What did you do with your flock today?

[Shetland lover]

Last night a neighbor cat chased a feral chick a few properties down and into another neighbors yard. I could hear it chirping for its mom till later eve. This morning it showed up in my yard where I was a little hopeful that my broody would be dumb enough to take it on or the feral mom who is responsible for dumping her chicks on me would. They both have under 2 week old chicks and it would be a good match but no takers for this little one. View attachment 3553554
I captured it and put it in my lower brooder with food and water. Hoping I can spy its mom and return it but so far, nope. Oh well . What is one more tiny mouth?

So cute! And it looks to have seriously long legs - roo maybe?

 

[TropicalBabies]

So cute! And it looks to have seriously long legs - roo maybe?

But of course

 

[Smokerbill]

Is she just bottom of the pecking order? Pru is currently my bottom girl (it changes every time one goes broody, it seems) and she is always hanging back a bit and is usually the last one to come in for treats, gets bullied a tiny bit going into the coop at bedtime etc.

I'm not sure, but that's probably what's going on. I haven't really noticed a clear pecking order within the pullet group, but it may be because I have a hard time telling them apart. I should get some colored leg bands on them so I can know who's who.

 

[TropicalBabies]

I'm not sure, but that's probably what's going on. I haven't really noticed a clear pecking order within the pullet group, but it may be because I have a hard time telling them apart. I should get some colored leg bands on them so I can know who's who.

It helped me to put bands on my girls. A good tool for deworming or if someone is "off". Too many of my girls look very much alike.

 

[TropicalBabies]

Happy Aloha Saturday!
It is a beautiful day here.
I need to sew bags. Feeling a little overwhelmed or deflated, not sure why. Maybe the heat, maybe just the slight barrage of other humans or the never ending list of things that need doing... and then projects on top of that. I'm not feeling excited or inspired. Good thing is the chickens have not called me out on it yet . Love that they put up with me.

Mazie has been back to her old self for awhile and same with the Lani who was feeling a little slow and first to bed. Nice having solvable issues.

Speaking of which, today I go pick up a chicken who has been sick for awhile and her person has not been able to get her over the hump. I'm hoping I can get her to turn the corner and return her to her person and flock in a few weeks. It has been a long haul for her. I set up her cage last eve and went through the plan in my head. A barrage of food, vitamins, antibiotics and care. Wish me luck.

The leaves off of the Mango tree in my son's yard are falling like rain. A beautiful blanket of good sized leaves will be carpeting the back corner of our yard for the next month or so, it overwhelms us forsure. So, I took the first 2 loads of leaves to the chicken run last eve. Gotta love chicken solutions and the sounds of them crunching through dried pile of leaves.

Welp. Better get after my chores...scrape, scrub and refill!

 

[Nomadicus]

After making the rounds of general chores of feed and water I pulled out a coop chair and just sat and watched the March and April kids enjoy their freedom in the area where their parents first roamed about. They acted just like them exploring every nook and cranny around any greenery that might host a tid bit of a meal.

 

[Smokerbill]

I just realized that I have a lot of blowflies buzzing around. They're kind of a metallic green color and a little bigger than houseflies. Are they a hazard to my chickens?

I was thinking about trying to make some kind of fly trap, but I don't know if it would really do any good.

The chickens were kind of strange this morning. I went out to open their door and let them out at 8AM and they didn't want to leave the run. I shut the door and tried again around noon, and they came out then.

 

[Nomadicus]

I found a pullet in dire need of a saddle and got her fixed up and then one of the big, big girls needed one too so she got one. While we where at it I weighed her. A solid 18lb hen. I walked her to and from the medic and got a weeks worth of exercise in so doing.

 

[Smokerbill]

I found a pullet in dire need of a saddle and got her fixed up and then one of the big, big girls needed one too so she got one. While we where at it I weighed her. A solid 18lb hen. I walked her to and from the medic and got a weeks worth of exercise in so doing.

Eighteen pounds? What breed of chicken is she?

And how do you go about weighing a chicken? I have no idea how I'm going to weigh mine.

