Snow has lost her tail feathers and updates

Within days of Snow coming out of her broody spell she started moulting again. She has been having a moult of two halves. After her last broody spell she started moulting and was dropping feathers wherever she went. She then stopped dropping feathers and started laying again.

Snow then went broody again and after that resumed dropping feathers wherever she went. One by one her black tail feathers dropped out. I was about to take a photo of her with one remaining tail feather but by the time I got to her with my camera that too had fallen out.

Snow’s long black tail feathers have dropped out along with her long black wing feathers. It won’t be long before her tail comes back in though.

The bedtime routine is sorted now. As the days are getting shorter we now find that when we check on the girls after our evening meal they are already all in and settled. Gold is always on the corner perch, she has claimed that as her own. Snow, Storm and Red are always on the back perch and Mango, Cloud, Ginger and Silver are always on the side perch. Cloud sometimes pecks Silver’s head but Silver just ducks her head down and it’s soon calm again.

Ginger and Cloud are now five months old so I have changed the pellets to a fifty fifty mix of growers and layers. Apparently the gradual transition is easier on the young ones digestive system.

I decided to this now as I think Ginger may start laying fairly soon. Her face is quite red although her comb is still small but she squats easily. Snow started laying at five months so sometimes they start laying sooner than six months.

Red has laid her regulation eight eggs in thirteen days and has now gone broody so no egg layers for the moment.

I am very happy with how well the flock have settled together and having all eight girls putting themselves to bed is a huge bonus.