Sorry about Fixins,
have had to help several of our critters pass.
Scott
have had to help several of our critters pass.
Scott
Jest Another Day in Pear-A-Dice - Higgins Rat Ranch Conservation Farm in Alberta
- Thread starter CanuckBock
- Start date
- Thread starter
- #823
I can't even think of planting seedlings, outside would not be ready for them by the time they needed to be transplanted...good on you though!
Sorry about Fixins,
have had to help several of our critters pass.
Scott
you Fixins hope sunshine and spring will rejuvenate you.
I hope I am just seeing things early and she has lots of time, but I think Rick and I are a bit nervous. I too figure, but it is on the cusp of spring time...really...no, this can't be happening now... Eternal hopeful!
She really pulls it all together for play time each evening. I can almost fool myself into thinking, "See, you're just being silly now!"
I know she is happy and pain free (for as much as one can say when you are old and still active, eh!).
So long as she wants to go play, I can kid myself this could last forever.
There's that ring tailed varmit swinging the "I'm so glad" tail of hers!
I'm so Glad by Cream:
She had enough energy after dog time to take another big roll in a pile of snow after the run runs.
Here's to
Have a friend that fed raw (BARF) to her two ACDs, so got an e-mail in with her to make sure what I am feeding Fixins is going to be somewhat balanced...she has that chicken roasting right now which will feed her for quite some time. I scrambled some fresh eggs, got dairy like cheese and cottage cheese, chicken soup broth. She is getting to hate her non-grain salmon and potato kibs, eats around them. She is allergic now to grains, so no corn, wheat, rice, etc.
I have never not fed a balanced kib to our dogs, but if Fixins is turning her nose up to it, fine by me...heck, if she wanted to be like a kid and eat only candy, I'm sure my "make her happy" side would do that...but the logical side says I could be killing her quicker with well intended kindness.
Ah, just got a reply from that friend...seems various meats and fatty fish should be good, the egg and dairy good too along with the bone broth I have been making.
Good...Fixins will be very happy she's been given the green light to eat up what we have planned.
Doggone & Chicken UP!
Tara Lee Higgins
Higgins Rat Ranch Conservation Farm, Alberta, Canada
you Fixins hope sunshine and spring will rejuvenate you.
Ditto!
Struth Fixins, you are an ACD! Tough as they come and a fair dinkum, little Aussie Battler! You'll be right; while you are feeling a little seedy at the moment, get some sunshine on ya and you'll be apples in no time!
Love you Fixins!
Good to hear that she can and wants to eat some stuff (and it's good for her!)
Scott
Scott
- Thread starter
- #826
Ditto!
Struth Fixins, you are an ACD! Tough as they come and a fair dinkum, little Aussie Battler! You'll be right; while you are feeling a little seedy at the moment, get some sunshine on ya and you'll be apples in no time!
Love you Fixins!
Cooee Cobber...she's tough but that might be why she wore so much of herself out. Her mother was much more reserved, not likely to charge in where wise men fear to tread! What we love about her...no job too scary not to charge in and see about. I do hope it is jest a little "seedy" that has her down.
The histiocytoma above her left eye is growing...she and her mother have these, and when Makins passed, they were rampant everywhere on her body--called them her lard supply, like a camel's reserve, jest in case hard times hit...a stock pile to see them thru. There is nothing much to be done with them. I swung by the local vet office and asked about releasing the pressure on it. Asked about needle size and I thought maybe a thinner gauge would be better but was told the 18 gauge would do the job. So the ordeal this morn was to stick her...I abhor that but did it and Fixins was not all that trusting of me after the fact. I hate that...I get to cause pain to make things more bareable...yucko!
All was forgiven when I served up some shredded chicken and cottage cheese with warm chicken stock broth. Yeh, I get to do all the doctoring and surely the creatures get to cast me the stinky eye when they smell rubbing alcohol on the swabs and see me holding a needle and syringe clamped in my teeth hopping the corral fence. "Look out, here she comes and someone's gonna get a hurtin'!"
Russell Peters...awesome AWESOME!
Yeh...I get to be the sweet angel of pain and preventions. Agh...
