Pipd's Peeps!

[Crazy Maizie]

We did lose both Pete and Mallow over the past week, as I feared in my last post.

I also had another rather tragic loss this past weekend of the pullet hatched by Delphine last year. She and Holly moved into the mixed flock a while back so that I wouldn't end up collecting their eggs to hatch from out of the green banders' coop. With the losses of Pete and Mallow changing the numbers on me, I screwed up my head count over the weekend and ended up locking the pullet out without realizing.

Sorry to hear about the losses. That's another fear of mine - missing one after I've let them out in the yard. I triple count and then walk around the shed and run area. But, still I've missed one temporarily and panic starts.

To say that the amount of guilt I feel over that incident is immense would be an understatement. She was not a bird I planned to keep and didn't have a name, but she still didn't deserve to die that way. Despite that I held my composure for the losses of Pete and Mallow, two birds that I was far more attached to and had had for much longer, I absolutely broke down when I realized my mistake. Yet another moment this year where I'd completely failed one of my birds.

When you have so much going on, you need to rely on lists and such. The stress of school is enough to make you forget. I'm the worst at creating lists. Then I forget my lists if I write them down - technology is just a tool and if it makes life easy, then we need to use it no matter how reluctant we are.
I know it hurts your heart over what happened, but you provided her with a great life as you do for all of your birds.

And, lastly, as an early birthday gift, my mom got me a set of polyhedral dice with little chickens in them Aren't they adorable?

The dice are so cute!

Thanks for the info on fly strike. I will look up swat. Ivy is over her broodiness too. I just put her in Cheddar's area and close up the little coop that's in there. She comes to her senses in about 5 days or less. I also had to deal with two broody Muscovy at the same time. Oh the joys. I'm hoping the egg issue with the others clears up when they molt if not sooner. I've already got a summer molt going on with some of them.

Well, stay cool these next few days are going to be a scorchers.

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Sorry to hear about the losses. That's another fear of mine - missing one after I've let them out in the yard. I triple count and then walk around the shed and run area. But, still I've missed one temporarily and panic starts.

I've been so paranoid about that ever since. With some hens still going broody off and on, almost every night I have a little panic because someone isn't up to roost, only to find her grumping in the nests

When you have so much going on, you need to rely on lists and such. The stress of school is enough to make you forget. I'm the worst at creating lists. Then I forget my lists if I write them down - technology is just a tool and if it makes life easy, then we need to use it no matter how reluctant we are.
I know it hurts your heart over what happened, but you provided her with a great life as you do for all of your birds.

Yeah. I guess my reluctance is seeing my niece and nephew, with their young and much more agile brains, who can't remember to do the most basic things without someone (or something) reminding them I don't want to get to that point! But, with so much going on (and so much more after orientation, will discuss that in a moment), it's become necessary for me to rely more on the technology I have available to me.

Appreciate the kindness.

Thanks for the info on fly strike. I will look up swat. Ivy is over her broodiness too. I just put her in Cheddar's area and close up the little coop that's in there. She comes to her senses in about 5 days or less. I also had to deal with two broody Muscovy at the same time. Oh the joys. I'm hoping the egg issue with the others clears up when they molt if not sooner. I've already got a summer molt going on with some of them.

Well, stay cool these next few days are going to be a scorchers.

Glad you found the silver bullet for Ivy's broodiness! I hear muscovies are pretty mean when they're broody, hope you didn't sustain too many injuries dealing with that

I have some molts going on already, too. I'd much rather they do it now than in November and December, though!

Heat I can tolerate to an extent, it's this humidity on top of the heat! Now we're getting storms and it's really getting muggy. I feel like I need a SCUBA mask to get the chickens fed in the morning!

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

It's been... a week.

Thursday was orientation for the dental hygiene program. Let me just say to start that I never once thought it would be easy to get this degree, not for one moment. But orientation really threw some things at us that have me feeling a bit uneasy. Primarily, the grading scale for hygiene classes is non-standard: anything below an 80% is not considered a passing grade, and getting more than one non-passing grade may lead to complete dismissal from the program. So yeah, I'm sweating it a little bit.

