What did you do with your flock today?

[RedwoodCoastChick]

So he’s in the house, got a warm bath soak, and then a blow out and is now sitting with me and getting loved on. Poor dude :-/

Awwww, thank goodness you found him & brought him in for the needed TLC! May he have a swift & complete recovery; meanwhile he seems to be soaking up the attention.

 

[RedwoodCoastChick]

MY kids prefer turnip and mustard greens the most and wild dandelion greens.

Mine won't eat cabbage, either, even shredded for them, and they're not crazy about kale. But they LOVE wild dandelions and French sorrel best of all! And the spicy mustard-flavored Asian greens that self-sow all over the veg garden, even in the winter.

I'll have to try them on turnip greens, and the carrot greens (officially left on the carrots for "Santa's reindeer" next to Santa's cookies, so they must disappear overnight ).

But a big clump of grassy weeds, preferably with root ball attached, is always welcome. They encourage me to keep after the weeding all over the yard!

 

[RedwoodCoastChick]

hopefully they will all go in for the night without me taking a long 1x2 squeegee to them on top of the coops.

That's a novel way to deal with truants! ("Don't be missing curfew next time, y'all...") Maybe I'll borrow the squeegee from the truck and try that out!

I have a few notorious curfew breakers that I have to pick up (while they're "dark drunk") and pop into the coop after the automatic door has closed, maybe about once a week; find them up on top of the nest box lid, pressed forlornly against the hardware cloth window nearest the roosting bars & their flockmates. And usually when it's raining or about to, of course. If I don't happen to be outside when the pop-door closes so I can see if anyone's still outside, I can't relax after dark until I've done a "bed check".

 

[ChicksnMore]

Smoky was found laying in the mud tonight at coop in and my son thought he was dead. :-( It appears that he got in fight and was covered in mud and has a ripped up wattle. Poor guy was definitely in shock :-( So he’s in the house, got a warm bath soak, and then a blow out and is now sitting with me and getting loved on. Poor dude :-/

Poor dude indeed! Glad you guys found him to help him back up! Love his colors btw... beautiful boy!

 

[ChicksnMore]

Mine won't eat cabbage, either, even shredded for them, and they're not crazy about kale. But they LOVE wild dandelions and French sorrel best of all! And the spicy mustard-flavored Asian greens that self-sow all over the veg garden, even in the winter.

I'll have to try them on turnip greens, and the carrot greens (officially left on the carrots for "Santa's reindeer" next to Santa's cookies, so they must disappear overnight ).

But a big clump of grassy weeds, preferably with root ball attached, is always welcome. They encourage me to keep after the weeding all over the yard!

I love the reindeer feed! Wish I'd thought of that when my kids were still little

 

[Shetland lover]

Interesting. Mine love cabbage. They get it all the time. Whenever I buy it for us, I buy an extra for them.

Mine go through two cabbages and a head of kale a week! Will not touch Brussels sprouts or Savoy cabbage, they regard them as deadly poison

 

[Shetland lover]

I love cabbage, especially raw and dipped in ranch dressing. Sometimes I slice it thin and combine it with a can of sauerkraut, about 2 parts cabbage to 1 part kraut. It ightens up the sauerkraut flavor and makes it go a lot farther. Plus it's easier on my digestion.


I might try chopping it finely next time and see if that makes a difference. Maybe I can get them to acquire a taste for cabbage if I work on it.

After picking up 7 eggs from the nest box this morning I gave the girls a few ripe, red tomatoes and three bags of salad mix. One of them had chopped cabbage in it. Maybe they'll eat it.

I adore raw cabbage too! DH thinks there's something wrong with me (to be fair he probably has a point!). He loves coleslaw though and I haven't the heart to tell him one of the chief components is cabbage...

Odd thing. You mentioned chopping the cabbage really fine for your chickens? Well, I do that occasionally with spare Savoy leaves. Mine treat it as deadly poison in it's 'whole' form but devour it when it's blitzed small in the food processor and mixed with their grains or mash. Just like kids with their greens I suppose

 

[Shetland lover]

Biscotti's such a scraggly chick! I tentatively think Biscotti's a little roo. If he was human, he'd have a diagnosis of some sort! But...he's doing well and getting stronger everyday. He moves like the world's tinest drunk sailor . He gets cold so easy because he's under feathered...no dense fluffiness to him. He's going to be the sweetest bird though and I'm hoping he grows up strong and well feathered. Now that he's out of that poor mail abused egg things can only get better right View attachment 3708791View attachment 3708792

Unbelievably cute!
I don't think I've ever seen a chick with so little down. Mind you, I am used to fluffy butt bantam Cochin chicks!
I'm sure with the love, care and attention you'll be showering 'him' with, he'll thrive and catch up in no time!

 

[Shetland lover]

Smoky was found laying in the mud tonight at coop in and my son thought he was dead. :-( It appears that he got in fight and was covered in mud and has a ripped up wattle. Poor guy was definitely in shock :-( So he’s in the house, got a warm bath soak, and then a blow out and is now sitting with me and getting loved on. Poor dude :-/

Poor Smoky! He reminds me of Stan the first time he took on his dad. I found him face down, covered in blood, behind a plant pot and at first glance, I thought Ferdy had killed him. He was in shock too and I did exactly the same, warm bath with lavender to help calm him, blow dry then an afternoon on my lap (with snacks ) recovering. Hope Smoky has recovered well and enjoyed the attention once he got over the shock.

 

[Shetland lover]

Mine won't eat cabbage, either, even shredded for them, and they're not crazy about kale. But they LOVE wild dandelions and French sorrel best of all! And the spicy mustard-flavored Asian greens that self-sow all over the veg garden, even in the winter.

I'll have to try them on turnip greens, and the carrot greens (officially left on the carrots for "Santa's reindeer" next to Santa's cookies, so they must disappear overnight ).

But a big clump of grassy weeds, preferably with root ball attached, is always welcome. They encourage me to keep after the weeding all over the yard!

Mine go crazy for sorrel too. And spinach. Have to go easy with them though as the oxalates in them prevent calcium absorption if fed in large amounts. Why are chickens like kids? They always love the 'candy' option best!