Past being the healing person as required, my main objective for now is to make sure she eats stuff that pleases her and brings her much happiness. I was always told one of the best ways to keep fat on a dog, was to feed them chicken fat. So a healthy helping of chicken fats for the Fixins. Not too much, but some greasy make the dog lips need slurping...oh blick!
Hmmm...dog's breakfast (and dinner)...yummy...to dogs
Fix never was a foody dog like Makins was (she was like that old cartoon of the red dog that would leap in the air and float down in sheer happiness) but in her old age, Fixins has grown very fond of the food (and drink, always very picky about her water being cold thou tarp water is supremely the BEST...Fixins scares the crap literally outta people, if you use our main bathroom---she has to go with you and jumps in the tub...you have to turn on the cold water faucet...fer the dog you know! Then as a guest, you are OK by her).
Yeh, the dogs when old or ill, if they quit eating...then it's doomed they are a day away from going. That or not being able to take a crap or pee. Always was that simple...stuff going in, stuff coming out...all is good. The day any dog could not do either, it was super grim. Sigh. I just hope it is the pressure in this current histiocytoma that has her down a few notches...HOPE against hopes that's all it is.
There are moments where she looks happy and her old self and times when she don't.
I'd like to see the snows melt, the garden get planted, the snow peas I put in the ground just for Fixins to grow up, flower and produce pods...for her to eat them and enjoy them. That is what I want...
"Is that what I think it is?"
This was a set from last year (August 6)...I want to see this repeated. It never gets OLD!
"Are those snow peas?"
"Yes, Fixins, those are SNOW PEAS for you!"
"Right on...I am so pleased! I love stealing snow peas off the veg garden fence."
There is that happy swinging tailed duo..."Now you better follow us...we know the routine...we know the way! Follow us..."
All I know is that I want to keep following this form...
Doggone & Chicken UP!Tara Lee Higgins
Higgins Rat Ranch Conservation Farm, Alberta, Canada
Tara, is "self-blue" and "lavender'' the same gene, or are they two completely different colors?
- Thread starter
- #828
Your question could be confusing. Lavender is a colour (called Pearlgrey in Europe) and also genetics (lav/lav blocks pigment from entering feathers) but self-blue is usually a term used just for a colour, not genetics. Blue dilution (Bl) oxidizes black pigment and does not block pigment from entering the feather like lav/lav does.
But I know what you are asking, so in the genetic sense, NO is my simple reply but that is never enough, eh...not enough for us to learn the WHY to the NO.
We can start off by saying that Self-Blue COLOUR is made with the following three GENETICS; lav/lav with eumelanin / Bl/bl"+" with eumelanin, and rare I^S.
Self blue may be made with: (1) lavender genetics (lav/lav on black pigment creates an all blue, no lacing feathered bird) as well as (2) blue dilution genetics (Bl/bl"+" on black pigment creates an all blue without the lacing when the combination found in Andalusian Blue Co/Ml/Pg is absent). Self-Blue may also be made with (3) Smoky (I^S), a very rare allele of the Dominant White locus which produces a pure breeding blue (pure breeding grey), is dominant to Dominant White, has no affect on red pigments so in theory according to Sigrid, could make purebreeding blue laced golds/reds.
Lavender (lav discovered in 1972 by Brumbaugh, autosomal recessive) will dilute both red and black pigments. Red will often become buff (orange red will become straw, beige) coloured and black will become grey (blue)...some birds with both red & black may become very whitish with hints of buffs and blues. I like to call both a black and red diluted lav/lav bird "Porcelain" (think MDF with lav/lav) and just red diluted lav/lav bird "Isabel" (red affected by lav/lav), and just a black diluted lav/lav bird "Self-Blue" or even "Lavender" could work (but could be confusing).
So that you understand, in the hobby named colours, Mille Fleur and Porcelain are exchanged back and forth for MEANING both a MDF with no lav/lav and a MDF with lav/lav...VERY confusing never mind throwing Isabel Porcelain in Germany means lav/lav plus MDF (Holland, UK, USA and Australia those genetics are for the hobby name "Porcelain") and the Germans call a MDF with NO lav/lav "Porcelain" (our Mille Fleur)...confused yet, you should be.
Blue dilution (Bl/bl"+") will dilute black pigments and leave the reds alone.
