Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[RoyalChick]

Those were a yard sale find. I think 8 in total of different sizes for $10. Had them a few years and they came looking like that. Mom claims every now and again she is going to clean them up and season them but never gets around to it. No need to really, have our Griswold and Lodge skillets we faithfully use. One day though, they will be pretty again.

I have rescued a few like that. It feels daunting at first but is actually not hard to do and very satisfying.
I use my electric drill with a metal sanding brush to clean them up.
It is much easier to do when it isn’t too humid outside.

 

[BY Bob]

Happy Fluffy Butt Friday everyone.
I saved this picture the other days photo shoot. I could have posted it yesterday as well as little Owly is sampling some wild water.
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Look at that bum. Very much like Aurora's in style if not in color.

 

[BY Bob]

@lightm @BY Bob
I’m so behind. 30 pages in one day, how is that possible???

I’m not an expert! I love looking at them though, and ID’ing is fun for me. Try Broad-Winged Hawk. Fits the area too. https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Broad-winged_Hawk/id

The only thing I know about is to look at certain elements showing on the body and what they generally mean. So- yes, the red across-the-breast stripes and the banded tail would send you to Coopers or Sharp-Shinned. But the upper mottled markings look like a juvenile, because mature hawks of those have a more solid grey, slate solid coloring. There’s a “cap” look to the head and nape also, and here the nape is pretty vertical stripes. So then, when you guess immature and check a picture, you see that the breast markings there are completely different, they are vertical brown stripes. It can’t be an immature Sharp or Coopers.

So then I went looking at the “similar species” information, looking for the right combination of banded tail, sideways striped breast, mottled upper markings & striped nape. Also, geographical distribution. From the possibilities there, and without size indications, Broad-Wing fits. This is a big bird, a buteo, not an accipiter. Buteos have big blunt shaped wings, big bodies, they are birds that soar, accipiters have lean bodies, long pointed wings, fast maneuvering agile flyers.

You are just the best at this. I have decided to just rely on you for hawk identification.

 

[BY Bob]

Happy Fluffy Butt Friday
An army of fluffy butts at the Chicken Palace.
Calypso has a very nice fluffy butt. Even Bernie has some fluff. Babs has a stick tangled in her fluff. It isn’t stuck in poop and she didn’t eat it - she went crashing through the undergrowth and emerged a bit tangled up!

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I love a good stick in the fluff. It can take them all day to getting around to removing it too. I guess it doesn't bother them much.

 

[BY Bob]

I have rescued a few like that. It feels daunting at first but is actually not hard to do and very satisfying.
I use my electric drill with a metal sanding brush to clean them up.
It is much easier to do when it isn’t too humid outside.

You really are quite the handy person.

 

[RebeccaBoyd]

I have rescued a few like that. It feels daunting at first but is actually not hard to do and very satisfying.
I use my electric drill with a metal sanding brush to clean them up.
It is much easier to do when it isn’t too humid outside.

It is also probably easier to do as well if you do not get sidetracked. A few times she has went out to do one with all her stuff. Peek out 5 minutes later, she is loving and brushing on one of the horses. I think most of them are lodges, so really not high on her priority list. Now if they were old Griswold's, they would have been cleaned, seasoned and put into use within a week of purchase. Instead, they are scattered around the building, collect rain water to be sampled by the wild water connoisseurs and cause nagging that I turn her skillets into chicken water bowls.

 

[BY Bob]

It's Friday!

 

[RoyalChick]

It's Friday!

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Picture #4 made me laugh!
Great photos. LF and Glynda have very stylish butts in their own ways.

 

[BY Bob]

Some Sad News Regarding Phyllis (at least Phyllis thinks so)

As we have been celebrating some significant Hatchdays around these parts, it should be apparent to everyone that the tribe is starting to age a little. Most times in hens you really can't tell as they may slow down a little but they look like they have always. Except for poor Phyllis.

Phyllis is turning grey.

You can see it on the tips of her feathers. Check out these close ups from today's fluffy bun photos and look closely.

I have noticed before that the feathers on her head would whiten as the year went on but I really couldn't prove it. There are so many and they move about so much. But these tips turning white are undeniable.

What is disturbing Phyllis the most is that there is no real feather dye for chickens. Sadly for her, she is going to have to wear the proof of her age proudly.

For those who don't know Phyllis will be 5 in October so she's about 4.5 years old right now.

 

[BY Bob]

Picture #4 made me laugh!
Great photos. LF and Glynda have very stylish butts in their own ways.

Picture 4 was totally random but I loved it the moment I saw it.

I love that Lady Featherington and Glynda hang out together. They remind me of Laurel and Hardy.