Ohh, when I unwrapped her foot it was so cool. The infection has already started to draw to the surface, and so it made a "volcano." The scab was the "lava" at the top, and her skin was the side.
She has a really bad lice problem. I sprayed her (quite pathetically) with some diluted Permethrin. I'm probably going to give her a bath of it in a week or two.
Can I bath her, or spray her with Permethrin with wounds on her shoulders and her bumblefoot?
I put vaseline on her shoulder wounds to try and prevent the Permethrin from getting on it.

How did she get wounds on her shoulder?