 

[ChicksnMore]

Last night a neighbor cat chased a feral chick a few properties down and into another neighbors yard. I could hear it chirping for its mom till later eve. This morning it showed up in my yard where I was a little hopeful that my broody would be dumb enough to take it on or the feral mom who is responsible for dumping her chicks on me would. They both have under 2 week old chicks and it would be a good match but no takers for this little one. View attachment 3553554
I captured it and put it in my lower brooder with food and water. Hoping I can spy its mom and return it but so far, nope. Oh well . What is one more tiny mouth?

Well done

My chickens have been staying in the backyard thanks to the fences and barriers I put in place. They haven't figured out that they can get to the front yard by going all the way around the garden. I think it's because they'd have to cross a long space of open yard, unprotected by trees, and they don't like having open sky above their heads for too long. It's always a mad dash when they cross the yard to the edge of the woods.

I took walks with them a couple of times today, leading them down to the composting area where I just watched them scratch around and eat grass and seeds. They all seem very healthy, and all the poop I see laying around looks normal. There's a little bit of back and forth pushing their weight around, but nothing too aggressive.

But one of the pullets just seems "off" a little, like she has no confidence. Seems to hang back from the flock at times, but once she joins she acts just like the rest of them. And she seems totally healthy too, so I guess it's nothing to be concerned about.

And I realized yesterday that I pretty much blocked off access to the electric meter reader with my fences. I need to get that figured out in the next couple of weeks.

I miss having chickens that go for walks with me

I carry Stan round like that then offer him up to the roses to do pest clearance. No aphids on my blooms
Lovely morning here. Here's a few of the roses he cleared last week:View attachment 3553858View attachment 3553859View attachment 3553860
The stripey one is called Ferdinand Pichard. I named Ferdy after it as it bloomed for the first time the day Ferdy hatched. Its one of my favourites.View attachment 3553857

What incredible roses! I love roses so much!

Happy Aloha Saturday!
It is a beautiful day here.
I need to sew bags. Feeling a little overwhelmed or deflated, not sure why. Maybe the heat, maybe just the slight barrage of other humans or the never ending list of things that need doing... and then projects on top of that. I'm not feeling excited or inspired. Good thing is the chickens have not called me out on it yet . Love that they put up with me.

Mazie has been back to her old self for awhile and same with the Lani who was feeling a little slow and first to bed. Nice having solvable issues.

Speaking of which, today I go pick up a chicken who has been sick for awhile and her person has not been able to get her over the hump. I'm hoping I can get her to turn the corner and return her to her person and flock in a few weeks. It has been a long haul for her. I set up her cage last eve and went through the plan in my head. A barrage of food, vitamins, antibiotics and care. Wish me luck.

The leaves off of the Mango tree in my son's yard are falling like rain. A beautiful blanket of good sized leaves will be carpeting the back corner of our yard for the next month or so, it overwhelms us forsure. So, I took the first 2 loads of leaves to the chicken run last eve. Gotta love chicken solutions and the sounds of them crunching through dried pile of leaves.

Welp. Better get after my chores...scrape, scrub and refill!

That's so sweet of you Good luck with your chicken nursing... sounds like your friend knows just who to turn to for help!

I just realized that I have a lot of blowflies buzzing around. They're kind of a metallic green color and a little bigger than houseflies. Are they a hazard to my chickens?

I was thinking about trying to make some kind of fly trap, but I don't know if it would really do any good.

The chickens were kind of strange this morning. I went out to open their door and let them out at 8AM and they didn't want to leave the run. I shut the door and tried again around noon, and they came out then.

I've never had problems with flies and chickens...but have had with a rabbit once. I believe the only worry is fly strike. So if your ladies develop an open wound or messy bottom, the flies might lay eggs in it and the maggots can then be a problem.

I found a pullet in dire need of a saddle and got her fixed up and then one of the big, big girls needed one too so she got one. While we where at it I weighed her. A solid 18lb hen. I walked her to and from the medic and got a weeks worth of exercise in so doing.

18 lbs!

Eighteen pounds? What breed of chicken is she?

And how do you go about weighing a chicken? I have no idea how I'm going to weigh mine.

I have a small scale with a bowl top for weighing chicks/ small birds. For bigger beasties just weigh yourself, then hold the animal in your arms and weigh again. Subtract and you have the animals weight.