Ribh's D'Coopage

[Shadrach]

I love frizzles but it's too cold for them here

Well done. Many would just get them anyway.

 

[Ribh]

Chavi, Olivia & Shuri have all been out & about this morning but I haven't seen Desi yet.
Keeping track of so many broodies is a full time job in itself. ​

There are 3 bantam broodies tucked under the box behind Shuri. All her fluff is pretty much blocking the entrance.​

 

[MaryJanet]

Chavi, Olivia & Shuri have all been out & about this morning but I haven't seen Desi yet.
Keeping track of so many broodies is a full time job in itself. ​

View attachment 2959616

There are 3 bantam broodies tucked under the box behind Shuri. All her fluff is pretty much blocking the entrance.​

View attachment 2959624

Chavi's comb is flat as a pancake! I hadn't noticed that until now. She's a gorgeous little hen.

 

[Ribh]

Chavi's comb is flat as a pancake! I hadn't noticed that until now. She's a gorgeous little hen.

Her comb flops over rather adorably. She's a lovely little hen all round. All my dark birds are sweeties. The white ones are far less friendly.

 

[BY Bob]

Chavi, Olivia & Shuri have all been out & about this morning but I haven't seen Desi yet.
Keeping track of so many broodies is a full time job in itself. ​

View attachment 2959616

There are 3 bantam broodies tucked under the box behind Shuri. All her fluff is pretty much blocking the entrance.​

View attachment 2959624

They are pretty ladies.

 

[Ribh]

They are pretty ladies.

Indeed they are. What I find interesting is that despite being bred for looks they appear to be much hardier than any of my standard hens so the number of eggs a hen lays is definitely an issue. None of these girls are super duper layers but they are all determined super dooper broodies.

 

[bruceha2000]

They are a gorgeous colour but they don't like confinement, are good foragers, good fliers

Very true. I had a golden. She started laying on top of the round bales in the CLOSED stall by the alpacas' alley. She had to get there by flying from the wall feeder on the west wall, through the bars on the stall door. Of course the hay in the wall feeders was her first "not approved" nesting spot.

When I cleaned those up she stopped laying ... so I thought. All winter I'd find chicken prints in the snow from the NE corner of the big barn, all the way around the little barn south of the big one then back through the fence and behind the barns. All chickens accounted for in the barn when I opened it up of course. The alpacas have an always open door in the north end of the barn. She must have been going out that, flying over the dead weeds and large rock pile to the NE corner. After a time she disappeared, I assume a fox got her because she wouldn't stay back where it was safe. A few months later I found a nest in some straw bales in the "tractor port" in the big barn. There must have been 2 dozen eggs in it.

 

[Ribh]

Very true. I had a golden. She started laying on top of the round bales in the CLOSED stall by the alpacas' alley. She had to get there by flying from the wall feeder on the west wall, through the bars on the stall door. Of course the hay in the wall feeders was her first "not approved" nesting spot.

When I cleaned those up she stopped laying ... so I thought. All winter I'd find chicken prints in the snow from the NE corner of the big barn, all the way around the little barn south of the big one then back through the fence and behind the barns. All chickens accounted for in the barn when I opened it up of course. The alpacas have an always open door in the north end of the barn. She must have been going out that, flying over the dead weeds and large rock pile to the NE corner. After a time she disappeared, I assume a fox got her because she wouldn't stay back where it was safe. A few months later I found a nest in some straw bales in the "tractor port" in the big barn. There must have been 2 dozen eggs in it.

Now that's interesting. I always say Ha'penny is over ambitious. When she sits there are never less than 20 eggs. For a breed supposedly non~broody she does the best hidden nests & is damn sneaky about it to boot. By the time I've worked out she's secreting eggs again there's usually a good dozen stockpiled & I have terrible trouble locating her nest.

 

[bruceha2000]

I only found that nest because I needed some of the straw! Needless to say I didn't even bother to float test the eggs since she'd been missing for a couple of months.

 

[Ribh]

The hemp bale getting a good work out.
Titania.​

Tsura.
Oshina also lays here on those rare occasions she lays @ all.​