Hector's World: Adventures and Mayhem at Mountain View Poultry (or Sequel to The Evolution of Atlas

[speckledhen]

Hector got on my nerves this morning. I let his group out first, opened the pen so they could free range before the grass went dormant, which will happen soon. Then, as we did chores in various pens, he kept walking up and down the barn aisle and I chased him out multiple times. Then, I realized that Thea and Jill had left to free range, I couldn't immediately locate them and he was haunting the aisle for some stupid reason, not looking out for any of his girls. Bad Hector! We had to hunt down Thea and Jill and bring them back, shut them into the barn pen because they were completely vulnerable out there by themselves. Grrrr.

 

[getaclue]

That's not his normal behavior, is it? Maybe there was a reason. Could he have picked up on something going on? You had a bear lurking around a few days ago. Could be he tried to call his hens, and they didn't pay any attention to him. I'd keep a good eye, if he's acting different than usual.

 

[speckledhen]

That's not his normal behavior, is it? Maybe there was a reason. Could he have picked up on something going on? You had a bear lurking around a few days ago. Could be he tried to call his hens, and they didn't pay any attention to him. I'd keep a good eye, if he's acting different than usual.

Since he hurt his beak, he's been literally jumping at the scratch jar in my hand, wanting to be hand-fed, acting like he wants me to give him more, more, more, etc., something he never did in the past. I threw a little in a pile on the ground and he was eating it with his girls outside the roll-up door, then his girls were gone and he was still hanging around the barn.

I don't think he ever went out of the pen at all this morning, but they were on the far side of the garden by themselves so they could have been picked off by whatever was out there. Maddie and Jane were still in the pen. They hang back every morning to eat and drink, unhassled by their mother. Thea doesn't bother them, but Jill will pull feathers, LOL. We couldn't see Thea and Jill out there, and neither could he on that side with the compost pile up high and blocking our view.

I'm not sure what his problem is lately. I know that Maddie and Jane do not pay attention to him yet, but usually Thea and Jill will follow him home if he comes running when I call (which he mostly does). He will leave those two younger girls in the woods to come back with the ones who do listen, so I understand that, but I don't understand him not even going out with them at all in order to stay in the barn area.

 

[getaclue]

Hmmmm, curious indeed.

 

[1muttsfan]

I'm thinking your nerves are not quite what they normally are

 

[speckledhen]

I'm thinking your nerves are not quite what they normally are

Me? Probably not. Still, Hector needs a refresher course on what I expect him to do as a flock leader. He's such a goober lately.

 

[speckledhen]

Hector's top beak layer is almost completely grown back now. I snapped a few pics of his daughters, Maddie and Jane, both being mated now and turning 23 weeks old on Tuesday.

 

[1muttsfan]

What nice looking birds. So Hector took them on without a fuss?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Gorgeous looking birds as always. It's always nice to see a rooster with all his comb points. Mine always lose them to frostbite here.

 

[speckledhen]

What nice looking birds. So Hector took them on without a fuss?

Well, for him, it was as little fuss as I've ever seen him make. He's flogged them from time to time when they didn't squat for him, but not with full enthusiasm. I was going to let them run with Atlas, too, until the spring so I didn't always have to round them up when I put Hector in, but I remembered how MaryJo chose Atlas over Hector and Atlas was happy to have her and I didn't want Atlas stealing those two girls from Hector. Would be harder to get them and Hector to settle in together if they liked Atlas better.

Gorgeous looking birds as always. It's always nice to see a rooster with all his comb points. Mine always lose them to frostbite here.

Thanks. He has a big old comb, for sure. I see his comb in Jane. Maddie looks more like her mother, Jill, but Jane has the feminine version of Hector's big honking comb.

I remember Zane got frostbite on two comb tips one winter. He had a huge comb and no one to help with body heat, though I did give him his own heat lamp in winter because he was living alone in a cage. Other than that, I rarely see frostbite here. I try to keep the barn as dry as possible and our temps go nowhere near as low as yours.