Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[kattabelly]

I use a luggage scale and a cloth shopping bag.

Shove bird in bag, hang on the scale

Works great!

When I wanted to weigh a chick recently I bundled it into a digital measuring jug like this and kept my hand over the top while it shouted at me from its little plastic prison

 

[rural mouse]

Am going to read Shad’s article again (been a long time), but the @RebeccaBoyd post(s), can anybody find that / them? I do recall reading it, but can’t find it now, my searches are not turning up anything.

I still like Shehnai for his name, and I’ve been calling him that, teaching him that name all this time, since he was a chick (Hindi word, sort of pronounced shay-NAH-ee, or sheh-NAH-ee. I first heard it in the Rolling Stones songs Streefighting Man and Paint It Black. The Buckeyes honks sound a lot like one).

He has never been keen on being handled, from Day One he was very evasive and fast, totally wasn’t into even standing on my hand, unusually so for a chick or even compared to the other Buckeye chicks (Buckeyes are more wary than Orpingtons, but Picabo, Isabel and Beedles would stand on my hand no problem. Beedles was always wanting to stay on my hand, hard to get her off!). I’ve worked on not reaching too fast near any of them a lot, and getting them to be comfortable being very close to me, inspecting and standing on my legs without fear. Now they have calmed a lot from the early frenzy chick stage and are practically underfoot and all in and behind me when I’m crouching doing something.

But I haven’t really been handling them much, it seemed to need a slower approach, and integration has made it more difficult, with Bigs around. I’ve now been lightly brushing against them with my hand or arm, while reaching somewhere else, or sometimes when they go by me when I’m crouching, to get them used to my touch. They all will eat from my hands readily of course. Two days ago I looked at one’s vent, letting her stand in place on my leg but keeping her there, which works well for Bigs Buckeye Hazel, who gets very nervous & trembles when being held.

I did move the Littles in a sort of emergency handling, when they were freaking out more than I thought they would with the work of the tractor excavator 15 feet away. I think it was the back and forward motion, not the engine, that was the problem I didn’t foresee. Plus they had been herded back down to the covered run from the area I first had them (rhododendron) by the Bigs (who then went back up). They were huddling and also trying to get away somewhere so I picked them up one by one and carried them back up to the rhododendron, where they were much happier. Shehnai was the most upset of them all, also I moved him last, which in hindsight was a mistake. Besides the tractor, he was all upset about being alone and was calling a pitiful bokking sort of egg song to find the group, and that became a wail as I carried him, and went on wailing for a good five seconds after he was put down on the ground with everybody else. I got the familiar yellow feeder (had since they were chicks) and put it up there, opened the top and topped up the sides, and he settled down as they all ate. I sat with them awhile. Then after the excavating was done I did chores around them and spent a long quiet calm time sitting too, the next day also. I could see some trust needed to be regained, which took a couple of days.

FOUND IT!! had to do advanced search, after date, "handling cockerels"

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...of-our-flock.1286630/page-23300#post-28817062

 

[rural mouse]

I didn’t know what reaction to use because this gave me a chuckle and was also reassuring.
You guys are going to have to put up with me worrying my way through this. That is what I do!
Fortunately I have lots of cute pics for tax.
View attachment 4219614

You're thinking ahead and asking questions. I've found the panic moment sets in over the questions I didn't think to ask. Sometimes I asked a question and ended up not needing it, but it's better to have more info than not enough.

1st batch if chicks I raised, I hadn't found byc yet. I had my MIL and a couple of coworkers who'd raised chicks before, so I peppered them with questions....and got answers for things I didn't know I needed....yet. then I found BYC and learned things they didn't know too.

My point: ASK! As my retired teacher parent has always said, "the only dumb question is the one you don't ask. Frequently someone else in the class has the same question and is afraid to ask or doesn't know how to word it." Answers here can also be referenced and help multiple people. Currently you and @ChicoryBlue are raising unexpected cockerels. There will be more people later. Look at how many of us go back to Shad's understanding article. I think @RebeccaBoyd should write up the taming cockerels into an article at some point too. It's priceless.

 

[rural mouse]

Its true, she may stay as Bucky. Cookie is definitely staying as Cookie. Geronimo probably stays as Geronimo, but might earn a new name if she becomes unbelievably beautiful and ladylike when she is grown. Not sure on Bucky/Becky and am swirling (in so many ways) on Chippy.

Take your time, play with names. Sometime the right one snaps in, sometimes they choose one. They'll come.

@ChicoryBlue do you still have one of the young crew needing a name? With your musical interest, what about Dulcimer or some other semi-obscure instrument?

 

[rural mouse]

Sadly they switch themselves off - but I love the visual of them casually walking across the scales!

The semi-trucks weight scales vs the pre-pass stuff....hmmmm name idea: Lorry

 

[rural mouse]

Yes that is my experience. Crowing at around 4:30am but they are in the barn so not heard as much.

Once I let them out they run around eating, the Roos might crow a couple times but not much.

During the middle of the day I rarely hear them crowing - oh when they were young pups they would crow just to hear themselves crow haha. But now they are over a yr old and they are not so mouthy

In the afternoon they may crow sometimes, but I don’t hear crowing in the evening.

Now the only caveat to this is my neighbour’s Roo crowing - if he crows my gang crows also. But I haven’t hear him in a while - he would be 2 now so past the doorknob stage.

To be honest the hens are waaaay more noisy than the Roos!

None of the little guys are crowing yet that I've heard. Hawthorne is taller than my little girls (Lark and Indigo) and some of the bigger, but isn't as long yet. He's almost as tall as Storm is.

 

[rural mouse]

Sir Chipsndots……

That makes me think of Chippendale. If he does a lot of dancing....

 

[RoyalChick]

Buckeyes are supposed to have broad shoulders and big legs, they can be a tank! Popcorn and Butters were like that, Peanut less so. Hazel is too slender to be SOP.

I must try again to get pics of Bucky. She is indeed a bit like a tank!

 

[RoyalChick]

Chicken in a bag

Thank you Ruth you little pecker!
You weigh 2.38kg (5.25lb)

View attachment 4219665

I should get some of those!

 

[Ponypoor]

@RebeccaBoyd

Check out Mr P’s black spots that he has acquired with this moult!

And his head feathers are finally growing in! Yay! Keeping him away from those naughty hens is working!