Mollie Sunshine Chronicles

[MollySunshine]

I need to start carrying my phone with me when I am out in the coops. Last night while I was in the main girls coop refilling food and removing the water, so it doesn't freeze over night, I turned and looked upwards and who's sitting pretty on the top roost with the RIR's? Who else but 2 of the littles, Marlana (EE) and Lady Godiva (Porcelain D'uccle). I merely shook my head and giggled. This doesn't surprise me. LG is Marlana's partner in crime. She's so small and the EE is so large that when she get's nervous she will scoot underneath the EE for protection.
The stray cat has decided he doesn't want to sleep in Lucy's coop. At night he will begin walking with me then stops when he realizes that is where I am going. I don't know where he is sleeping. Hey, I offered him a safe, dry place to sleep. He may change his mind once snow begins to fly.

 

[MollySunshine]

I had to mention the snow flying yesterday! We are due for upwards of 6 inches tomorrow. Ugh, I hate it, too much winter.
My littles are beginning to lay! Here is a picture of a couple from yesterday. The EE will be laying green eggs.

How precious are these! They of course are small. They are sitting on a spoon holder for size reference.

 

[MollySunshine]

I survived the holidays! Now I just have to help chickies survive these brutal temperatures! I am not heating the coops this year as I've mentioned before but I am watching my littles closely. This morning the main coop was 15F. Everyone seemed to be handling the temperature fine. Silkies were roaming the area as they usually do. I didn't open any of the coops to the runs though. The runs were 5F. The next couple of days, especially tomorrow, are going to be worse than today. Lucy's coop was expecially cold. It was 5F. I am thinking it's because it's only Lucy and Ellie May in there. Not enough body heat to get the temps. up. I tried to increase the population in that coop and we all know how that worked out.
Just putting it out there, if anyone wants to follow my mini chickie farm on instagram it can be found at riseandshineri. I just started it the other day but intend to post daily chickie pics etc. See you there!

 

[MollySunshine]

Correction, we can be found at riseandshinefarmri. that's what happens when i rush grrrr

 

[MollySunshine]

Chickies are hanging in there. It has been incredably cold here the past couple of days. This morning it was a whopping 8F without the wind chill factor.
This morning I did open the door that leads to their run. I hung plastic drapery over the opening so they can move freely from the coop to the run. At least there's a barrier of sorts between both spaces, to help keep the "warm" air in the coop. The coops were 11F this morning. A real heat wave! Let's see how it works out. I am counting down the days to spring! No new chickies to look forward to this coming spring.
I notice the Silkies that don't usually roost, roosted last night. The newest set of Silkies usually roost a few feet away from my original set. Not lately, they all huddle close together. I'm happy that the older girls allow the younger to snuggle close to them. Lady Godiva and Miss Marlena roost on the top with the RIR's. They crack me up. Lady Godiva is so small that she practically nestles herself under the the larger birds.

 

[MollySunshine]

Happy New Year!
As I mentioned earlier, it's incredibly cold here in the northeast lately. The other day after arriving home from work, I did my usual routine of going to the coops to close up, collect the eggs and check on my chickies. I notice all of the littles have chosen their roosting spots....all except one.....the usual one.....Chanel. I always have to force her to roost. It's too cold and I want her to roost with the others to keep warm. I reach for her while saying, "come here my little muffin." As I gather her I notice something not right. My first thought, she's frozen! I run to the door of the house with a crate in my hand and tell my husband to get a heating pad, one of the silkies appears frozen. I check on her later and I notice her head still appears strangely twisted. I Google why is my silkies neck twisted. The answer was wry neck, quite common for silkies. At that point, I'm hoping it is wry neck and not a broken neck. I find the treatment and run to the drugstore for vitamin E, selenium and polyvisol. I become hopeful when I notice she has the ability to raise her head, albeit not for long periods of time. The appearance was her head on ground but upside down. it's been a couple of days now and I am happy to report she is recovering well. I heard her yesterday morning frustrated to straighten her head first thing in the morning but this morning I didn't hear her struggle. Her head is ever so slightly tilted to one side but she has held it up all day. She will become a single chickie. I will house her separate from the others and segragate a portion of the run just for her, she will coexist separate from the others. I will not chance her getting hurt a third time. So for now, she is coexisting in my house in her crate! I never thought I would ever say those words. It is much too cold outdoors and I don't want her to be alone while she recouperates fully. I speak to her while I'm doing things in the house and she responds back in that trumpet voice silkies make. What we do for our chickies!

