Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Ponypoor]

Understandable. Hubby says we shouldn't try to incubate eggs anymore. Whatever fits under the broody hen will be our limit. We did the math and it worked out to $5/chick hatching 7 from the 24 we purchased. Which is a good deal, but still I feel bad for the failure.

If I need any more hens I will just get day old pullets from Peavey Mart. Other than Shorty being a cockerel I have had good luck with them. Always healthy and grew like weeds, friendly little beasties - and I can get some unusual ones like spangled suspects

I am not counting the OEGB bantams as those are always straight run.

 

[Ponypoor]

Misread your weather location as OH like ohio, which is south from me. I was gonna say, wait I thought you were north of me!

I think you and I are likely on the same latitude, and likely get similar weather.

 

[RoyalChick]

Tassels is back in broody jail. She settled in to incubate her little bit of 2x4.
Setting up a fan was more complex than I expected - if I put it under her then will for sure hit the fan - so I need to work out how to do this.
I will try in the morning.
I am also wondering if I should spray water in her undercarriage. Has anyone had any experience with that method?

 

[Sylvester017]

Crazy crazy day

The chooks are all bonkers, fighting and carrying on. Must be a full moon coming on.


Two lovely silkie cockerels.

View attachment 3921381

Are BOTH truly cockerels? I don't want your Moorhead Silkie to be a boy! The girls do get some slightly stiffer feathers in their tail fluff poof.

These are our 3 juvenile girl chicks ~ see the tail feathers.

 

[Sylvester017]

Are you sure the second one isn't a girl? (?Georgie?). It could have been a knock-down fight because Clyde got his mojo on and Georgie didn't like it.

If I understand @RebeccaBoyd 's decription of the differences between pullet and cockerel, the second one looks like a girl's feathering - especially the tidy tail.

I'm also going w/girl on Ponypoor's Moorhead Georgie. She looks so much like our feisty "Keiko" who was in a knockdown, fur-pulling, feather-footed claw fight w/ her broody sister that DH had to pull Keiko off of "Betta"

Some videos of our girls & some have a few regular feathers sticking out of their tail poofs

 

[featherhead007]

What causes this?
I was talking with the little ones while they were in the run napping . All seemed fine until I felt a pinch on my butt. It was Aero, she had snuck up behind me and WHAM, bit me right in the buttocks.
Culprit pictured here:

 

[Sally PB]

She wanted to get your attention?

 

[rural mouse]

Tassels is back in broody jail. She settled in to incubate her little bit of 2x4.
Setting up a fan was more complex than I expected - if I put it under her then will for sure hit the fan - so I need to work out how to do this.
I will try in the morning.
I am also wondering if I should spray water in her undercarriage. Has anyone had any experience with that method?

Mera wasn't willing to give up when the round spray sprinkler soaked her undercarriage. Only when her breast got dowsed too. Not sure if the wet multiple times or the progressively longer walk back to the nest did it.

 

[featherhead007]

@featherhead007 ~ a pic of our water lock.
View attachment 3921364
Once it's locked not a drop of water comes out even if the water handle is turned on full blast. Absolutely no water comes out until the key unlocks the brass lock. And there's absolutely no way to bolt cutter it open like some water locks on the market.

We got ours on Amazon cuz our local hardware store had mickey mouse spigot locks!
https://www.amazon.com/Flow-Security-Systems-Construction-Conservation/dp/B00G4NI0RW/ref=sr_1_5?crid=ZBCDTMVCZTKU&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.9p5eo_v8vpX64W9wZv0P1m3DcC81p6cEYaMtZlLHNRudX3pn3W6RdIVcoh677AGToBLJTX6Bql-qyRLgzrjTXlSRCr_HTQpdDRVaIJpOMt4-ka1jWteRYBA02b4v-jAbJjN_KLHjTdvusxMtvmkTriNVKDaA_2ft7ZIZqE2w3LPUVosVaBVXwNSCGX3X60ilOpyMjEdBKuXF5OwdoY4JVqthl6HbZcspQ40PD5T6bL1rwMru5UPbmzqkR_Ora2fz0tFsWB8IxUBpuVqm8EHfAgToCVPDJy_1RvABAm4vh6k.q8aeiEPY7hw6fBNRLHHF0HoX4f0-gvsjw-VGQM3SF7c&dib_tag=se&keywords=spigot+lock+for+outside+faucet&qid=1723930432&sprefix=,aps,217&sr=8-5

That’s fantastic. But it’s really too bad that you have to be concerned about transients trespassing on your property and causing damage.

 

[featherhead007]

She wanted to get your attention?

She got my attention! I almost peed myself! (Quite surprised)