What did you do with your flock today?

[TropicalBabies]

Ya know, all my kitties are indoor out door kitties lol. Best of both worlds. You probably should have picked up all 3 kitties lol. Just in case, lots of rats and mice and bugs lol

 

[TropicalBabies]

Today I did a lot of catch up sewing, cutting and washing of bags.
The chooks got to freerange early and stay out late. They spread out all over the yard, it was wonderful to see how relaxed they all were.
I tossed them a romain lettuce this morning to make up for their extra time spent in the run the last week, and a few mealworms for the lack of bugs.
Yesterday I only collected 5 eggs. That is down from 14 that was down from 20. Today I think I have 8.

Is it black kitty Friday?

 

[Shetland lover]

Yes, that is what I am seeing/thinking based on my knowledge of genetics too...that inbreeding and recessive genes are not a good mix and while it seems like something that would be difficult to prove scientifically due to confounding factors--anecdotally and logically to me, it makes sense that they would come with more issues and be more susceptible to all sorts of things that the less inbred birds don't suffer from the same way. I have spent a lot of time thinking about this...as you can imagine...your course tutor sounds smart

I did look into gout, which is why I started her on the Uriva! It's a mix of tart cherry, tumeric root, celery seed, CA poppy seed, white willow bark, and devils claw root! Supposed to be good for reducing uric acid build up...the issue I have at this point is all the treatments overlap, so I won't have any idea which one actually worked to treat whatever it is. She got more eggs with skullcap as well and ate them very eagerly this morning which made me happy. Her appetite had gotten notably worse in the last few days but she has eaten all her eggs two days in a row and her feet look a LOT better today. Her comb is still noticeably swollen but the sinuses above her eye are no longer swollen and her eyes are open more often. All good signs she feels better. So fingers crossed!

He is. He's a very well respected microbiologist and professor of animal sciences. My course has finished now but he said to keep in touch. He might come to regret that

That's the trouble with bombarding with meds, you never know exactly what it was that helped them turn a corner. Unfortunately, with chickens, as they're so good at hiding sickness until it's almost too late, sometimes you have to use several approaches in treatment.
That's where it'd be great to have a home lab to be able to culture samples, do bloodwork etc. I'm looking into the possibility of getting a decent microscope and even a portable ultrasound machine. Can't afford it right now but it would be useful.

What's CA poppy seed? Is it Californian poppy, I.e. Eschscholzia californica? Everything in the Uriva looks good to me, anti-inflammatories, pain relief, diuretics...
As well as treating gout, it could help support her kidneys too which can swell and function poorly during m.synoviae.
Hopefully Blossom will keep on improving. M.synoviae has low mortality rates 1-10% as long as it's not complicated by other illnesses.

 

[Shetland lover]

Can you spot this one? Hint, it's not a chicken.View attachment 3575879
@ChicksnMore I am so sorry. I hear it is going to be brutal in AZ and CA.
I hope all make it through ok
I went down the mountain to order flowers for mom, load 10 bags of compost, switch trucks and pick up sewing machine etc. Full icky face and body sweat. Yuck, yuck, yuck! I could not get out of there fast enough. Up the mountain was 10° cooler and raining. What a difference 30 minutes makes. I felt sorry for leaving Elliott behind but he has a vet appointment with daddy today and daddy has a choice.
The florest was in Omao, a cooler and notoriously wet spot, aka, froghole. I love it there, so that was a treat.View attachment 3575889View attachment 3575890View attachment 3575894View attachment 3575897
Was able to check on flock with cameras while i was gone . Installed the solar lights in the coop when i got back .
Cats are happy I brought their vehicle back.View attachment 3575902
Time to get busy sewing again. Collected some good $ from stands and special orders this month!!!

I love lizards! We do have sand lizards and Mediterranean wall lizards over here but not this far north, sadly.

Such beautiful flowers! Indoors and out.

