Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[ChicoryBlue]

Thanks everyone for the encouragement to enter the foto. I am quite fond of this little guy. He needs a name. Given that he looks so much like his grandpa Red, I was thinking about Little Red. Suggestions are welcome.

His body shape and speed - how about Red Runner?

Unless people would think you’re referring to a duck…

 

[ChicoryBlue]

They have their mama to keep warm under. So they will be warm, but I want them out and about digging and scratching.

Right now when I have them out in the summer house they spend more time snuggled under mama, so mama and babies aren’t being active.

I have been letting them roam the feedroom where it’s warm but that’s not ideal. And Georgie keeps hopping/flapping up on my office chair and then hops up onto the chair back! The babies then freak out, she freaks out and tries to jump off the chair! So then I freak out.

I figured if I can put them in a small pen in the Summer House during the day full time and have a heat lamp for them, they can get exercise and be a bit warm. I have two sweeter heaters but my moulting and elderly ladies are using them.

It’s a pain in the derrière

You’re trying to warm up the entire Summer House room, the air, not just a body in front of it…..maybe a fluid filled heater would be safer?

 

[Ponypoor]

Thanks everyone for the encouragement to enter the foto. I am quite fond of this little guy. He needs a name. Given that he looks so much like his grandpa Red, I was thinking about Little Red. Suggestions are welcome.

I like that name

And of course that’s what I have been calling him

 

[Ponypoor]

His body shape and speed - how about Red Runner?

Unless people would think you’re referring to a duck…

Ooooo another good one!

 

[Ponypoor]

Went out to get Sherlock this morning.View attachment 4024579greeted by the Old Man again. He went walk-about around 330 yesterday afternoon. They went looking, including my place. He didn't come in until after Sherlock went to bed.....but he was shivering with excitement at bedtime, so I suspect he was close by.

Well guess he’s yours now!

 

[Ponypoor]

I finally got good footage of the blue jay flock. I counted about a dozen again!

They love to fly in freak out my chooks and then fly away. Cheeky brats!

 

[Ponypoor]

You’re trying to warm up the entire Summer House room, the air, not just a body in front of it…..maybe a fluid filled heater would be safer?

Just a location were they will be digging around in the straw.

I will likely just move the new sweeter heater into the small enclosure I will make for them. It’s too much stress on me to have the heat lamp.

A small 4x4 enclosure would be fine for them and hang the heater in there, they can duck under and warm up.

They just need to get out of the crate during the day, I had hoped this winter would be like last year.

At night they can go back in the crate.

 

[TOMTE]

They love to fly in freak out my chooks and then fly away. Cheeky brats!

In the fall when mine were still free ranging, they would stalk and chase the blue jays, who would fly a few yards away, wait until my chickens went back to their foraging, fly back in to forage/investigate a few feet away, repeat

I saw some aggression in my girls occasionally but never in the jays. If anything they seemed curious and interested. They'd jeer at the chickens from the trees after being chased away but never mob them or go on the offensive. It was really cool watching them interact! Also helpful, since the blue jays are a great alarm system for hawks and other predators. Chickies would look around any time an alarm call went up while they free ranged, and even in the run they still do glimpse up when they hear them.

If/when we can go back to free ranging ( )... It would be fun to document interactions between my chickens and the wildlife. I have so many notebooks and journals that I had things planned for but then ended up not doing anything with

 

[CCsGarden]

Snow from yesterday

 

[CCsGarden]

And Merry Christmas!

Took more pictures of my doves!