Katiebob Posted August 1, 2009 Report Share Posted August 1, 2009 All those chicks are just soooooo gorgeous. We named our red/black Pekin 'Bissell' cos with her feathered legs when she walks around she looks just like a little carpet sweeper Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
celeste Posted August 2, 2009 Report Share Posted August 2, 2009 Sorry to hear about your Sussex girl Katiebob,my pullet supplier said to me "If you've got livestock, at some point, you'll get deadstock " sad but true. Lovely chicks Cheryl........but, Nymphadora !? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoebejo Posted August 2, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 2, 2009 I've had a really carp few days, losing Beans, working hard all weekend, missing the girls so much while I was there and I had such a lovely surprise when I got home. Emily had made some amazing discoveries in the garden! She'd found A BLUE EGG in the nest box Robin had been crouching for all week which had put my mind at rest because I was beginning to think she was looking a bit boyish. She hatched from a blue egg, has blue ears and I was so hopeful that she'd lay blue eggs and now she has Poppy had been confusing me, I'd seen her desperate to lay an egg, heard the announcement afterwards then not found any egg in the nest boxes. Now I know why She's created a nest amongst some weeds down the side of the house. Emily found four Poppy eggs there I sat in the garden, admired the ex-bats new feathers and weight gain, Poppys nest, Tiger Lilys filthy hair-do, had cuddles with Lamb Chop (my four week old Faverolle girl) and Maud and ate a plum from our tree. It was lovely to be outside with my bestest girls Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
celeste Posted August 2, 2009 Report Share Posted August 2, 2009 Well done Emily for finding the eggs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katiebob Posted August 3, 2009 Report Share Posted August 3, 2009 Hmmmmmmm, found one of my brown hens dead of a gunshot wound in our paddock today (there was also a magpie which had died by the same means). I know who did it although I can't prove it. Nasty horrible neighbour's children Too young to have an air rifle (especially one with laser sights) but parents think he's a lovely child. One day I hope he does some damage to himself with the wretched gun. I could get police involved because it's an offence to shoot across other people's land - and he's underage anyway - but I can just imagine the kind of reprisals it would cause. I'll think on it for a while before I decide any action Don't worry, Mrs Bejo, Forrest isn't brave enough to venture that far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
celeste Posted August 4, 2009 Report Share Posted August 4, 2009 Little s*** !!! any chance of getting photographic evidence ? there's an age limit in Scotland on air rifles, don't know if it's the same in England. Thankfully the Scottish Parliament are making moves to have the bloody things banned completely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katiebob Posted August 4, 2009 Report Share Posted August 4, 2009 Forrest crowed for the first time today Lucky for him he's here now, Cheryl although Mr Hazel might not agree Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoebejo Posted August 4, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 4, 2009 Awwwww my boy Was it an impressive crow or more a party blower? I'd shoot the kid that shot your chook, or his parents for allowing him to play with a dangerous weapon in the first place Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katiebob Posted August 4, 2009 Report Share Posted August 4, 2009 Sadly apparently the law says I'm not allowed to shoot him although I'd love to. Our horses were in the same paddock where he shot the magpie. Our horses HATE going into that paddock and I can totally understand why. The paddock where the chicken got shot is immediately adjacent to the one where the magpie was found and well within his sights (and I found a gunshot wound on it, anyway) . I've shouted lots of times about how he cannot shoot over our paddocks but the little horror doesn't give a s**t. Cos I can't prove it was him I'm a bit stuck but we will be mentioning it to his mum (who buys eggs from us) and his dad who has done work here too I can understand about parents being defensive about their children but his behaviour just isn't on! The air rifle was confiscated for a while when he was trying to shoot next door's roof slates off but seems to have been returned. I HATE school holidays around here. Forrest's crow was pretty good - it will be on a par with Dave when he's had a bit of practice - and actually better than Chaz's when he first started Chaz has improved loads but I think it's the competition! The boys definitely keep apart but there's no animosity at all and fingers crossed that's