My uncle would have a coronary if he saw your truck. He's petrified of cats. He once spent an hour on our driveway waiting for my cat to get out from under our car

 

[Shetland lover]

Well…I’m gonna try it guys…I’m gonna see if having an outdoor kitty gets rid of the rats

Today I ran to the feed store for chicken scratch and peeked in the chick section…and was surprised to see these big furry weird looking chicks!
View attachment 3575972

I’ve been thinking about it for awhile and kept waiting for the right time and felt like the Universe sent me this sign. This morning the feed store found them dumped in their alley So they brought them inside cuz it’s very hot today and we’re hoping to get them rehomed before this weekend. I went in the back and pet them and looked them over, and their coats are dirty and feel nutritionally depleted and they’re very skinny—so worms likely…but otherwise appear healthy. Bright eyes, no discharge, friendly and calm. The little black kitten got up and came to me for pets and started purring…and I was toast.

So meet Shadow, our new outdoor chicken protector “I hope”
View attachment 3575974
I wasn’t totally set up for an outdoor kitty…so I have her in a smaller space till I can set her up properly. Wanna keep her close to the house and off the ground, but obviously with an indoor cat I want to make sure she sees a vet asap. Aside from a dewormer and a bath, is there anything else I should do @TropicalBabies @ChicksnMore ?? Hopefully she works out perfectly and we can get the rats outta here and have a nice kitty…or the husband will get very annoyed with me!

How adorable! Reminds me of my gorgeous George when he was a kitten.
Bless you for taking Shadow in. You have so much willpower not to have taken the other two.
Mine have done nothing to deal with the rat population. Mostly they just stare at them non-plussed. Elliot did nearly catch one on his birthday but it escaped. Hopefully your new kitty will do much better!

 

[Shetland lover]

The injured pullet's wound is looking pretty good today. I can just see a small dark scab where the comb was ripped. Maybe in a couple days if I can't see it anymore I'll let her rejoin her sisters and menfolk. LOL

I took the shovel out and cut off several big leafy weeds and treated the birds.

I'm really enjoying hearing rooster crows in the morning. They are getting better at it by the day!

I've been trying to plan out where I want to put a permanent run in the yard, but what I really want is a portable run. Since I already have a bunch of 4' chicken wire, and 2x4s, I'm thinking of building 4'x8' chicken wire panels that can be connected somehow, and be moved to any part of the yard. Individual panels wouldn't be heavy at all.

Sounds like a plan! Portable runs are great! Your ground doesn't get so "chicken sick" if you can move around regularly and it lets your grass recover. I wish I had the space to use a mobile run. If the birds come to the allotment with us, i just section off the areas i want them to work for me. I just use chicken wire and stakes.

 

[Shetland lover]

That's so cute! We named her Velma (Scooby-Doo reference-kids choice)...and the red one I named Lucy! I have 2 other bantam cochins and they made me fall in love with the breed! These 2 new ones are just confirming it! I stuck the Dr Pepper can up there for size ref. View attachment 3576849

They are so lovely and Velma is tiny! She is about the same size as Clara. I want to add a chocolate pullet to my flock.
I never even considered having bantam cochin when i started keeping chickens. In fact, I think I was quite dismissive of them as a breed. Until a little lavender 'pullet' ran over my feet at a local breeder's. Turned out to be a cockerel who totally won me over to the breed. Wouldn't be without them now.

 

[Shetland lover]

Would you mind sharing a pic of your Clara?

Of course not! I'll have to get some more up to date photos of her later but here's one or two for now:

The first one is with her grandson, Stanley. He's on nest duty for the first time while she lays an egg!
The second is with her son, Ferdinand (Ferdy)

 

[Shetland lover]

Cooking up some pork loin for me and my chickens. It's 90 degrees here and the birds deserve a meaty treat.

I fed them one egg for the first time earlier today. Gently fried in oil, then drained well. I found that they like eggs.

Mine love them scrambled with garden peas!

 

[Shetland lover]

The daughter is home from camp and learned about Shadow! She’s very excited and loves how much he purrs

Too cute for words! They both look so happy