Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[RebeccaBoyd]

So, me and my brother are going tomorrow to get one of the boys. My brother looked at them and threw in his opinion. He thinks I should get both.

His reasoning is what if I only get one and something unforeseen happens and I am back in this same situation. He says taming 2 will be just as easy as taming one. I'm not going to lie, from pictures alone I like both. I could be happy with either one. They are the best I have found since I let the paint boy slip through my fingers. Black is also my favorite silkie color and with the color of my girls a black boy is the best choice.

Darn him, I will be up all night now pondering that choice.

 

[RoyalChick]

I do understand. It is rough. Hattie is no threat to anyone but Aurora doesn't care.

It was the way she went out of her way to attack her that got me.
I have never seen mine do that.

 

[RoyalChick]

Hi! Haven't been here for a long time. No way in the world to catch up, so I'm just jumping in for a while. Loving all the pics of the beautiful hens and roos.

Good to see you back here!
Every Saturday one of us does a synopsis of the week’s chicken news (no chit chat) to make it easier to catch up.

I think this is the link to the most recent one.
Post in thread 'Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock'
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...es-stories-of-our-flock.1286630/post-28375664

 

[featherhead007]

It was the way she went out of her way to attack her that got me.
I have never seen mine do that.

Mine are ninjas in training. They attack without provocation and those pecks are painful

 

[ManueB]

I have found that all my pets have their own temperaments, and are individuals. I have had full sister horses that were so different if I didn’t know they were just a yr apart I would say they were not related.

And over time their temperaments and personalities change also. Some are friendly as chicks and then don’t want to associate with me as adults and vice versa.

Animals are more like people than many people want to know!

Yes, but just like with people, sometimes it seems that personality is only a matter of individuality, and sometimes it's uncanny the way genetics come through and you (rather terrifyingly) find yourself being your mother, or even worse your grandmother .

And while I tend to think that breed and breeding for animals would only play a minor role, I still have found some of the generic statement about breeds to have some truth. For example I can attest as someone who began riding at the age of six that yes, all Shetland ponies are stubborn and very often have a contrary view of what they should do, to that of their small rider .

I do understand. It is rough. Hattie is no threat to anyone but Aurora doesn't care.

Roosting is also still quite horrible in my flock. There are periods when the nastiness only occur for five or ten minutes, but sometimes it can last for up to an hour. All the hens have learned this behaviour now - bully, or be bullied. The roosters don't seem to be able to do anything about it.
I've done a lot of moving around with the setting and it helps a bit ; but I think it's very difficult to solve once the hens have gotten used to it.
I'm inclined to think once Aurora is gone, one of yours will take over on the threats.

So, me and my brother are going tomorrow to get one of the boys. My brother looked at them and threw in his opinion. He thinks I should get both.

His reasoning is what if I only get one and something unforeseen happens and I am back in this same situation. He says taming 2 will be just as easy as taming one. I'm not going to lie, from pictures alone I like both. I could be happy with either one. They are the best I have found since I let the paint boy slip through my fingers. Black is also my favorite silkie color and with the color of my girls a black boy is the best choice.

Darn him, I will be up all night now pondering that choice.

If you can come up with a backup plan for one of them in case the three roosters can't peacefully coexist, I don't see why not take both ? Would you be able to re-home or sell a young Silkie rooster ?

Portraits of Annette including some mugs.
I was watching her digging alone in the garden today, and I was wondering why she reminded me of that song "Africa" ...the song we either love or hate .

And I finally got it...

Spoiler

It's the zebra vibe ! Talk about stereotypes !

There would be a lot to say about her personality compared to that of her three siblings Mélisse, Lulu and Laure (who is probably only half sister and the most different in temper) ; they have many common points but also many differences, including their attitude to humans. Annette is aloof but not really afraid ; she loves freedom and will always find a way to get out. But she's also by far the most clever of the four in terms of free ranging, as she has shown several times when she was caught out in a bad storm or locked outside the coop at night. They were all taught to free-range by the same broody and they are siblings, but they don't all show the same abilities and desire for freedom.