I also have a ton more to get done before the semester starts that I sure wish I had known about sooner... but at least I have a month to get things figured out. All said, it sounds like the next three years are going to be a lot for me, so I'll just apologize in advance for the inevitable continued lack of activity from my end.


On the chickens, nothing new has happened since my last post with the exception that it looks like Opal might be weaning her chicks off of her care. But, she's still letting them follow her around and eat with her, not chasing them away or anything. She does hurry off without them occasionally, but they're certainly big enough to handle things on their own at this point.

So, moving on to pictures.

Chicha says, 'Who are you calling heavy?!'

I think it's Birchy's goal to become as spherical as possible

A simple solution to the problem of the hens eating all of the chick feed for the kiddos. The youngsters can fit through those openings, but most of the adults can't. Obviously, the OEGB girls are still an issue, but at least they don't eat much. (Don't mind the blurry hen, she would not sit still for a picture.)

Lastly, I grabbed some sort-of-update shots of the corn crib kiddos the other day when we actually had sunlight still. The lighting is a bit weird because there's a piece of orange snow fence over this pen that was reflecting color onto some of them, but... good enough.

Chow-Chow Chowder, the nervous one:

Chicha and her lovely iridescence:

Pretty Poly Polenta:

'Miss Cakes' Johnnycakes:

Puddin', the foodie of the group:

Wild child Tash:

And the perpetually nosy Flint:

 

[Mother of Chaos]

It's been... a week.

Thursday was orientation for the dental hygiene program. Let me just say to start that I never once thought it would be easy to get this degree, not for one moment. But orientation really threw some things at us that have me feeling a bit uneasy. Primarily, the grading scale for hygiene classes is non-standard: anything below an 80% is not considered a passing grade, and getting more than one non-passing grade may lead to complete dismissal from the program. So yeah, I'm sweating it a little bit. View attachment 4183360

I’m going to guess that the part of orientation dealing with grade expectations is an effort to scare enrollees into taking this program seriously. The drop-out rate is incredibly high for a lot of programs like this! (I have an AAS in Health Information Technology, and boy, did I see it all.)

Also, I think I remember you saying that you have ADHD? If so, hello from an autism spectrum disorder/ ADHD’er! I would STRONGLY advise that you look into academic accommodations for this. No one understands how you have to put 10 times the effort into doing a task as everyone else, until they go through it.

You can do this! You also might want to visit askamanager dot com, which talks about work-related issues, including school level.

Good luck! I have faith in you! Look at how much you’ve already succeeded at.

 

[Crazy Maizie]

Glad you found the silver bullet for Ivy's broodiness! I hear muscovies are pretty mean when they're broody, hope you didn't sustain too many injuries dealing with that

My Muscovy girls are only mean to each other when broody. They tolerate me, but waddle as fast as they can in the opposite direction and vocalize their dismay.

Heat I can tolerate to an extent, it's this humidity on top of the heat! Now we're getting storms and it's really getting muggy. I feel like I need a SCUBA mask to get the chickens fed in the morning!

Yes, humidity is evil. Speaking of ... Today is one more day closer to fall!

Primarily, the grading scale for hygiene classes is non-standard: anything below an 80% is not considered a passing grade, and getting more than one non-passing grade may lead to complete dismissal from the program. So yeah, I'm sweating it a little bit.

You got this!

Love the pics of your birbs.

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

I’m going to guess that the part of orientation dealing with grade expectations is an effort to scare enrollees into taking this program seriously. The drop-out rate is incredibly high for a lot of programs like this! (I have an AAS in Health Information Technology, and boy, did I see it all.)

That may be the truth! It sounds like they want to do everything in their power to help us get through the program and graduate with our class, though, so I am somewhat comforted in that knowledge. Like, as long as we're taking it seriously and trying, they aren't just going to kick us out.

