Sub-tropical chooks - picture heavy

[ChickyChickens]

Cute Pics!!!

 

[cwrite]

Thanks @appps & @ChickyChickens . I'll wait and see how she turns out. I don't have a regular schedule for giving them a multi-vitamin, but they have had some roughly once a week since the chicks hatched. I started giving the hens greek yoghurt a while ago now and it was so funny I've given it to them once a week ever since - for their gut health. ; )

I managed to get a few pics before the storm hit. Hopefully it will help the lawn recover. My DH traced and cut a new pool blanket on the lawn and all the grass under it died so we have a large rectangle of dead grass in the middle of the lawn. I have managed to refrain from mentioning how much I have watered the grass trying to keep it alive through the heat waves we have been enduring here in Queensland.

A group pic showing all my hens. Most of the chicks are happy to explore quite far from mum, but there is one precious little princess that is glued to Snowy's wing in nearly all the pics.


I didn't spend long outside and managed to catch a few scuffles on camera. The sandy area is where the trampoline used to be. I'm trying to encourage the grass to grow back and the chooks think it's a wonderful dust bathing area.






The lighting is really bad on this photo, but the big chick looks horribly like Rumpless.


The end of the confrontation above.


And after all that excitement, a bit of dust bathing, starting with a moment for Snowy & her precious princess before the whole gang comes to join in.

 

[WildWyandott110]

Thanks @appps & @ChickyChickens . I'll wait and see how she turns out. I don't have a regular schedule for giving them a multi-vitamin, but they have had some roughly once a week since the chicks hatched. I started giving the hens greek yoghurt a while ago now and it was so funny I've given it to them once a week ever since - for their gut health. ; )

I managed to get a few pics before the storm hit. Hopefully it will help the lawn recover. My DH traced and cut a new pool blanket on the lawn and all the grass under it died so we have a large rectangle of dead grass in the middle of the lawn. I have managed to refrain from mentioning how much I have watered the grass trying to keep it alive through the heat waves we have been enduring here in Queensland.

A group pic showing all my hens. Most of the chicks are happy to explore quite far from mum, but there is one precious little princess that is glued to Snowy's wing in nearly all the pics.


I didn't spend long outside and managed to catch a few scuffles on camera. The sandy area is where the trampoline used to be. I'm trying to encourage the grass to grow back and the chooks think it's a wonderful dust bathing area.






The lighting is really bad on this photo, but the big chick looks horribly like Rumpless.


The end of the confrontation above.


And after all that excitement, a bit of dust bathing, starting with a moment for Snowy & her precious princess before the whole gang comes to join in.

Beautiful hens!

 

[cwrite]

Thanks @WildWyandott110 .

We had a surprise today. I was moving Snowy over the chick fence and caught sight of an egg in the chick nest box. I had a closer look and there were two eggs in there so snowy started laying again.

We can't eat the eggs because she was eating medicated chick feed but I'm pleased that she has started anyway. DH is busy constructing more perch area so that we can start the chicks roosting. Once that is done I'll just fence off a smaller area with their food so that we can eat Snowy's eggs in two weeks time.

We had our first eggs in about three weeks for breakfast this morning as the hens managed to get over the previous chick fence and got stuck into their feed. They were delicious! Hedwig is over her broodiness so she should start laying soon and as soon as I rehome the excess chicks we will be back to normal. Peace and quiet - sort of.

 

[cwrite]

The last two mornings I have been in the run before 6am trying to keep Steve quiet. The first morning it turned out that Hagrid was hogging the nest box. She was loving admiring her egg, turning it and sitting on it while Steve waited impatiently for her turn. It was a bit of passive aggressive behaviour if I've ever seen it. This morning Steve was screeching before Hagrid had even laid, so I got to see my first egg laid and now know who lays the dark pink eggs - Hagrid. I put the nest box Snowy brooded in back into the run yesterday, but they don't remember it so it's new and terrifying. Steve wasn't going to lay in that frightening thing.

I could hear my neighbours talking about the noise from my chickens so I put an add in for one of them. I'm worried that if they hear a crow they will call the council. Anyway, no calls. Today I went down to the market and found a lovely lady who is going to sex and take any roosters off my hands next Sunday. I'm going to choose carefully and take five. Unfortunately it looks like Rumpless has just made the list as I can see thin saddle feathers growing. At least that is what I think they are.

 

[chooks4life]

I could hear my neighbours talking about the noise from my chickens so I put an add in for one of them. I'm worried that if they hear a crow they will call the council. Anyway, no calls.

Good luck with that...

Today I went down to the market and found a lovely lady who is going to sex and take any roosters off my hands next Sunday. I'm going to choose carefully and take five. Unfortunately it looks like Rumpless has just made the list as I can see thin saddle feathers growing. At least that is what I think they are.

I don't see any saddle feathers or any other male feathers, but again, there's that odd fringe on the feathers including the flights. (Not gender specific though, no definite male feathering that I can see).

Plenty of hens have narrower, curled tail and rump feathers, on birds feathered like these chicks you'd pretty much expect it. It's not ideal feathering, shows some genetic traits most breeders consider undesirable. Some of my hens have this type of feathering as well.

The saddle/rump feathers are generally one of the last regions to show gender in a male chook, normally you'll see some male type feathering around the head and shoulders long before saddle feathers show.

Best wishes.

 

[ChickyChickens]

Aweosme I am in love with your birds and pics!!!!

 

[cwrite]

Thanks for the sweet comment @ChickyChickens and for the advice @chooks4life . : )

I really jumped at the curled tails feathers. Lol. I think I'm just desperate to know who is what.
Snowy laid her first egg in the nest box this morning & I'd forgotten how LOUD her egg song is. My neighbours may wish that we had another set of chicks/eggs to keep her quiet soon. If I didn't have the stress of not being allowed roosters and knowing my neighbours are unhappy (& I don't blame them I don't like being woken before 6am either) I would be more relaxed about waiting for the crow or egg.

I had a close look at my main roo suspects this week-end and some do have tiny triple combs developing, which is not always entirely reliable but I have to go on something. I'll decide on Saturday and hope nobody crows before then. : )

 

[K Spot]

You know your suspect roosters may not crow at all while they are with you. The RIR rooster I hatched then subsequently sold did not crow in the 14 weeks I had him

So there is hope for peace and quiet yet for a while longer.

 

[ChickyChickens]

Thanks for the sweet comment @ChickyChickens and for the advice @chooks4life . : )

I really jumped at the curled tails feathers. Lol. I think I'm just desperate to know who is what.
Snowy laid her first egg in the nest box this morning & I'd forgotten how LOUD her egg song is. My neighbours may wish that we had another set of chicks/eggs to keep her quiet soon. If I didn't have the stress of not being allowed roosters and knowing my neighbours are unhappy (& I don't blame them I don't like being woken before 6am either) I would be more relaxed about waiting for the crow or egg.

I had a close look at my main roo suspects this week-end and some do have tiny triple combs developing, which is not always entirely reliable but I have to go on something. I'll decide on Saturday and hope nobody crows before then. : )

Awww...it is a pleasure!!!!