What did you do with your flock today?

[Jenbirdee]

I turned over all the pathway boat carpet pieces and the ducks got all the worms

 

[SkyAJK]

Poor girl!
Are you able to get superlorin implants in Australia? It's basically a contraceptive/hormonal implant that goes into the chicken's breast and stops them laying for anything up to 6 months.
They're actually designed for dogs but are pretty effective in giving hens a break from laying. Giving them a break is often a great help in staving off reproductive issues and has saved many an ex-battery hen over here.
Isa Browns are a commercial hybrid created for the egg industry and are bred for maximum egg laying not robust health or a long life. Their average lifespan is only 2-4 years.
They are some of the sweetest girls in the chicken world and give the best cuddles. I miss my girls every day

Really hope Basil comes through this

I have thought of that, I am calling around checking what the cost of to have it. If I travel to another state which is 2 hours drive from mine, the cost is like $150, but in my state the cheapest is almost $400.

My first flock of chickens are Isa Brown and you are absolutely right they are very sweet, very communicative and love cuddles My Basil is just like that.

 

[PopoMyers]

Sounds like treatment is going well! Great news

It's not cold here yet either -definitely colder though - but I've noticed that the back quarter inch of Ferdy's and Stan's combs are bluish first thing in the moring and just before bed. Once they get moving their combs are back to normal bright red.

Hopefully your boys will never turn mean, CM roos are pretty even tempered on the whole. Strong girl bosses also help keep them civil. I'm positive that's why Ferdy turned out such a gentle, good boy.

My lot are all doing well. They're all going through a really heavy moult so look dreadful and are a bit short-tempered with the new kittens.
My two new pullets are the friendliest little girls and are growing into lovely little hens. As intended, are giving Gladys a break from Stan's, ahem, 'attentions'. She's 7 early next year so getting a bit long in the tooth for his shenanigans
Ferdy lost his vision in his left eye defending the ladies from an attack from a Peregrine falcon. He's adjusted really well to being blind in one eye. You'd never know just looking at him as he was lucky enough to keep the non-functioning eye.

The boys are behaving in a civil manner so far, and have been doing their guard duties well. Just noticing tidbitting, and of course a little rough learning which hens to try and mount. They're not having it. Treatment has gone well and yesterday the prolapse did not pop back out like it had been. If it stays in today, I think she is eager to get back to normal environs. Weather had been wet and wild the last few days, and the sun is gloriously shining today. A clogged gutter had my porch splashy wettest night, so DH came to the rescue. I heard that we are forecasted to have a wetter, not so cold winter ahead. Covered my dahlia beds so they wouldn't get rotten this season.

 

[Shetland lover]

The boys are behaving in a civil manner so far, and have been doing their guard duties well. Just noticing tidbitting, and of course a little rough learning which hens to try and mount. They're not having it. Treatment has gone well and yesterday the prolapse did not pop back out like it had been. If it stays in today, I think she is eager to get back to normal environs. Weather had been wet and wild the last few days, and the sun is gloriously shining today. A clogged gutter had my porch splashy wettest night, so DH came to the rescue. I heard that we are forecasted to have a wetter, not so cold winter ahead. Covered my dahlia beds so they wouldn't get rotten this season.

How's your baby doing today? Have you managed to get her back to the rest of the girls?
Glad to hear your boys are being respectful to the ladies.
Stan is much rougher with the girls than I'd like. Certainly much less gentle than Ferdy.
I think it’s to do with differences in their treatment by the older ladies as chicks. Ferdy was disciplined by my ex-battery hens and had no input from his dad as he died the day Ferdy hatched. Stan, on the other hand, was an only chick (Pru kept his egg well hidden) and he was indulged utterly by every other flock member - they all wanted to be his mom, even Clara who hated motherhood and Gladys, who showed no interest in being a mom previously. Ferdy was just the proudest dad and doted on him. Basically, he grew up spoilt and an entitled little
Having said that, he has only had eyes for Gladys until recently. From what I've seen, he only ever mated her. He now mates Posie and tries hard to woo Pootle. She isn't having any of it once he tries to mount her - starts screaming like a banshee to get Ferdy and Gladys over then kicks his ass!

