Carol's Chickens

Just when I thought Amber was finally past her egg laying problems she had a set back. Yesterday she looked really poorly just like she always does when she is about to lay a soft shelled egg. I have been giving the girls crushed egg shells in their mash every day and limestone flour a couple of days a week. All the other girls lay hard shelled eggs and I just don’t know why Amber has such a problem.

Amber looked really wobbly and took herself into the coop about an hour before bedtime. Even the bedtime corn just got a half hearted peck then she returned to the nest box.

This morning Amber looked a little brighter but still not her usual self. I made sure she was eating by giving mash in the morning with both crushed egg shells and limestone flour mixed in then later some grapes which she loves and did eat.

The big girls were queueing up for the little coop to lay their eggs and doing a bit of shouting about it. Bluebell laid first followed by Pepper then Dotty. I am seriously thinking of getting another nest box as now that the big girls are grown up they will no longer share and there is always a lot of fussing when they all want the coop at once.

By the afternoon Honey had settled into the nest box and she often takes quite a long time so I just check on her every half hour.

I then heard a banty shout so went to see if Honey had laid and was surprised to find both her’s and Amber’s egg in the nest box.

Amber’s egg was soft at one end, the pointed end. This must have been why she had struggled with it.

Amber’s latest egg on the right and Honey’s egg on the left

Last summer when she started laying it followed this same pattern of a few soft shelled eggs then normal for a while then one like this, soft at one end. After that she went on to lay normal eggs so I am still hopeful that she may now lay normally.

The drama wasn’t over yet though. I had just removed the eggs when Honey and Amber started to spar again. They both had their hackles raised and were flying at each other. I scooped Amber up and held her while Honey calmed down. I felt that after being poorly Amber didn’t need any more aggravation.

I put Amber down and the next minute they were at it again. I picked Amber up again and waited a few minutes before setting her down again.

I don’t know why they do this. The big girls have never done this. I said to my husband that I wondered if Honey sensed Amber wasn’t feeling great and thought she had a chance of moving up from bottom hen while Amber was out of sorts. My husband said if that was the case I should probably not interfere but let them sort it out. I said that I couldn’t just stand by and watch them fight, especially when poor Amber has just had a rough time.

After this everything returned back to normal and this was our second five egg day this year.

This post is a tribute to my mum. My lovely mum, Marion, was born in Sheringham, Norfolk but when my lovely nan had a large family she moved them down south to ensure that her children would have a better chance to find work.

When my mum reached retirement age she moved back to her roots for a better quality of life (cheaper houses) and to be near other family living there too.

Now she is a three to four hours drive away, at best, and it is really difficult for us to see each other especially as we are self employed and often work six or seven days a week.

My mum doesn’t like technology and doesn’t have a computer or even a mobile phone. Since I have been keeping my chicken keeping blog I have been printing out each weeks posts and sending them to my mum. I then phone her a few days later, giving her time to receive it and read it, and we have a good natter, for anything up to an hour.

I feel this helps to keep us close and lately I have included the garden and outside trips sometimes too, so that my mum can see what is going on in my life.

Usually I send my mum flowers for Mothers Day but being one of three daughters I am always aware that she may get three lots of flowers so this year I wanted to do something different.

I want to start by saying “HAPPY MOTHERS MUM” and instead of a bouquet I will share a little spring from our garden.

Spring bulbs in the garden

Primula

And I am also sending a few goodies for mum to enjoy.

Some gifts for my mum

The little cushion says “mums are like flowers, they brighten up your day”, the chocolates are a little treat and I do have to choose things that can be sent through the post (not too heavy).

This may seem a little early but I also have to be aware that there are no post deliveries in Sheringham on Saturday or Sunday so to reach mum by Friday, I must post by Wednesday, to be sure it will get there in time.

Anyway to sum it all up, this one is just for you mum. Happy Mothers Day with lots and lots of love, Carol xxxx

I have a storage cabinet in the chicken run on the covered patio area. It houses all of my chickens supplies including food, bedding, medicines, cleaning products and also their treats. I go to the cabinet many times a day to clean up the run but twice a day the girl’s get some treats from here.

On my early morning visit the girls get either a handful of corn, dried meal worms or sunflower hearts. Mid morning the girls get their daily greens and mid afternoon something to peck at such as apple. An hour before bedtime the girls get a handful of corn between the five of them.

