Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[ManueB]

same here. I don't know if any of the benefits survive the digestive tract of a mealworm, but I sometimes throw a herb sprig in the mealworm drawer, as it throws off a fantastic aromatic while they're munching it (another surprising benefit of having a mealworm farm!)

'chickens' used to mean young birds; maybe it extended its range via commercial practice, whereby practically all birds are young birds. On current usage I don't know at what age we are supposed to switch from 'chick' to pullet or cockerel - as soon as we can identify the gender maybe?

what a gorgeous vine! Lucky you (assuming the chickens leave you some of course!). Table or wine grapes?

I'm not sure how they were used, there are small vines like these all around the place along the stone walls that separate the different terraces. Most of it like the one on the picture is small red grapes, it's very tasty but has lots of seeds; and some is what we call raisin framboise which was forbidden to use to make wine as it supposedly turned people crazy . We eat both kinds.

Teifi was waiting for me by the back door this morning, so she slept out again

Indeed. It's really hard to send anyone away but I know overstocking is the easiest mistake to make, so I prevaricate and procrastinate

Typically I distribute 'treats' in a fast walk, so that the bullies in the flock can't dominate access and everyone's strung out, completely oblivious to the source of the goodies until they're down to the last few morsels, which may well be in the beak of a roo who's been holding on to it, waiting for this moment . If I make the call and I'm stationary, they all come running and typically Chirk (in whatever position he arrives, not usually first or last) will come and stand right next to me and do his tid-biting there. You could perhaps try holding on and not distribute until Theo has arrived, so that you're not separating him from his girls, and see if he'll do the same?

I will try, but most times his reaction is to move away from us and try to call the hens to him by tidbitting. And of course it doesn't work when we're giving them scrambled eggs or fruits and he's trying to get them to come to him for a piece of grass .

 

[ManueB]

Indeed. It's really hard to send anyone away but I know overstocking is the easiest mistake to make, so I prevaricate and procrastinate

Is it because of the land or because of the work required to watch over more chocolate chickens ?
In a way it's rational to wait as the second generation is still very small, so you don't know how many would survive and also which ones you would prefer to keep..but I guess the males would have to go ?

I'm still hoping to keep Gaston so I'm also playing time hoping that my partner will fall for all his goofy funny ways .

 

[Perris]

which was forbidden to use to make wine as it supposedly turned people crazy

that reminds me of one of the subplots in the film A good year (set in France if memory serves aright)

Is it because of the land or because of the work required to watch over more chocolate chickens ?

Land, and number of coops. I love the idea of chocolate chickens, but I really haven't a clue what you mean there! Clarify please!

 

[ManueB]

that reminds me of one of the subplots in the film A good year (set in France if memory serves aright)

Land, and number of coops. I love the idea of chocolate chickens, but I really haven't a clue what you mean there! Clarify please!

I didn't mean anything ! For once it's not some poetic translation mistake, just that I didn't check what I had written and the automatic writing on the phone did that.
You could try and become ambassador for Nestera to get a free new coop. They're having a campaign now on Instagram through a bunch of influencers . You could propose to become their secret agent on BYC and tell everyone on the emergency forum that wood coops are the causes of all known chicken diseases and that they absolutely need to get a plastic coop to become a responsible backyard chicken keeper .

 

[Perris]

I didn't mean anything ! For once it's not some poetic translation mistake, just that I didn't check what I had written and the automatic writing on the phone did that.
You could try and become ambassador for Nestera to get a free new coop. They're having a campaign now on Instagram through a bunch of influencers . You could propose to become their secret agent on BYC and tell everyone on the emergency forum that wood coops are the causes of all known chicken diseases and that they absolutely need to get a plastic coop to become a responsible backyard chicken keeper .

A free coop would be nice, but I think I'm a few decades too old for the influencer game

And I forgot the other (and principal) reason for not wanting to expand the flock much beyond 20; I think it would split, as they do in the wild, and did with Shad in Catalonia. Given I have multiple coops, that would be physically do-able, but I like having all roos and hens and chicks in one flock sharing one territory; I don't think life would be as harmonious with multiple small flocks navigating and negotiating (a euphemism if ever there was one!) their own parcels in the same territory.

 

[Iluveggers]

A funny anecdote about Artemisia annua which is cited amongst the useful herb. It's a very invasive weed here but we don't have any at our place. Last year I went to my elderly neighbour to collect some for my own medicinal use. My partner went in a state of emergency I can't describe, like I had brought back some highly dangerous exotic virus. He asked me to make a security perimeter around the wicker basket in which I left the plant to dry . So if you don't have any I would be careful about planting some!

Sounds like me and purslane! I bag it in plastic as I pull it, and it goes into the trash. Definitely don’t want to compost it, and it might fly away and regrow before DH gets to burning it!

I'm asking seriously everyone who own rooster. Our hens always rush so quickly for special food that Théo is always the late comer and I think it's a huge part of why he doesn't like us, the fact that we bring special stuff to his girls and keep them away from him. I really want to find a way to make him get to the food first and call them.

Watching and listening to answers. I learn quite a bit on this thread!


Tribe/breed question for everyone. We have 10 chicks, of different breeds. Primarily because we wanted a colorful flock and also to experiment and see what breeds we like raising best in our climate and neighborhood. In the future, if we were to add more chicks, after they were fully integrated, would they tend to stick together as a group, or would they gravitate toward an older hen that is the same breed? We are in love with our Welsummer (who I almost didn’t order), and our Faverolles is the smartest in the bunch (if not a bit aloof which is the opposite of what I have read about them). So if our new group included Welsummer & Faverolles, would they split with their older counterpart or stick together? Just curious if any of you have ever experienced that.

Tax: (you can see why I have a fence around the garden…those just sprouting carrots on the right would be goners if I let the forage team in there! Hopefully in a few weeks the sprouts will be big enough to take a few pecks and I can let them look for bugs and get rid of all my vegetable pests!

 

[Molpet]

would they tend to stick together as a group,

Mine stayed together as siblings first, then age, then color. A clutch of mainly pullets, with a favorite cockerel, have moved out of mom's 8x24ft coop 25hens and 1 rooster, into a less populated coop that was 8x8ft

 

[Perris]

if we were to add more chicks, after they were fully integrated, would they tend to stick together as a group, or would they gravitate toward an older hen that is the same breed?

Mine don't, but Shad says that's because there's a lot of variation and not many of the same breed here. Even the 3 Penedesenca hens/sisters don't stick together; one decided when she was just a teen that she'd rather hang out with birds of another feather, and other two don't hang together either.

 

[Iluveggers]

Interestingly enough, there are 2 roost bars and I’ve been putting them on the same one every night together.

Last night they split themselves into two groups. The Faverolle (Squeaks), Speckled Sussex, FBCM & Blue Cuckoo Marans on one bar on the left, and the 2 Easter Eggers (one brown, one white), Olive Egger, Welsummer, Buff Orp, & Light Brahma on the other side.

I thoroughly enjoy observing the roost rumble. It looks as though my Blue Cuckoo has taken quite fondly to my Faverolles as the slept together the night before also, and she jumped right up to be with her as soon as Squeaks claimed her spot. Watching and waiting to see friend groups emerge. I don’t care who likes who as long as no one is overly mean/aggressive to stress/harm anyone.

 

[Ladies-Eight]

Ex Batts good afternoon one and all!

93 cloudy 52% humidity feels like 100 with scattered rain showers.

Have a great day!