Carol's Chickens

This has all been a bit surprising. When the new girls were separated from the existing flock it was Speckles that did all the ruff raising and showing off at the wire while Butterscotch took no notice of the flock at all. It looked like Speckles was getting ready to move up the pecking order.

Once all the girls were together it was a totally different story. Butterscotch had a proper go at Toffee and had hold of her feathers. Toffee didn’t contest her at all and Emerald was wary of her and stayed out of her way. Maybe Butterscotch is brighter than she looks because she went for the middle girl (Toffee was third out of six) and she definitely came out on top.

The weird thing is that Peaches and Barley who were bottom girls have tackled Butterscotch and have come out on top. Over the last few days they have each come up behind her and held the back of her neck causing Butterscotch to squat down in the submissive position.

I have never had this sort of pecking order before. It seems that Butterscotch is now above Toffee and Emerald in the pecking order (who are middle girls) but is below Peaches and Barley (who are bottom girls).

Speckles on the other hand seems to have gone right to the bottom. Barley (bottom girl) is the only one other than Topaz who raised her ruff to her since they have been together and Speckles backed down. Since then she has kept out of the girls way. She is the most wary of both the girls and of me. Butterscotch has proved to be the braver of the two with the girls and with me.

I think it goes back to what I call bottom girl syndrome. Speckles as bottom girl (rather than trying to rise up the pecking order as I first thought) did the most showing off behind the safety of the wire.

Peaches and Barley as bottom girls have done the most showing off both behind the wire and once integrated. Topaz only had to prove herself top hen behind the wire and once when integrated and now has kept her top hen status uncontested.

Now that Peaches and Barley have proved that Butterscotch is submissive to them they are happy to share a dust bath with her and rub along. Speckles however keeps herself to herself and doesn’t yet have the confidence to mix with the flock. She continues to stay close to Butterscotch though.

I am sure in time her confidence will grow. It is interesting to see the changes among the flock but pleasing that they seem to have got it sorted out quickly with no blood shed.

Last night the main flock went to bed at six o’clock. Since we have had the new shed they go in early so they must really like it in there.

By half past six the new girls had been up to the patio and topped up on pellets and water. At quarter to seven they were still pottering about near the patio area. I said to my husband that rather than let them perch up as usual and have to then shoo them down it would be better to try to get them to go in at this point.

We got behind them with our arms outstretched and guided them towards the Shed. They ran at speed straight through the pop hole. It was so easy as they obviously knew where to go. I felt really pleased and think they may go in on their own tonight. Even if they don’t we will guide them again as it is easy enough to do.

The original flock were in their usual place on the top perch

Speckles went straight to the top rung of the ladder

I love the way they are looking at each other.

Butterscotch is working her way up the ladder

When Butterscotch sits like this she reminds me of the puppet, Orville the duck. Any one who remembers Orville will know what I mean.

A bit of a change in positions

A very successful evening.

This morning Butterscotch was in a dust bath when Peaches and Barley joined her. The three were really close pecking at the dust around them as they do. I went for my camera but as soon as I was through the gate Peaches and Barley rushed towards me.

Butterscotch in a dust bath

A little later Speckles was in a dust bath. I couldn’t get a closer photo than this as she is still very wary of me.

Speckles in a dust bath

The girls must feel quite settled to be enjoying dust baths. I am so pleased with how well this integration has gone.

Last night, as I expected, the new girls didn’t go in the shed with the rest of the flock. There had been a few dust ups during the day I couldn’t blame the new girls for not wanting to volunteer to be with the flock.

The new girls roosted on the same perch they had been using since their arrival. I decided to wait until dusk to lift them down and put them in the shed.

My husband came out with me and suggested putting the torch in for a few minutes so that they could make their way up the ladder. We didn’t want them to spend the night on the floor. This worked well.

Both new girls on the bottom rung of the ladder

Second rung up

Third rung up

They settled on the third rung up and the rest of the flock are in their usual position on the top perch.

This morning I went out to them at quarter to six to make sure they were all okay together. Everything was fine and they all joined in with the morning sunflower hearts.

The flock have been fine together today with no spats but the new girls don’t mix yet. They sit together on one of the logs or one of the tables and go up to the patio when the other girls are elsewhere.