Same for Smoky (I^S), will dilute black pigments and leave the reds alone.
There are some uglies associated with the Lavender gene (lav) and this is the main reason why you don't see me with my Booted MDF Bantams having the Porcelain variety (MDF + lav/lav)...there is a stop feathering recessive gene close to lav and it may stop feather growth in the wings bows, tail, and shoulders. Chick down appears normal but when the adult feathers start coming in, the places mentioned, have some feathers that just stop and remain stub like and others grow a few centimeters long and stop growing forever. Sigrid warns one not to breed birds that exhibit this trait or continue to use the parents (even if normal feathered because they are both carriers of this recessive) as it is said to be a very persistent issue, once ingrained into a line.
Other similar problems with Lavender gene is wing patch and feather shredder. Jeffrey's wrote about this in 1985...feathers on the wing bow get stuck in a pin feather stage and dry up. Wing patch in inherited and sometimes hides to only show up in male chickens. Lavender Orps have issues with this feather shredder gene as do Lavender Partridge Brahmas. The softer the feather texture, the worse the expression. Sometimes long roo hackle feathers cover up the fault so judges don't see the problem. Lav Orps in the UK can have the shredder feather everywhere on them, especially on their backs (the vane does not have functioning hooks) and Sigrid mentions maybe it is another version of the gene fray (seen historically in some Rhodes--1938 Warren, imperfect feather webbing, recessive) and an Australian breeder seems to think some how red pigment is affected...wing patch like feathers but also on the hackle feathers.
Since I am a poop disturber of the composting kind (never poke at poo without having a good end use for it, eh)...here is a VERY interesting photo for those with an interest in Chanteclers...historically, Rhodes were used in this composite breed....so look hard please...you may even have seen this photo before....but have you really SEEN this photo...heh heh heh...
1926 Chantecler Coq - Abbey of Notre Dame de Lac in Quebec
I know when I first saw it, I never SAW it until I started to look hard at it and studied it. Sure it bothered me the first time I looked at it, but I could never quite put my finger on the what was bothering me so much...what colour are the legs on this bird please (and I mean L00K--one person pointed this fault out to me...not sure it is the shadows or not but has me puzzled and suspicious), but my major concern is, what is going on with his tail feathers eh...shank colour in the Chants is to be yellow and those tail feathers are perhaps...hmmmm...FRAYED??? L00K, eh...look with educated eyes upon that bird and see what it has to tell you....the birds never lie.
1926 Chantecler Hen
See how soft textured even the female from this 1926 set of photos is...see the lack of a top line, her tail, and her thigh feathers look way too poofy. Her legs DO sorta look to be properly coloured...not black ones we suspect. And what is with her stance? If she was a dog, I'd say she looks like she needs to pee...she looks terrible--all squatty. Might be a far nicer shape if they let her stand up, look a bit proud, not like the sky is about to fall in on her head.
So where was I before I meandered down Chantecler history lane...oh yeh...
Lavender genetics reduce the number of pigment granules (does not dilute the pigment's colour, reduces the number of pigment granules being expressed) by blocking them from entering the feathers but Blue dilution has the same amount of pigment as an undiluted black so blue dilution oxidizes black pigment to the grey colour but does not block the pigment from entering the feathers.
Now if'n you have to report back to someone, you can make them feel really out of touch by simply replying as to what the Self-Blue genetics do in that "Lavender reduces pigment" and "Blue Dilution in a Self-Blue (sans Co/Ml/Pg) oxidizes pigment"....leave them standing stunned, staring, and silent in the wings, eh!
Now did I give YOU enough differences between Lavender and Self-BOO to fill yer head full of fun things to puzzle on, Wisher?
Doggone & Chicken UP!
Tara Lee Higgins
Higgins Rat Ranch Conservation Farm, Alberta, Canada
Seriously?
- Thread starter
- #830
What?
Similar threads
New posts New threads Active threads
-
Threads with more replies in the last 15 days
-
-
Ended Official BYC Poultry Caption Contest 04-25-25 Pic by Sally PB- Started by TwoCrows
- Replies: 78
-
-
-
Is this chick wheaten? How did this happen?
- Started by Sic
- Replies: 55
-