 

[MollySunshine]

...because a foot or so of snow isn't miserable enough, the temperatures are expected to be below 0F this weekend. The good news is, I will be home. I don't know what else to do other than everything I've already done to help my chickies through these excrutiating temperatures. I did think that during the course of the days I can give them a mixture of oats, fruit and seeds made with hot water to keep warm them from the inside out. I am nervous about Sunday; it's going to be the worst of the 2. The stray cat has been staying in his crate lately for shelter, I intend on bringing him in the house. He will stay in the same room that Chanel is in. He shouldn't bother with her since he's slept with the chickies before and he doesn't bother with them. She's in a crate anyway. I hope he is around tonight so I can bring him in.
Chanel is recouperating very well! She's becoming quite the little stinker. She's so demanding! I fill her water bowl just "enough", otherwise she steps on it and spills the contents. I know she is out when she repeatedly taps the metal bowl and squawks. I keep having to remind myself that I have a chickie IN my house! That's crazy stuff right there. The way this weather has been it won't be until spring that she goes back oudoors. She's become too used to the inside temperature, she would freeze if I placed her outdoors now.
Here is a picture of Lady Gadiva huddled under Marlena for warmth the other night. She's such a peanut that she can barely be seen. She's the white mass on Marlena's left. Yes, these 2 littles roost with the big girls on the top roost.

 

[MollySunshine]

We survived the below zero temperatures of the past couple weeks. The last few nights were brutal! I found myself walking quietly to each coop in nervous anticipation as I opened each door. The main coop is usually the first and hearing the girls making their usual morning sounds was complete joy. The boys in the main coop, I need to pay attention to their combs. There are a couple that seem more weathered than others, there appears to be pale spots. Hopefully, once the temperatures increase there will be healing. The temperatures have normalized today somewhat. It will be 50's! on Friday. I cannot wait.
For those of you who have internally hoped for Chanel to recover quickly, I am happy to report she has recovered fully
The stray cat spent some time indoors with Chanel. I feel horrible because I brought him in the coldest of the nights this weekend, Saturday, but thoughts of maybe he's not well somehow, what if he has worms to deposit in my house that my own old boys could catch....I placed him back outdoors. I felt horrible! I let him in yesterday and he happily napped all day. I put him outdoors when I closed the coops so he could do his thing for the night but he never came back around. He was at the door this morning. I let him eat to eat then scooted him out for the day. If he's around tonight after I get home I will let him in from the cold.

 

[MollySunshine]

Continuously learning....last night I got home and went directly to the coops to do the usual nightly chores. As I walked into the main girls coop, I noticed a strong ammonia smell. I took back more of the plastic that surrounds the coop to allow more air through the openings and waited a bit to see if the odor dissipated. Nothing. It just so happened I had stopped by TS for more pine shavings on my way home and left the store with pine pellets. TS has been stocked out of pine shavings for the last 2 weeks! That's crazy. I assume due to the cold weather everyone has been scrambling to purchase. I proceeded to shovel all of the material out of the coop. It rained extremely heavy yesterday, the humidity level in the coop was 95%. The air and outside ground was supersatureated. It wasn't easy manuevering a wheel barrow through the water soaked ground. It took an hour and a half to shovel everything out but I got it done....in the dark, with only my flashlight to guide me. The girls were slightly upset that I was moving about in their coop when they were getting ready to settle in for the night. They weren't as upset as they normally would be, they don't like being disturbed at roost time. Maybe last night they realized I was helping them out. I spread the pellets out and took a deep sniff, no ammonia smell. If I'm not mistaken the delivery truck arrives on Thursday for TS. Weird that I know this. I will pickup some pine shavings to mix with the pellets. I read the write up for the pellets. They are supposed to work well. See what happpens. At times the things that work the best I find accidently. If anyone has experience using the pine pellets I would love to hear your comments.