In the afternoon I threw out some chopped grapes and they joined in with this although they do tend to hang at the back of the flock.

Butterscotch and Speckles are at the back of the flock

They have started to run down to me or up to the patio when I go in just in case there are treats on offer although when I move about the run cleaning up they are still very wary of me. I think we are making some progress though.

The plan tonight is to wait for the main flock to go in and settle, then to herd the new girls in and shut the door. We hope that, like the main flock, after a couple of evenings they will get the hang of it.

It would be awful after all our efforts with the new shed if the main flock went in every night and the new girls didn’t but I know many people find it takes a bit of time for new girls to know where they are supposed to sleep. I really hope they will soon get the hang of it.

It’s the third full day with the new girls and we decided the time was right to start integrating them.

I had a breakfast delivery this morning but no lunch delivery so would have the rest of the day to watch them whereas tomorrow we have visitors in the morning to discus their wedding followed by a lunch delivery.

I started by closing the new girls in to the new end of the run while I moved the little coop and feeding station back to the patio area. I then lifted up and tied back the wire at the patio corner to form an escape route. I then opened both gates and lifted up and tied back the wire at the far end of the run to form another escape route.

The new girls at the end of the run next to the newly opened escape route

Peaches and Barley spot them

Peaches and Barley become agitated

Barley has a go at Speckles

It all happened so quickly that I only got this one blurred shot but it shows the level of aggression. I intervened with the water spray.

Luckily Topaz and Honey were in the nest box together so this meant two less girls to worry about at the moment.

These two are out of the equation at the moment

Peaches had laid her egg and Topaz had sat on it until I removed it. Honey then laid her egg and Topaz sat on that until I removed it, so business as usual with Topaz.

Butterscotch found the escape route then found the ladder

I didn’t get closer as I didn’t want to scare her. It was good that the new girls found the escape routes and other perches.

What happened next really surprised me. Butterscotch had a real go at Toffee. She had her by the neck feathers and this time I used the water spray on Butterscotch. Toffee looked quite wobbly and dazed. Perhaps Butterscotch isn’t going to be bottom girl after all. Toffee and Emerald looked really nervous around Butterscotch after that.

Topaz then came out of the coop and had a go at Speckles which I again broke up with the water spray.

I decided it was time to move the new girls up to the patio area so that they know where the food and water is.

The new girls check out the patio area

They soon recognised their water and pellet dish. They both went to the dishes that were familiar to them and ignored the ones on the other side. I always have two water dishes and will keep two pellet dishes too. The small pellet dish is behind the large water dish out of sight in this photo.

Next they checked out the grit

My water spray is beside the grit so that I could grab it if I needed it.

Then they checked out the little coops

At this stage Honey came out of the little coop and I got another surprise. Honey took no notice of butterscotch at all.

Butterscotch and Honey side by side

These two behaved as if they had always been together. I guided Butterscotch into the shed just so that she would know it is there.

She was only in there a minute but I hope it will help at bedtime which is the next hurdle. The rest of the afternoon passed peacefully. Butterscotch seemed at ease with the flock but Speckles seemed more nervous and kept out of the other girls way. Butterscotch and Speckles stayed close together and they discovered the wooden table as another place to get out of the way.

The round table is still favourite though.

Safety on the table

I think, as the first day together, this went really well as they seemed to get the skirmishes out of their system early on and then seemed fairly settled together.

It is now just a matter of showing the new girls where to go at bedtime. I wonder if they will follow the other girls in. I hope it doesn’t all kick off in the shed. I will be glad to get their first night together out of the way but so far so good.

I went out to the girls at quarter to six this morning as I couldn’t wait any longer. I opened the little coop and this time the new girls came out straight away.

This morning the new girls came straight out

I threw some sunflower hearts into the new part of the run to encourage them to go out there.

They headed straight through the hatch

They like sunflower hearts

Once the seeds were gone Butterscotch returned to the small, familiar, part of the run but Speckles went the full length of the run.

Suddenly Peaches, Barley and Speckles were having a go at each other through the wire.

Now it’s Peaches and Barley’s turn

They had their chests puffed out and their ruffs raised but there was no pecking. It was short lived and Peaches and Barley were the first to break away.

It is always the top and bottom girls that do this. The top hen wants to keep her status and the bottom hens look for a chance to move up the pecking order. It is funny how even in this behaviour Peaches and Barley are, as always, together.

