Pipd's Peeps!

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Bella's got a wicked look in her face there, hasn't she? She and the others all happily hopped down off the perch today when I opened the coop for the day, so I guess they're coming to accept their new home... Although they still collectively yelled at me last night when I peeked in the window one last time before going inside.

I got two eggs from them yesterday, despite the move, and I think one of them may have been from Harley, one of the Blue girls!! If this keeps up, I might even be able to set some Blue eggs in time for the hatchlings to be brooded with my Easter hatchalong chicks. That's assuming Pete figures out this whole courtship thing in time, of course.


I also had some luck getting Dandelion integrated back in with her buddies yesterday. Zinni and Myrtle were wicked to her at first, but pretty soon they were mostly ignoring her other than to shoo her away if she got too close. The last time I tried to let them interact without fence in the way, those two mean girls jumped Dandy at once and practically rode her around the coop! I have gone ahead and separated her again just because I don't want her being tormented while I'm not there to supervise, but at least there's some progress! I'm still hoping I can hatch some Dandelion eggs later this year to test whether Gus carries recessive White or not. It's not super important that I do, but it would be nice to know at least.


Lastly, I am STILL WAITING for notification that my oils have shipped.

Don't they know I have a fancy new soap cutter that's begging to be used?!

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Diesel just passed away, mere minutes ago. He's put me on a rollercoaster for the past 24 hours or so, giving me a bit of hope by drinking on his own, but looking so tired despite that. His crop was emptying again and empty when I checked on him just now, so I thought I would tube more food into him to give him some more energy. The tube went in smoothly and was in his crop as it should have been, I double checked so I know everything was correct and the tube feeding couldn't have been the cause, but he passed away abruptly as I was feeding him. Man, this one really stings after all that. I really didn't want to lose that big guy.

 

[Silkie Princess]

Diesel just passed away, mere minutes ago. He's put me on a rollercoaster for the past 24 hours or so, giving me a bit of hope by drinking on his own, but looking so tired despite that. His crop was emptying again and empty when I checked on him just now, so I thought I would tube more food into him to give him some more energy. The tube went in smoothly and was in his crop as it should have been, I double checked so I know everything was correct and the tube feeding couldn't have been the cause, but he passed away abruptly as I was feeding him. Man, this one really stings after all that. I really didn't want to lose that big guy.

I'm so sorry! Sending hugs!

 

[Crazy Maizie]

Sorry to hear about Diesel.

I'm so tired this morning, the pup decided to wake up at 3:30. I didnt fall back to sleep until 5 - she woke back up at 5:10.

Yesterday I went out and SweetPea had some head feathers pulled with fresh blood.
If it's the cockerel, he might have to go. 🍽

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Yikes, bad puppy! Casper does about the same to me, usually wakes me up around 3 am wanting out of the room. Unfortunately, his food, water, and preferred litter box are all in my room with no better place to put them because the dog will get into them anywhere else, but I need privacy especially from my nephew who wakes up at an unholy hour every morning, so I can't just open the door and I can't close him out. I finally got sick of it and bought a heavy curtain to go across my door so that I could let him out at 3 am and have some privacy still when I go back to bed.


Is SweetPea a Polish? Poor thing! I hope you can figure out who's pecking her. I'm noticing some ratty feathers on a few of my birds as well from keeping them locked down as I have been. Here's hoping they can get out and really stretch their legs before too much longer, poor darlings!



One quick note before I head out to open the coops for the day, I think Wash may have laid her first egg yesterday! That's 2/3 for the Blacks and both of the Blues now! Coco, the last Black to lay, still has a smaller pullet comb so I think she's going to be a while yet.

Also, I just realized this morning that my Easter hatchalong eggs ship in about a week!! That date came up so fast!

 

[Crazy Maizie]

I wanted a cat, but my hubby does not like cats (they like him though). So, I got a puppy. She's very sweet and pretty smart too. But, these early mornings are killing me.

SweatPea is a polish. I'm pretty sure it's the cockerel. I've seen him grab head feathers. But, he's usually guarding her. I think he wanted to show off and she was running away. It was fresh when I saw it. I've been able to see them in the evening now since the daylight is coming back. He's very amorous in the evening.
She's kind of mean too. I know everyone thinks they are just sweet timid things, but neither her nor the cockerel are. Lol
My brahma and one of my EEs are always running from him. So, I think he's only able to be with my 2 EEs and the polish.
The australorps also give him a mean peck. But, none have ever been aggressive towards her.
I also have a camera set up. She was good from what I could see until early evening - right when I went out. It doesn't catch everything of course.

Also, I'm letting my birds out in the evening when I'm out. Their current set up doesn't keep wild birds out, so it's not like I'm protecting them from AI. They've been enjoying their brief time out.