Although I go to the cabinet many times a day and they only get the treats from there twice a day they all run to the cabinet every time I open it just in case they might get lucky.

If I have the cabinet door open for more than a few seconds the big girls will have jumped up onto the cabinet. They crane their necks down to look in. I swear if they could learn to open this cabinet and open the treat tubs, all the treats would vanish very quickly. They even tap the tubs with their beaks. There is absolutely no doubt that they know where the treats are.

We know where the treats are

Please get the treats out

If only I could get the lid off that box

Come on Mum, you know you want to give us some treats

They are so funny. They deserve some treats though, yesterday was our first five egg day this year. They are really back in egg laying mode. Well done girls.

I am so sad to see the girls getting gradually more and more plucked. Sadly last years pattern is repeating itself.

Amber up close and chatting to me

Amber’s neck is becoming more bare. Amber is easy to get a close up of because when I crouch down she runs over to me chatting away. It’s just a case of clicking before she is too close. She is always chatting and photos of her are often open beaked like this. I look at this photo and can almost hear her.

Honey is now also getting a bare neck

Dotty is getting her head plucked too

The light patch on the back of her head is where she is losing feathers.

This really saddens me as I felt I could just about bare her neck being plucked if she didn’t get her head plucked. Steve, my eldest son, did warn me that the most likely outcome was that the same pattern would just repeat itself.

The awful thing is, that after just a few months of being fully feathered, they will probably have another year of being partly bare.

As before Pepper is intact except for a bare patch on her bottom

Bluebell has a bare neck

Pepper has a small bare patch on her bottom which I know from experience will get bigger

Bluebell has some of her head crest feathers broken

It is also sad that Bluebell, as a crested bird, has no crest most of the time.

I have been through all this before and know that there is nothing more I can do. The girls are happy and healthy and laying well and I know it doesn’t bother them, it only bothers me.

On a lighter note little Honey laid three days in a row for the first time ever and Amber laid another hard shelled egg with only one missed day in between so it seems the little girls have really got the hang of egg laying now.

It’s that time of year again. I worm the girls twice a year as recommended. I do it in March and September with Flubinvet which is a powder. The sixty gram tub is enough for a year so does both the March and September worming. This must be given for seven consecutive days. Another great thing about this product is that there is no need for egg withdrawal.

I find by far the easiest way to do this is to make up some mash each day and add the Flubinvet which comes with a measuring spoon. Then I divide the mixture between three bowls to make sure they will all get a chance to have some. Three bowls ensures the bantys get their fair share as it is like musical bowls with the big girls moving from one bowl to the next causing the little girls to do the same.

It very quickly all gets eaten so I am sure they all get a fair share. I switch to fish or scrambled egg in between to ring the changes. The girls don’t notice the Flubinvet at all.

Musical dishes

They are constantly circling

I don’t need to worry about each dish containing the same amount as they will all eat out of all the dishes. I do wonder how enjoyable eating is when constantly on the move but I guess they are used to it. The bowls are soon empty and worming couldn’t be easier.

I seem to be accumulating egg cups. We always had a plain white set of six egg cups that go with our every day plain white crockery, long before we had chickens.

My youngest son and his girlfriend bought me an egg cup with a little blue chicken on it and a chocolate egg in it, for Easter, last year. It’s a perfect size for my banty eggs.

My neighbours bought me a pair of egg cups back from their holiday in Mallorca last summer as a thank you for the eggs I give them.

My husband gave me a chicken shaped egg cup among a few chicken based gifts for Christmas this year.

We have been collecting vintage tea sets for our afternoon teas as part of our catering business and a recent set had an egg cup in it. As we don’t need the egg cup for the teas I claimed it.

Finally yesterday I succumbed and bought one myself. I was browsing in an antique shop when I found this cute little double egg cup with a chicken and a chick on it. It was only five pounds so I couldn’t resist.

I found this in an antique shop

My egg cup collection

My egg cups with my girl’s lovely eggs in them

So there we have it. My unintentional egg cup collection.

After Amber struggled to lay her soft shelled egg six days ago, yesterday, she laid a perfect hard shelled egg. She also laid it fairly quickly and with out any struggle. It was only five days after her last egg too, which is less of a gap than usual. I am so pleased and hopeful that she may lay normally from now on.