I think that butterscotch will go straight in at the bottom of the pecking order. She has bothered none of the girls and they haven’t bothered her. It will be interesting to see where Speckles ends up in the pecking order. I think she will go well up and may even contest Topaz for top position. Topaz has never had a girl stand up to her before so her beak is being put out of joint at the moment. She was very vocal about the situation yesterday.

The girls haven’t taken any further notice of each for the rest of the day. I think by the weekend I may get them together.

This morning I went out at six o’clock to let the new girls out of their little coop. I undid the door and stood back and waited.

Six o’clock this morning

They were showing no sign of wanting to come out.

I lifted the lid to encourage them to come out

Still they showed no sign of wanting to come out. In the end I put my hand in and they jumped over the side of the coop to get away from me.

They stayed close to the big bush

They retreated to the bush until I had left their area then they both found the pellets and the water which was a good sign.

Suddenly Topaz and Speckles went at each other.

They tried to peck each other

Butterscotch is taking no notice at all and nor are the other girls.

Topaz had her wings held up and both girls had their ruffs raised

Luckily they couldn’t peck each other because there is a double layer of wire at the bottom of this section. I put it in after Topaz and Bluebell pecked each others comb on their first day of introductions.

Twice I picked Topaz up and removed her after they had gone the length of the enclosure. After this she gave me the angry eye and took herself away to sit in the little coop nest box for the morning.

At lunch time I got her out and the girls took no further notice of each other. I hoped that maybe they had got it sorted already.

Mid morning I gave the new girls their first spinach

They had a look and a peck but at lunch time it was still there. It will probably take a little while to cotton on to the treats.

This afternoon Topaz and Speckles did a bit more ruff raising but it wasn’t as intense as it was in the morning.

I gave all the girls some apple at lunch time but again the new girls ignored it. Before bedtime I gave them all some sunflower hearts and the new girls liked those.

At half past six the old flock were all in the new shed ready for bed but the new girls were still out. I wasn’t too worried as it was still light. I checked back a bit later and they were on top of the little coop. I decided to wait until dusk to check on them again. They were both on the little perch above the table which was the highest point in their area.

I was a bit worried how to get them in but in fact it was just like the old flock. I just picked them up from their perch and put them in the little coop. It was a relief that they allowed me to move them with no protest and was easier than past experiences.

Tomorrow I will give them the bigger area of half the run which this afternoon I have prepared ready for the morning. Then I think that by late afternoon I will open the gates and let them mix. Maybe the new girls will then follow the flock to bed in the new shed. I am thinking of moving it on quickly because I can see they won’t go to bed in their  little coop. I don’t want any more bad habits and think that the sooner they go in the new shed with the rest of the flock the better.

The pecking order will have to be sorted one way or another but I think a quick integration is going to be the best solution as bantams want to go to bed high and the new shed is the best place for them and the sooner they reach that conclusion the better.

So onwards and upwards and watch this space tomorrow!

At half past three this afternoon we arrived at the farm in Wendover to collect two new girls. Catrin the farmer had four girls in a rabbit crate for me to choose from.

There were two goldtops, an ancona and a vorwerk. I wanted two different girls so it was an easy choice, it had to be a goldtop and an ancona. One of the goldtops was lighter in colour and smaller in size than the other so that was the one I chose.

I wanted to stick with my theme of descriptive names and had been thinking about a name for the goldtop as I have used quite a few gold themed names already. I came up with Butterscotch. I didn’t know what other breed I would choose so couldn’t choose another name but as soon as I saw the ancona it had to be Speckles right there and then on the spot.

When we got back home I took a photo of them in the dog crate which we used to transport them.

Butterscotch and Speckles

I had already separated off part of the run for them and as it was only a couple of hours until bedtime I put the dog crate up against the little coop where they are to sleep tonight. I then put in some shavings and a dish of pellets and water.

The new girl’s home for this evening

I will shut them in the little coop later and hope this will help them to know that this is where they will sleep for now. I will let them out first thing in the morning and set up a feeding station for them.

I have a feeling that integration isn’t going to take long as none of the girls seemed at all bothered by each other.

I will give a little information about the breeds.