What will you be hatching?

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

I wanted a cat, but my hubby does not like cats (they like him though). So, I got a puppy. She's very sweet and pretty smart too. But, these early mornings are killing me.

Ah, that stinks! Well, she should get better with that as she gets older, right? Hang in there!

SweatPea is a polish. I'm pretty sure it's the cockerel. I've seen him grab head feathers. But, he's usually guarding her. I think he wanted to show off and she was running away. It was fresh when I saw it. I've been able to see them in the evening now since the daylight is coming back. He's very amorous in the evening.
She's kind of mean too. I know everyone thinks they are just sweet timid things, but neither her nor the cockerel are. Lol
My brahma and one of my EEs are always running from him. So, I think he's only able to be with my 2 EEs and the polish.
The australorps also give him a mean peck. But, none have ever been aggressive towards her.
I also have a camera set up. She was good from what I could see until early evening - right when I went out. It doesn't catch everything of course.

I have no Polish experience, I just don't like the big crests, but you're right, everyone says how sweet and wonderful they are. Sorry you haven't had that experience!

Your cockerel may tame down as he matures, depending on how old he is now. Seems like they all go through a phase where they're little terrors, lasting anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. If he gets to be too overbearing, you could try separating him for a couple weeks and see if he's any better after his time out. Sometimes that helps, or at least gives the girls time to recover and him time to mature.

Also, I'm letting my birds out in the evening when I'm out. Their current set up doesn't keep wild birds out, so it's not like I'm protecting them from AI. They've been enjoying their brief time out.

I have been, too There's just no way for me to cover their pen with all the trees here, so I have netting put up over as much of their yard as I could, but none of it is bird-proof anyway because of the size of the openings in the net and in the regular fence. It's technically more than enough space for them, but they hate it and they just want to get out like they're used to. I let them out to an uncovered portion of their run in the evenings just to give them a little more space. I think I'll probably start letting them out to free-range in the evening before too much longer, too, though I'm planning to fence them away from the driveway before I do, just to be safe. I've been a bit cautious about it not just because of HPAI, but also because of all the hawk attacks before and during winter. I'm figuring once the leaves are on they should have plenty of places to hide and should be safe from aerial attacks at least.

What will you be hatching?

For the Easter hatchalong, naked neck bantams! I'm so ridiculously excited for them! I've always wanted a naked neck hen or two in my flock!

I want to hatch some silkied Cochins, too, but I don't think that Pete has actually managed to breed any of his girls yet, and they're all just starting to lay so their eggs are probably a bit on the small side still. I might collect a few eggs from Gus's girls and set them, though, just to see if he's having any luck. Their fluffy booties can cause issues with breeding, so any fertility issues in those eggs will tell me if there'll need to be booty trimmings before I get my lil footsie pajama babies this year.

 

[Crazy Maizie]

Ah, that stinks! Well, she should get better with that as she gets older, right? Hang in there!

Yes, they always do. She is so cute, so I'm not mad.

I have no Polish experience, I just don't like the big crests, but you're right, everyone says how sweet and wonderful they are. Sorry you haven't had that experience!

Oh they are fine enough, I'm just not seeing what others normally say. I think they are kind of funny.

.....I got tired of trying to quote everything on my phone ....

As far as the AI (predators, etc) - there is always something to worry about for sure!

Naked neck bantams sound cute and interesting. I can't wait. Do you post in a hatch-a -long thread?

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Haha, don't worry about the quotes! It's definitely easier to do on a computer!

Yes, I've been posting every now and then on the official thread for the Easter hatchalong, just to indicate my participation: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/13th-annual-byc-easter-hatch-along.1511936/

For the most part, I don't participate in any other hatchalongs, largely because of timing. I don't like to hatch or buy chicks after late spring to early summer because I like to make sure they're grown up well and ready for winter, so pretty much everything holiday-wise other than Easter and maybe Independence Day are off limits for me, personally.

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

This is from about an hour ago, but here's Harley working on egg number 2 She's VERY serious about egg laying!

Also, my soaping oils arrived today! At least they shipped fast despite being shipped out a couple days after they said they would! I think if I can find a clean popsicle stick that I'll try an in-the-mold swirl this week (or maybe weekend, we'll see how the next couple days go). It'll all depend on how fast the soap starts to set as I'm making it, but I think I can pull it off. Might end up being more of a column pour if it sets too fast, but I'm excited to try either one! Either way, it'll have to be unscented because I forgot to buy fragrance oils in the same order so they aren't here yet, but it's fiiine.

(In-the-mold swirl is exactly what it sounds like, you pour the batter into the mold and swirl it, and column pour is basically pouring different colors on top of each other to make a swirl. In-the-mold works better when the batter hasn't set much, but column pour can be done with batter at any phase of trace.)