Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Perris]

Further to the question of whether chickens need extra protein, or not, around time of moult, I have been reading something that casts a different light on it.

It happens that quite a few plants' pollen macronutrient composition shifts over the course of the season, from protein-rich in the spring to lipid- and carb-rich in the late summer. "...a temporally dynamic floral macronutrient landscape that shifted from being protein-rich in the early season to lipid- and carbohydrate-rich by late summer (figure 1b). For generalist foragers like bumble bees, this creates a dynamic mosaic of resources, with important implications for their health [28,68,71], as the seasonal loss of high-protein plants could disrupt colony establishment even when other floral resources appear abundant."

The study was focused on bumble bees, but has relevance to any species eating flowers/pollen, and, presumably, indirectly, any species eating species that eat flowers/pollen, and chickens qualify on both counts.

We have been focusing on the moult as a causal factor, when it may just be a temporal coincidence. Perhaps it is simply protein that Janeka needs right now, not so much because she's moulting, but because her usual plant-based sources are seasonally deficient. (The paper doesn't address wintertime provision, when bees are relatively inactive and flowers are in short supply. I will be keeping a close eye on Janeka's appetite for mealworms going forward ).

Btw, the paper also "provides field-based support for a core prediction of nutritional geometry". That theory is being tested in the field now, and is standing up well.

Bain et.al. Nutrient niche dynamics among wild pollinators
Proc. R. Soc. B 292: 20250643.
https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2025.0643

 

[no fly zone]

What is it you used to kill rats, thats innocent for scavengers?
And what do you mean with dry ice. I only know dry ice for medical use to eliminate wraths and keep things in that need extreme cold.
I support the thought of an article too. Sure it would make a great article!

I don’t have a rat problem for quite some time now. We have another creep hanging around here at the moment. A marten. Seen by the neighbour 3 days ago at 10 am on the their terrace. These animals eat kind all of animals including rats and chickens.

A marten from the internet:
View attachment 4210269

You could use the names of the Greek gods and halfgods. Great names and there are plenty to choose from.

They are as murderous as they are cute.

 

[fluffycrow]

You could use the names of the Greek gods and halfgods. Great names and there are plenty to choose from.

Well, definitely. As with almost anything Greek though, those names are gendered. The same does apply to places, but Demeter as a rooster name doesn’t sound so good, while Keratea can be more easily overlooked (and yes, I do recognise the irony of me saying this when I named one of my favourite roosters Lady Gaga).

Will do. He's the only one with a crest!

One of the many reasons he’s my personal fave from the youngsters! I didn’t get into Tsouloufates just for their locality.

Wouldn't this make a good chicken name? Very pretty place too (applies to Epirus as a whole imo). You may be underestimating the potential of Greek place names. I can imagine the sort of bird for whom Knossos would be perfect, for example

Thank you for your encouragement. Hmm, I’d love to hear what sort of bird would fit the name Knossos. When I think of it, Old English Pheasant Fowl, Fayoumi, or something like the gorgeous Erddig come to mind. Maybe my imagination is not that good.

He was, of course, my favourite of that year's offspring. He looked so much like Phoenix, and he had a lovely personality until pain started to get the better of him. I try not to favour any, but it's impossible.

Once again, very sorry for your loss . I gave up trying to not have favourites years ago. It’s double the grief when they pass, but double the joy when they’re thriving