Gold tops are a cross between a gold silkie father and a white sussex mother and they are a sex linked breed. This means from the moment they hatch you can tell the sex as the hens are gold like their father and the cockerels are white like their mother.

They are a docile and friendly breed but tend to go broody and make excellent mothers. They lay cream coloured eggs. They have a small black comb and a bouffant crest and slightly feathered legs. They also have blue lobes.

Ancona originate from Italy. They are good layers of white eggs and rarely go broody. They are active and good foragers and are flighty. They have a single comb.

At half past six I went up to see how it was going. All the old flock were in on their top perch as usual. Speckles had gone in the little coop and Butterscotch was standing in the doorway. As I went through the gate she went in and I simply closed the coop door. I removed the dog crate and set up their feeding station for the morning.

I will let them out into their portion of the run tomorrow morning and see how things progress.

I am thrilled with my two new girls and can’t wait to get them integrated into the flock.

We looked everywhere for new patio furniture for the top patio and everything seemed too big or too small. Then we had a brainwave. We have moved the table and chairs from their position by our back door to the top patio and the two chairs actually match the two chairs we already had up there.

We then bought a new similar small table and chairs for the position by the back door. It makes sense to have the old ones at the top where only we sit and the new ones by the back door where they are always in sight.

The old furniture is now on the top patio

You may recognise this table as I always photograph the girls eggs on it as it was by the back door.

This area gets the morning sun and is secluded so it’s where we have the occasional B.B.Q. It is also a good spot for chicken watching.

The furniture is also small enough not to block the path to the shed door

I have also planted the plant holders on the wall behind the furniture.

The plant holders now have plants

We have new furniture by the back door

Looking at it from the other direction

This set cost fifty pounds so it wasn’t too expensive compared to a lot of the sets we looked at. We are really pleased with our new furniture and now have three areas in the garden where we can sit.

I was going to wait until next year to get some more chickens but the girls have settled into the new shed so well that I am thinking, why wait!

I started researching as I know there are not many bantam breeders in our area and I would really like to add some different breeds to my flock. All the breeders I found locally either didn’t have bantams or had sold out.

I decided to call the lady where I got the vorwerks and leghorns from because I remembered her having other breeds. She has a bantam silkie and light sussex cross often called goldtops. I looked them up and they are very pretty. They lay cream eggs and are docile and friendly and make ideal pets.

I called her back and asked her to save her goldtop for me. We have visitors for the weekend so I said it may have to be next Friday afternoon before we can go and see her. We would see what else she has and pick another bantam to accompany the goldtop.

I am feeling really excited and if we have a quiet afternoon we will go sooner. The farmer said to just call her when we are ready. I can’t wait.

It seems crazy but the new sheds have made such a difference to our life in many ways. Obviously the chicken shed has made a massive difference because the girls now go to bed on their own and we are not so tied but the other shed has made a major difference too.

It’s not only opened up a lovely area where we will be able to sit but it has now got much of the stuff from our work cabin/kitchen, that we only use occasionally, stored in it. This in turn has created more storage space in our cabin so we have now moved our collection of vintage crockery into this space.

Before we had no where to store it so it was in boxes under the spare beds which was far from ideal! It meant lugging it up and down the stairs when ever we used it.

We now have a wedding, afternoon tea, for one hundred and fifty people booked in December with our vintage crockery and the couple are visiting us next weekend to view it. It would hardly have looked professional to tell them it was stored under our spare beds.

Now we can take them out to our cabin and show them plus we can wash it up and store it without transporting it. This feels like a new beginning for us.

We have finished with our standard, heavy, crockery which has gone and now only have lovely, pretty, light, vintage crockery.

We had enough for one hundred and thirty people but since the wedding booking we have been out at weekends buying more and have now topped it up to enough for one hundred and fifty people which should be the largest number we will ever need.

Our vintage crockery is now stored in these cupboards

I have taken some lids off to show the crockery

Close up of crockery in boxes

The shed has now been reorganised

The patio area has been jet washed and we have put up the plant pot holders that used to be in the chicken run

The plants in the chicken run were tricky to keep watered and were collecting dust so we took them out. Now we can reuse them in this space and without the old garden shed we have this lovely brick wall as a backdrop which was hidden before.

This afternoon we are going out to look for some garden furniture for this space. The sheds have indeed made a huge difference to us.