 

[Ponypoor]

Follow up about the chick with the abscess: I went to take a picture of the baby, but it must have popped out on its own. Yuck! I bet the little one was so relieved by that! No picture to take now. The three littles are out having fun with Nacho

Sounds like best case scenario.

Do you have any idea on the gender of them?

 

[BY Bob]

So, me and my brother are going tomorrow to get one of the boys. My brother looked at them and threw in his opinion. He thinks I should get both.

His reasoning is what if I only get one and something unforeseen happens and I am back in this same situation. He says taming 2 will be just as easy as taming one. I'm not going to lie, from pictures alone I like both. I could be happy with either one. They are the best I have found since I let the paint boy slip through my fingers. Black is also my favorite silkie color and with the color of my girls a black boy is the best choice.

Darn him, I will be up all night now pondering that choice.

Awaiting news on your decision......

 

[BY Bob]

It was the way she went out of her way to attack her that got me.
I have never seen mine do that.

It happens many nights here. Patsy also did this. Daisy, the greatest hen ever, never did that, at least that I saw.

 

[RoyalChick]

It happens many nights here. Patsy also did this. Daisy, the greatest hen ever, never did that, at least that I saw.

There is lots of pecking at roosting time in the Chicken Palace, but it is only if someone is in the wrong place. Nobody goes out of their way to attack anyone. It is more of a 'get the hell out of my spot' or 'don't burrow under me like that' kind of thing.
Often a chicken is driven to roost elsewhere.

During the day some chasing happens but it always starts with a 'get your face out of my food' sort of squabble.

 

[BY Bob]

Yes, but just like with people, sometimes it seems that personality is only a matter of individuality, and sometimes it's uncanny the way genetics come through and you (rather terrifyingly) find yourself being your mother, or even worse your grandmother .

And while I tend to think that breed and breeding for animals would only play a minor role, I still have found some of the generic statement about breeds to have some truth. For example I can attest as someone who began riding at the age of six that yes, all Shetland ponies are stubborn and very often have a contrary view of what they should do, to that of their small rider .

Roosting is also still quite horrible in my flock. There are periods when the nastiness only occur for five or ten minutes, but sometimes it can last for up to an hour. All the hens have learned this behaviour now - bully, or be bullied. The roosters don't seem to be able to do anything about it.
I've done a lot of moving around with the setting and it helps a bit ; but I think it's very difficult to solve once the hens have gotten used to it.
I'm inclined to think once Aurora is gone, one of yours will take over on the threats.

If you can come up with a backup plan for one of them in case the three roosters can't peacefully coexist, I don't see why not take both ? Would you be able to re-home or sell a young Silkie rooster ?

Portraits of Annette including some mugs.
I was watching her digging alone in the garden today, and I was wondering why she reminded me of that song "Africa" ...the song we either love or hate .
View attachment 4042217View attachment 4042218View attachment 4042219View attachment 4042220View attachment 4042221

And I finally got it...

Spoiler

It's the zebra vibe ! Talk about stereotypes !

There would be a lot to say about her personality compared to that of her three siblings Mélisse, Lulu and Laure (who is probably only half sister and the most different in temper) ; they have many common points but also many differences, including their attitude to humans. Annette is aloof but not really afraid ; she loves freedom and will always find a way to get out. But she's also by far the most clever of the four in terms of free ranging, as she has shown several times when she was caught out in a bad storm or locked outside the coop at night. They were all taught to free-range by the same broody and they are siblings, but they don't all show the same abilities and desire for freedom.

I especially find sibling behavior interesting. When you have the same breed and same mum and still get differences in behaviors. Thanks for sharing the observations.

I've been fascinated by everything Aster seems to have learned from Glynda but also how alike her mother she is. Very similar in personality. She is yet to hop up in my lap but I've got all summer to work on that.