Honey had already laid earlier in the day followed by Bluebell and after Amber, Pepper laid too. Four eggs out of five girls and both little girls in one day which doesn’t happen often. Dotty had laid the day before so skipped a day but laid first thing this morning. It was nearly a five egg day.

Yesterday’s four eggs

Then today came another surprise, Honey laid again. It is the first time this year, since her moult, that she has laid two days in a row and last year she only laid two days in a row four times during the five months she was laying.

It looks like these girls are maturing and getting into the swing of this egg laying lark!

Shadow’s story has reached a happy ending, hurrah!

Jackie phoned me yesterday with great excitement to tell me that Shadow had just laid her first egg. This means no more worrying that she is a cockerel.

Jackie said she had been looking in the coop all day and she usually only ever goes in at bedtime. Clover laid her egg but stayed in the coop to keep Shadow out. Bluebell used to do this to my bantys so it’s good to know it’s normal and not just my girls.

Eventually Jackie turfed Clover out and Shadow went in. She laid her perfect tiny, brown, speckled egg in the nest box. What a clever girl!

I asked if I could pop over today to take some photos so that I could continue with Shadow’s story.

Shadows egg is just the same size as my bantam eggs, it’s so cute.

Shadow’s egg on the left and Clover’s egg on the right

The lovely and clever Shadow

It’s just a week since I last saw Shadow and her comb and wattles have really grown in that time.

Shy Bluebell

The girl with big feet

A colourful flock

Are you sure we can’t come in?

As usual when Jackie and I went indoors to chat for a bit we had an audience. The girl’s lined up and occasionally tapped on the window. I am sure they would just love to come in and join us.

As honorary aunt to Shadow and Bluebell (as I helped Jackie choose them) I am so pleased at this happy ending. Shadow and Bluebell are such a close pair that it is lovely for them to be able to stay together.

We are both sure that it won’t be too long before Bluebell starts to lay too.

This afternoon when I went up to the girls they were having a lovely time in the dust bath. I went back for my camera and by the time I had returned Bluebell had left the dust bath and was laying on the wooden block. Dotty was missing as she was in the nest box laying her egg.

Dust bathing

If you didn’t know chickens you could be forgiven for thinking we have some dead bodies here. Bluebell looks especially funny laying on her side on the wooden block.

You have to know chickens to know how much they are really enjoying this!

Today was a lovely sunny day and very warm for March. My husband dug over the veg plot and dug in the girls matured manure. He then netted half of it to keep the cats off but only had enough net for half. We will get some more net as soon as possible to do the other half. We are fed up with the neighbourhood cats using the veg plot as a toilet!

The veg plot is ready for planting

While digging the veg plot my husband gave the girls any worms he found so they had a good time. I then dug over the girl’s run which not only turned up a few more worms but they just love scratching and pecking in the freshly turned soil.

I have dug over the run for the girls

They love to scratch

And peck

Dotty has learned a new trick. The girls have stripped the hypericum of all the leaves they can reach. They would jump up and grab what they could so the level without green went from neck stretching level to jumping up level.

The bottom half of the hypericum has been stripped

Dotty has now found a new way to reach more leaves. Dotty is the only one of the big girls that can jump from the ground to my shoulder and she does this every morning when I walk through the gate. Pepper and Bluebell are too heavy for this big a jump and jump on my back or shoulder if I stoop or bend down.

Dotty has now found that if she jumps up into the hypericum bush and then bounces up and down on a branch, she can snap it off. Once on the ground the girls rush over to strip the leaves.

I worry she might hurt herself and it’s not exactly doing the bush much good either. I wouldn’t mind but I give the girls greens every day.

She has bought down a few of the bigger but dead branches and every morning when I go in there are stripped twigs on the ground so I know she has been at it again. Who says chickens are stupid!

Today Amber is completely back to normal after her soft shelled egg yesterday. I am going to continue to give crushed egg shell every morning in their mash or treats until Amber is laying normally again.

The one thing that gives me hope is that last summer she also laid two soft shelled eggs then normal for a while then another soft shell then normal from then on. I hope this pattern is just repeating and now that she has once again laid two soft shelled eggs then normal then another soft shelled egg that she will now continue to lay normally. I won’t know until her next egg but I am really hoping that this may pass now as it did before.

The girls have all enjoyed the sun and the extra worms today.