 

[SkyAJK]

After cooking breakfast I will take a chair and sit in my chicken run so that my feather kids see me up close and personal

I see them way to close and personal with vent checking, poop investing..

 

[Mother of Chaos]

After cooking breakfast I will take a chair and sit in my chicken run so that my feather kids see me up close and personal

I see them way to close and personal with vent checking, poop investing..

I need to do this Friday morning. The Easter Egger has taken to flying outside the wooden perimeter fence to the narrow strip of land between fence and street, and I’ve got to find out what her route is.

I REALLY don’t want to clip her wings.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Tonight I went out to the hen house and marked another Am cockerel I'd spotted during treat time. I think that makes three now. They get a green leg band. They're easier to spot now that they're getting bigger than the pullets and standing up big and manly, with thick, sturdy legs! No crowing yet though, and no miunting that I've seen. I also had DH put bright yellow bands on all the Am pullets, so I can more readily id them from the BA pullets. So I think I have seven Am pullets, 3 Am cockerels, and 5 BA pullets.

Have decided to sell the BA pullets this spring and order some Dom pullets instead. I want brown egg layers, but I need some that are not black like the Ameraucanas, lol! I will also sell some of my 1 yo EE so the only blue eggs I get will come from my Ams. Cackle has a 15-bird minimum so that means I can get some more Ams. Will stick with black to keep my breeding simple for now. I don't have multiple buildings!

 

[Shetland lover]

After cooking breakfast I will take a chair and sit in my chicken run so that my feather kids see me up close and personal

I see them way to close and personal with vent checking, poop investing..

I know, I never thought I'd become a chicken gynaecologist and dedicated scatomancer when I first considered keeping chickens...

 

[Shetland lover]

I need to do this Friday morning. The Easter Egger has taken to flying outside the wooden perimeter fence to the narrow strip of land between fence and street, and I’ve got to find out what her route is.

I REALLY don’t want to clip her wings.

You might find you only need to clip them once, if you can't determine her route. I had to clip one wing on my first roo as he was flying into next door's yard to eat daffodils (toxic to most animals). He was clearing a 7ft wall from ground level - not bad for a diminutive bantam cochin, not known for their flying ability! - and once he realised he couldn't clear the wall any longer, it broke the habit. By the time the next moult came round and his new, unclipped feathers, he didn't even try.

 

[PopoMyers]

How's your baby doing today? Have you managed to get her back to the rest of the girls?
Glad to hear your boys are being respectful to the ladies.
Stan is much rougher with the girls than I'd like. Certainly much less gentle than Ferdy.
I think it’s to do with differences in their treatment by the older ladies as chicks. Ferdy was disciplined by my ex-battery hens and had no input from his dad as he died the day Ferdy hatched. Stan, on the other hand, was an only chick (Pru kept his egg well hidden) and he was indulged utterly by every other flock member - they all wanted to be his mom, even Clara who hated motherhood and Gladys, who showed no interest in being a mom previously. Ferdy was just the proudest dad and doted on him. Basically, he grew up spoilt and an entitled little
Having said that, he has only had eyes for Gladys until recently. From what I've seen, he only ever mated her. He now mates Posie and tries hard to woo Pootle. She isn't having any of it once he tries to mount her - starts screaming like a banshee to get Ferdy and Gladys over then kicks his ass!

Sorry for not replying sooner. It only took one week for her to be healed, and I put her back in the run. She immediately flew over to the flock, which were grouped eating treats. She is doing well, and these white lehgorns like to dirt bathe, so are no longer white. New white feathers are growing in, but won't be white for long, with the dampness and rainy weather, although the sun is out today.
Did general worming treatment yesterday. I made a gruel of sorts and mixed the albendazole in with it. Too hard to catch any of them to dose individually. I have one black hen who is molting and seems a bit under the weather. Maybe the worming will help. It will be in the single digits (C) this weekend. How goes it with you?