Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Jsnick]

Thanks for your information and not that it matters but only one EE is going after her. She was on the top of pecking order and I do have another polish who the EE leave alone. So far, and the polish was a great layer in the beginning, she stopped after a light molt. I am new to chicken keeping so I am learning.

 

[Sylvester017]

Well... When I say finishing the run I mean mostly finishing it. We're still going to need to replace the chicken wire with hardware cloth when we're able to, but today we're making the base sturdy, and adding the hardware cloth that we have left around the remaining 2 sides that we haven't done yet.

Hopefully winterifying it adds even a tiny bit of extra protection against predators. Make it harder for them to get to the chicken wire to tear through it. So far we haven't had any issues with predators in the run, even with one side's bottom completely exposed 4-5 inches off the ground. Would be easy to squeeze or dig under!

We're solving that problem today, at least

Excellent & cheers to you! Rome wasn't built in a day. It's one project at a time at our place too!

Cute coop w/flimsy wood & chicken wire (2011)

New sturdy Barn Coop w/dog kennel wire & patio roof over coop to protect from weather 2015

 

[SimpleJenn]

I will keep that in mind with my polishes. I imagine it is the "show quality" birds with the gigantic poofs that are the ones most at risk.
We had to buy another two bags of food today, they have almost eaten the entire bag of the Purina. We definitely can't afford to keep feeding it to them since it's $25/bag. 65$ in chicken food this week, that's over half of our usual grocery shop for the family!

 

[Sylvester017]

great idea for you. Imagine the price of two acres of those stones?
The very last one that was laid would say “here lies Alexander, a wonderful guy, but now who’s going to pay for all these stones? He had a heart attack!

I like to keep moving however difficult or painful ~ the chickens keep me company while I work. My 93-yr-old aunt lived in Clovis she passed this year (heart stopped) but she was still gardening, canning, & freezing veggies for the winter. She wanted chickens but her new complex wasn't zoned so I sent her pics of our birds

 

[SimpleJenn]

Speaking of 90s...my 92 year old gramma B fell and broke her pubis/pelvic bone.
She's too old for surgery and with her heart murmer they wouldn't even try it.
I have to wait for her to be done at the rehabilitation center and back at her assisted living home before I can visit with kiddo.
I'm very worried for her, she and I have always been extremely close.
Tax

Looks like someone tried to wring Liaras neck, poor girl.

Nocturne and her beautiful ombre egg.

 

[Sylvester017]

I will keep that in mind with my polishes. I imagine it is the "show quality" birds with the gigantic poofs that are the ones most at risk.
We had to buy another two bags of food today, they have almost eaten the entire bag of the Purina. We definitely can't afford to keep feeding it to them since it's $25/bag. 65$ in chicken food this week, that's over half of our usual grocery shop for the family!

The fluffy poofs on Silkies & Polish are a target but let us know how it goes. Yep, there's no profit in chickeneering any more. All farm animals are expensive but chickens give eggs back to you at least.

DD stopped by for a visit & we showed her your crochet work ~ she melted over the little Dominique chicken! She keeps drilling into her company executives to offer more variety chicken hen varieties not just roosters for people who have backyard chickens & not just white birds!

She's been successful getting her point across at the conferences!

Just a couple of her successes
Kitchen towel

Shopping bag

 

[Ponypoor]

I didn’t mean the temperature of the pavers themselves but of the surrounding area. Plants play a cooling role - they are natural evaporative coolers.

I would say in arid areas where plants are not present (at least the types of plants we know), then having pavers or crushed stone is a far better option than water hungry grass, etc.

When my parents wintered in Arizona I was told that they discourage people from having grass, rather encouraging more local plants like cactus and other desert arid area of plants, along with using sand, gravel and stone. I fell in love with cactus at that point, and even grow it in my garden. Who knew Canada had is own cactus varieties!

Then again we have always felt that grass was a waste of water - people go to great lengths here to have the perfect green weed free lawn, wasting water in summer and using chemicals incorrectly. Grass is only good for feeding livestock. And a variety of it is the best choice, not those one variety lawns.

Green tax
Eli-too has been steadily moulting the past few weeks

 

[Ponypoor]

Speaking of 90s...my 92 year old gramma B fell and broke her pubis/pelvic bone.
She's too old for surgery and with her heart murmer they wouldn't even try it.
I have to wait for her to be done at the rehabilitation center and back at her assisted living home before I can visit with kiddo.
I'm very worried for her, she and I have always been extremely close.
Tax
View attachment 3969244
Looks like someone tried to wring Liaras neck, poor girl.
View attachment 3969245
Nocturne and her beautiful ombre egg.

Why spend a fortune at the hairdresser, visit Nocturne for your best Balayage colouring today!

 

[Ponypoor]

Those are indeed a worry.
But so are these when they hang out this close to the Chicken Palace.
View attachment 3969193
This was a couple of years ago.

Holy crap! Whoa Nelly

 

[Ducking_dallas]

Fluffy bums whether Silkie or standard size hen the tush areas are the softest fluffiest area of feathers & poop will stick to those feathers if the poop is a cecal or watery poop & if left in a chicken diaper for 8 hours or more will irritate the vent raw. Just like a human baby needs changing a minimum of 6x/day we've changed a Silkie diaper anytime we noticed an overfull waste pouch or watery soaked diaper material anywhere between 2 to 5 hour intervals depending on mess ~ we would change out the entire diaper to a dry diaper & immediately baby shampoo the Silkie's bum feathers & blow dry before putting on the new diaper ~ every diaper change called for tush washing. Trimming bum feathers is not helpful at all whether trimmed or not since the poop irritates the skin regardless.

Leaving a Silkie in a diaper unattended is not safe since Silkies are busy little buggers w/5 toes that can get stuck inside the front chest of the diaper material leaving the Silkie hobbling w/only one free foot ~ our Silkie got her toes & sometimes her whole foot stuck in the diaper material. It's not safe or healthy to leave an unattended diapered Silkie for any length of unsupervised time.

When you need to be gone I would strongly advise no diaper. Once you are home diaper her & let her free in the house. If you are gone from home set up a 4'x4' minimum area dog crate w/a hand mirror taped, hung or tied to the inside of the crate & leave a TV or soft music on & of course a secure waterer & feeder for her. Have separate container of grit ~ & one container for oyster shell too if laying eggs. The mirror is a great companion for a single bird. Whether tiny caged parakeets or larger chickens a single bird loves a mirror for companionship if left alone.

I'm sorry but there is more care of house chickens than just leaving them free in the house unsupervised. They hop on things, knock things over, get stuck in places they can't get out ~ just like watching a human toddler ~ cute but a lot of responsibility.

Our diapered Mini snoozing in the kitchen in her diaper which is not visible under all her fluff!
(2012)
View attachment 3968840

I haven’t left them unsupervised in a diaper. I was curious if it would be feasible but I understand now that it’s not. they have a 2 feet wide by 6 foot long pen that I keep them in when I’m at school but besides that they get to walk around, but I’ve noticed that silkies compared to other house chickens just don’t really move. I’ve tried and entice them by sprinkling seeds around and they just stay where they want to stay, snuggle by their food and water tray. It’s not like they’re scared of me. They willingly sit on me. They just don’t actively move around.