Life With The Flock: Lacy Duckwing's Flock Thread

[Lacy Duckwing]

I haven't seen anymore broody behavior from Beth. She's been roosting on her perch at night, which is good. Earlier today, Beth started making a broody cluck while she was trying to swallow a piece of deer meat that was too big for her. She did that sound everytime she saw Princess and Nightfall. That being said, she might not of been making that sound as a result of being broody, but because she was scared that Nightfall and Princess was going to take it away from her. (When the two other birds went back outside, I tore apart the piece of deer meat so Beth could swallow it better.)

I am thinking the Beth in the nesting box at roosting time is a result of her getting bullied. She's good with the flock except for with Rocky. And ever since I put Rocky back in the flock, Beth has been acting different. One of the things is, Beth is not hanging out with the flock like she was, and is starting to be very clingy to me. I can't even be in Beth's sight without her trying to get to me, again. Beth was also hanging out with Jewels a lot. Now Rocky's back, she's not. And Jewels IS one of Rocky's friends, so....

One of the reasons why Rocky bullies Beth, is because she's jealous of her. Rocky used to be my favorite hen, so she got all the attention. When Beth came on the scene, Beth fell in love with me, and would follow me everywhere. As a result, Beth started getting all the attention instead of Rocky. Rocky is actually only mean to Beth and nobody else. Thus, pointing out she has a problem with her.

A fun fact about the Golden Comets, and possibly the whole RSL hybrid, is they're "pack hunters." Basically, they stick together, and if there's a fight with one, they ALL get involved to help each other. I first heard this from someone else who had Golden Comets then I saw it with mine.

That fact there, makes it show that jealousy is the reason why Rocky is mean to Beth. They're both RSLs, so they should stick together, and not be enemies. Rocky will try to "pack" with other members of her flock like Maisy and Jewels, but is mean to Beth. Beth used to try to "pack" with Rocky like a normal RSL, but again, Rocky was mean, and would have nothing to do with it.

 

[Lacy Duckwing]

Today, two of my hens got saddles.

Here's the first one I made today for Beth:

Top:

Bottom:

And on Beth:

The second one I made today is for Penny:

Top:

Bottom:

And on Penny:

 

[cluckmecoop7]

Today, two of my hens got saddles.

Here's the first one I made today for Beth:

Top:
View attachment 3036396
Bottom:
View attachment 3036398
And on Beth:
View attachment 3036399

The second one I made today is for Penny:

Top:
View attachment 3036403
Bottom:
View attachment 3036404
And on Penny:
View attachment 3036405

Those are nice! Why did they need saddles? Is the rooster that bad already?

 

[Lacy Duckwing]

Those are nice! Why did they need saddles? Is the rooster that bad already?

I have a medium rooster. That size rooster needs 12 hens. For the amount of hens I have, I could use a large rooster like a Buff Orpington.

Fun fact about the three hens with saddles. (Aundria, Beth, and Penny.):

All three are my current best egg layers! A hen that's a favorite is often a sign of a good layer. In some cases, the Queen is also a favorite.

Here's something to think about though:

Shiloh is a good layer, but isn't a favorite... Why? I have occasionally seen a rooster not favor his own sister. In one case, the rooster was actually mean to his sister. Whatever the reason, it's something interesting to think about.

 

[Lacy Duckwing]

How the flock is doing:

Yesterday they got some live fish which they went crazy for. Audria ended up being the one to swallow most of them. She'd get the fish away from another hen and get away quickly and swallow the fish quickly before another hen could steal it from her.

The past couple of days my flock has been doing a lot of free ranging. I'm slightly considering free ranging my flock full time, but there is some reasons why I'm not sure: One neighbor I don't want them going on her property at all, and domestic predators.

Beth is learning to come to her own name! She's still learning, so she needs to improve, but she's learning! Unfortunately, she's also to come to Shiloh's name as well... Which isn't good. Shiloh knows to come to her own name a little, so hopefully Beth doesn't interfere that.

 

[Lacy Duckwing]

Just in case nobody has seen this yet:

It was taken on the day Rocky was released. Oh, and Rocky has been looking very good lately with her new feathers. They're a little course, but that's normal for a Golden Comet.

 

[Lacy Duckwing]

Yesterday, I got 13 chicks! There are 4 Orpingtons, 2 Marans, 4 Olive Eggers, and 3 Whiting True Blues. I named them all, but their names might change due to them being straight run. I put all their names with each of their first picture in the video below. Because I got a few of the breeds mixed up and can't currently tell some of them apart, I didn't put the breed names with the chicks' names in the video.

Here's the video:

 

[cluckmecoop7]

Do you know if they're BUFF Orpington's, or no?

 

[Lacy Duckwing]

Do you know if they're BUFF Orpington's, or no?

Two of them, Elizabeth and Betty, will look like Buff Orpingtons, but they're not. They're Lemon Cuckoo Orpingtons.

 

[Lacy Duckwing]

Update:

Shiloh II has been escaping lately by way of the winter run. She flys up onto it, then out. She free ranges to her pleasure, then returns the same way. I saw her out earlier and she followed me around a little. Sometime after she returned in the run, I went in and got her. Today was her last time flying out. I clipped one of her wings which she wasn't happy about. After I had put her back, I saw her having troubles flying onto on of the run's perches, so I know I did a good job. (She did make it onto that perch, but the way she was flying out is much higher.)

I let Beth II free range for a while today and had temporarily taken off her saddle. She looked horrible! She looks like she's molting but with no new feathers coming in. Between Rocky and Nightfall, Beth hasn't been doing that well. Not to mention, I think Nightfall's the type of rooster that my hens need shoulder pads. I'm slightly considering retiring Nightfall early, but it might be better for the next rooster if I don't.

On the chicks:

A lot of them is growing feathers quickly, including Blair, a chick I'm a little worried about health wise, and they're getting bigger. I had to modify their coop due to an eye-hook situation, and did something to the coop's window. I put the chicks in their outdoor pen for a couple of minutes before having to put them back in their coop. Beth had came over to check them out a little, but was wary of them.