Also, I think I remember you saying that you have ADHD? If so, hello from an autism spectrum disorder/ ADHD’er! I would STRONGLY advise that you look into academic accommodations for this. No one understands how you have to put 10 times the effort into doing a task as everyone else, until they go through it.

Never diagnosed with ADHD, no. I have been told I have some autism spectrum type mannerisms, but also undiagnosed there. The only thing I do know I have is social anxiety disorder and possibly also generalized anxiety disorder. I don't have any trouble concentrating and doing the things I need to do, really. I just struggle with reaching out to people when I need to because I get intense anxiety about social interactions (even just posting on a forum sometimes!), and I have a lot less energy than most people, especially when I have a lot to do at once, because anxiety is very draining on the brain.

You can do this! You also might want to visit askamanager dot com, which talks about work-related issues, including school level.

Good luck! I have faith in you! Look at how much you’ve already succeeded at.

You got this!

Love the pics of your birbs.

Thank you both!! I briefly started to go into an anxiety spiral after orientation, but I've pulled myself back together again and am feeling a bit more like I believe you now that I can do this!

My Muscovy girls are only mean to each other when broody. They tolerate me, but waddle as fast as they can in the opposite direction and vocalize their dismay.

Ohhh, well that's good at least! Sounds like my Cochin girls. They never peck at me (or at least not hard enough to mention), but they hate, hate, HATE any other Cochin girls going broody! I still have poor Kya and her babies fenced off from the flock because she and Opal will fight until they're swollen and bruised in the face if I let her loose.

Yes, humidity is evil. Speaking of ... Today is one more day closer to fall!

How nice is it today, though?! Looking forward to this weekend's weather!

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

We had a second bird with fly strike today. Ivy had an egging issue a couple days ago and had a messy bottom from that. Today, I noticed flies hanging around her, so I checked her, and sure enough she had it. I caught it very early because I've been keeping a close eye on everyone since Bucky's bout of it, so there's only a tiny wound by her vent, but still not pleasant. She seems like she should be okay to be outside with SWAT around her wound, but she still had flies bothering her when I put her back out, so I went ahead and brought her inside to keep an eye on it for the next day or two just to be on the safe side.

Not much else going on with the birds, and with everything going on in my life, I actually didn't take many pictures this past week. But here's what few I did get.

Poor, tailless Myrna, I suspect she's started into her molt...

And a very confused Pudding after Poly decided to nestle underneath her one evening as we were getting ready for bed

 

[Crazy Maizie]

How nice is it today, though?! Looking forward to this weekend's weather!

Oh, so nice. I'm grateful for the change in weather for sure.

We had a second bird with fly strike today. Ivy had an egging issue a couple days ago and had a messy bottom from that. Today, I noticed flies hanging around her, so I checked her, and sure enough she had it.

Ooh, sorry to hear that. But, glad you caught it early.

Thank you both!! I briefly started to go into an anxiety spiral after orientation, but I've pulled myself back together again and am feeling a bit more like I believe you now that I can do this!

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Checking in again for the weekend!

We did end up losing Ivy. Her fly strike was healing well, but she hadn't gotten over whatever had caused her egging issues, apparently, and one morning I found her nestled in the corner of her box like she had just fallen asleep.

I also came across the remains of the hen I had accidentally locked out of the coop a few weeks back, which was rough. At least that's some kind of closure even though I was fairly sure of what had happened to her. Since there was not much left of her, I made just a little scrape in the ground under a tree in the woods to bury her in so that she at least had some kind of final resting place.

In lighter news, the chicks are growing and the corn crib crew has officially moved outside full time. They're having a blast with all of the sights, sounds, and space they now have! The Cochin hens are terrified of them for some reason, though! I keep telling them they're just bigger chickens, but they all panic and flee whenever the youngins come around. At least they won't be bullied too harshly as they integrate, I suppose!

