MJ's little flock

[Aussie-Chookmum]

Alice is really looking good! Still a way to go, but she's not scary-bald any more.

Well, Janet's back feathers are a bit sparse on her and a bit thick on the ground. But I'm excited to see her flight feathers growing in! They'd been cut back before I met her. For the first time since we met, she's not laying.

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Mary seems to be at the end of her moult. Perhaps there are a few butt fluffs to drop out and regrow, but otherwise she's looking pretty good. If last winter is any indication, she won't be laying til Spring.

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Peggy and Ivy don't seem to be moulting, but maybe they're replacing just a few feathers. Every now and then I see one of Ivy's downy feathers on the ground.

All four are eating well. Lots of manufactured food, both pellets and grain mix, lots of foraging, and one shared treat each day. They're not thrilled by these new pellets we're trying, but they're nibbling at them in a mash with their grain mixed in.

Here's Ivy making her daily Jacaranda inspection

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They are so pretty. I love Mary's eyes

I wonder what Ivy expects to be different with that jacaranda?

 

[Aussie-Chookmum]

I remember in her first pictures thinking she looked young. Now, I can't honestly tell because I've never seen a hen that looks like her before now. One thing to look at is to compare her physically to the others. She is not a bantam so is her head physically similar in size to Mary and Janet's?

Ivy looks like a partridge to me. Such lovely feather patterns

 

[Aussie-Chookmum]

Alice was happily preening under the bush with Tsuki today. Getting off all that itchy keratin (I don't know the proper name for the pin feather covering) and getting her feathers to open more. Whenever she shook it was like she had a bad case of dandruff

I love watching them preen.

A closer look at feather progress. She is almost a chicken again!

 

[MaryJanet]

Alice was happily preening under the bush with Tsuki today. Getting off all that itchy keratin (I don't know the proper name for the pin feather covering) and getting her feathers to open more. Whenever she shook it was like she had a bad case of dandruff

I love watching them preen.
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A closer look at feather progress. She is almost a chicken again!

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She's really looking good today!

 

[MaryJanet]

They are so pretty. I love Mary's eyes

I wonder what Ivy expects to be different with that jacaranda?

She's channelling Jane Goodall.

Today, the Jacaranda had an ant on it. I'm not sure if it was the same ant as yesterday. Maybe.
...
Today, the Jacaranda had two ants on it. I think they were trying to communicate with me. They waved their anntenae and I said bok in return.
...
Today, there was only one ant on the Jacaranda. It had a leaf in it's mandibles.
...
Today the Jacaranda touched me. Or did I touch it? It's hard to tell. No ants.

 

[MaryJanet]

I remember in her first pictures thinking she looked young. Now, I can't honestly tell because I've never seen a hen that looks like her before now. One thing to look at is to compare her physically to the others. She is not a bantam so is her head physically similar in size to Mary and Janet's?

I think her head is adult-sized. It's a little hard to tell with her crest, but certainly the length from throat to tip of beak is longer than Janet but shorter than Mary.

 

[MaryJanet]

Family dinner

 

[Ribh]

Family dinner

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They are super gorgeous. Ivy is simply stunning.

 

[MaryJanet]

I t

Alice was happily preening under the bush with Tsuki today. Getting off all that itchy keratin (I don't know the proper name for the pin feather covering) and getting her feathers to open more. Whenever she shook it was like she had a bad case of dandruff

I love watching them preen.
View attachment 2101958

A closer look at feather progress. She is almost a chicken again!

View attachment 2101959

All her preening paid off! So many feathery tufts!

 

[MaryJanet]

They are super gorgeous. Ivy is simply stunning.

They're a good bunch