how it will continue Must post pics of Forrest's harem but it does include our Splash Orpington bantam, a Buff Sussex bantam, one of the Silver Laced Wyandottes, a Black Rock, one of the Whte Stars, the Amber Star, the Blue Cochin, and a few others, although they are all pretty fickle and the harem does change from day to day Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoebejo Posted August 4, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 4, 2009 I got the Independence Day chicks out for a photo session yesterday. They're such good kids, no trouble at all I realised that Bernard the blue Silkie is definitely a Bernard and not Bernardette He's got a boys comb already. Steve is a Steve but I'm still undecided about Bruce and Doughnut. I'm fairly sure Bruce is Brooke instead, less of a comb than Steve and more finely boned. I haven't a clue about Doughnut, all I know about Anconas is that they are fast maturing. My lovely Lamb Chop Bernard Steve: Bruce but probably Brooke: Proving that her comb is smaller than Steves! Doughnut: As soon as the camera comes out Olive (the Poland formally known as Dustin Hoffman) instantly appears because she's such a poser She's 11 weeks and large fowl but as you can see the ones above are the same size as her All the others she was hatched with have been free ranging these past two days with the big girls. It's sooooooo much easier introducing in large numbers No fighting at all apart from my young black Orp boy thinking he can take on all comers Meredith and Tiger Lily soon put him in his place and he's now very sheepish The new chicks are growing really quickly, I'll take new pics tomorrow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katiebob Posted August 4, 2009 Report Share Posted August 4, 2009 Olive looks so much like my Poland bantams - hard to believe she's L/F - I'll wait to see her grow with interest I'm told that apart from the difference in sharp/rounded feathers and comb, the other difference is that boys have much bigger feet? Not sure with that one but my poultry breeder says it's true. I cant decide with my own chicks on their sexes, let alone yours!! I think I've got a different variation every day, made even more impossible because they're cross- breeds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoebejo Posted August 5, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 5, 2009 Post photos of them and I'll give you my opinion I've not got it wrong yet with any of mine........ so far! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoebejo Posted August 5, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 5, 2009 An exciting day for us I know girls get noisy as they're coming into lay, it's obviously a confusing time but I've found that once they've laid they calm down. Lily Pie started being vocal about a month or so ago. She's been crouching all that time too. Her sister Poppy has made a nest down the side of the house and sometimes lays there, the rest of the time in either of our coops. We've searched the garden but cannot find any other nests so we did't think Lily was laying elsewhere. This morning Lilys screeching reached new heights. She was very anxious, literally dashing all around the garden yelling her head off. Assuming she wanted to lay but wasn't sure where to go I shut her inside her coop for half an hour, all the while listening to her from the outside. In the pouring rain I might add! She didn't settle down, she kept pacing and digging at the floor, still screaming. Feeling sorry for my neighbours I brought her indoors in a cat basket where she still kept digging away. She made more noise if I touched her, it was like watching a woman in labour. Eventually after much screaming she laid her first egg! And it was GREEN I was so proud of her I've never known anyone get quite so hysterical about laying before, I hope she soon gets used to it! Some people pay shedloads of money for pretty coloured egg layers and my three were all mongrel eggs from Ebay What with Tiger Lilys white egg, now these, all my dreams have come true Here is Lily Pie screaming this morning. Note how afer a minute or so she shuts up to listen to somebody elses egg announcement outside And our pretty eggs, Lily Pies green egg, Runty Robins blue and Poppys dark brown Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
celeste Posted August 7, 2009 Report Share Posted August 7, 2009 She sounds like a Punch & Judy show "thats the way to do it !" Looks like little Flump will be travelling back to HIS breeder, looking more and more like she is a he, oh dear, poor little Flumpy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoebejo Posted August 7, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 7, 2009 Oh dear! Have you any good photos of Flump? What makes you think she's a he? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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