The youngest group of Cochin babies will be moving outside full time this week most likely. At the moment, they're in the middle of a round of amprolium for coccidiosis, so I'd like to get them more stable before I toss them out at least. After the corn crib babies had hardly any issues with coccidia, yet I'm always having to treat my Cochins as they come of age to go outside, I'm kind of coming to the conclusion that my Cochin line is just extra sensitive to it. I wonder how hard that would be to breed out of them...

Anyway, I think that about covers the chicken goings on, so on to the pictures!

Chicha getting her evening cuddles in one night

Freia and her big brown eyes

Findlay free-ranging

A little Cochin pullet resting her beak on my wrist as she settled in for bed

Old lady Perdita judging me for taking her picture without permission

And, a little Cochin cockerel in a bush

 

[Crazy Maizie]

Sorry to hear about Ivy. Glad to hear there's closure for you regarding the hen.

My Ivy decided to go broody again. She's over it now as I locked her in the segregated area with Cheddar (again). My sebright, Rose, has also decided to be broody as well as one of my muscovies, Blossom. Rose is easy enough to thwart as long as I take the eggs out of the nest box. Plus. She hates me so any attempt to touch her is met with screams. For the ducks, I close the coop up and that helps. They will lay their eggs anywhere so I don't have to worry about the others standing at the door wanting in (like my chickens who have other nest boxes to choose, but can only use 1 in particular!)

I lost my barred rock that was having egg issues as well. There were 2 days when no thin or shell-less eggs were laid. I was hoping things were being rectified. But, then the 3rd day, I noticed Plum standing in the duck run and not moving. She didn't move when I offered mealworms either. So, I scooped her up. Checked her over (and did a vent sweep which was empty). I put her in a crate with food and water. When I got back from grocery shopping she was gone. I will miss her as she was the evening coop door guard. But, she learned that she had to let the others in when I said, "Come on Plummy, you've got to move it's bedtime." She'd move slightly out of the way and peck each one who had disturbed her door time as they entered.

Then I had a weird issue with ZuZu (7 yr old Easter egger). One night I was tucking the chickens into that coop and smelled something off. I checked the australorp that roosts there as she's had issues before, but I found nothing. I took a light to look at weird poops on the coop floor, but saw nothing. The next day, after I had come back from burying Plum, I observed all of the chickens just to make sure everyone looked fine. They looked fine, but I noticed ZuZu scratching and shaking her head more than normal. So. I scooped her up and saw she had something going on with her vent and it smelled just awful. I don't know what exactly was going on. But, she had some necrotic tissue and her vent was totally clogged by skin and poop. I thought a prolapse. I got her soaked and cleaned as best that I could. Then applied a wound spray and bag balm. I powdered her with poultry dust to make sure the flies weren't getting to her. I placed her in the isolation crate and moved her to the temp regulated building. That night I cleaned her and applied the wound spray and bag balm again, but the lump of skin was still there and she was still somewhat blocked. The next morning, I sprayed her again and got the lump to come off - it seemed like skin. She had a very gross poo (which was expected). I soaked her again got her doctored up and placed her back in the crate. At this point, she still had some yellowish skin on and around her vent. It kind of looked like canker. But, I couldn't find anything about canker in the vent. However, I kept treating her and after the 3rd day, I set her up with the bigger crate in the run. I still wasn't sure at this point whether she'd make it or not. She still wasn't eating much. But, once she saw her pals she perked up. She started eating more and had some bms (still a bit off, but not diarrhea). So, on the 5th day, I let her hang out in the run. She got put to bed each night in the building, but on the 6th day (Saturday), she was allowed hang in the run and to go roost. She's still doing well and her bum is staying clean. She isn't really laying much anymore, so I'm not thinking it's an egg issue. I feed mealworms and thought maybe she ate too many, so now they are barely getting any.
All I can say is that when I found Zuus like that after Plum passed, I was about ready to be done with having chickens.