Keeping hens and ducks chat.

edwink

sammyjammy said:

Biscuit eats better than me - and so she should x

She eats better than us too 🤣🤣🤣

Edwink x

edwink

Nice sunny day here but a bit chilly and clever little Biscuit found a nice few places where the sun was and was lapping up the warmth. There is an area right in front of our summer house where she often stands or sits when the sun is beaming down, I think the warmth reflects from the glass doors and as we are south-facing we can enjoy some winter sun like she does. 

Grapes today for her with warm porridge which she loves. Couldn't get her any raspberries this week so went for the grapes instead. Plus, the porridge had small pieces of apple in it which she also likes. I'm grateful that she is not a fussy hen so it is easy to feed her which makes my life easier. She had mealworms, sunflower hearts, and some layers pellets for breakfast so she does eat well, bless her.

Not much dustbathing happening but she is preening herself whilst in the sun so she is keeping herself nice and clean and her feathers are in good condition, which I'm pleased about. 

So all is good here and I get the feeling she doesn't mind being on her own these days. Must be all the treats she gets to herself.

Edwink x

sammyjammy

I have some late raspberries in my garden - very late, every time I pick a couple I think of Biscuit and how i would glaldy let her have them.

edwink

sammyjammy said:

I have some late raspberries in my garden - very late, every time I pick a couple I think of Biscuit and how i would glaldy let her have them.

Wow, your raspberries are very late,  It's so nice that you think of Biscuit when you pick some. x

Edwink x

edwink

Biscuit is enjoying corn on the cob today. I took a few bits of corn off first to encourage her like I always do when we buy her corn and she ate those. I then gave her the whole cob and she was off and running with it. I sat watching her for ages and the cob was being rolled around, nibbled, and was soon getting demolished. Looks like she's forgotten about the lack of raspberries, bless her.

I've kept her in the run today as we have had non-stop rain here. She is dry, warmer and I'm sure happier in there so I don't worry about her when the weather is like it is today.

Edwink x

SisterAnna

Sounds like biscuit is having the time of her life with you edwink. No raspberries so now is getting sweetcorn and warm porridge. Think she eats better than me too.

Age-wise she is doing very well from what you say. Shame she is your last chicken 'for now' but I guess it was inevitable having just one left in the end. 

Glad you go and sit with her to keep her company but it must be cold for you out there. You really do cherish that little chicken.

edwink

Thank you SisterAnna, yes she is having the time of her life. Being the only one she gets our full attention and is very spoilt.

Today we made some alterations to her sleeping box by lining it with a fleece type fabric. I'm not sure what it is called but we removed it from an old 2-seater settee where it sat over the springs inside. It's white and is firm-ish front and back and is filled with thick white fluffy stuff. The type of filling that you can stuff fluffy animals with if that makes sense. So is around an inch thick.  Anyway, the whole of the inside except the opening front of her box has been covered and stapled with this material including the inside of the roof. Plus she now has an extra blanket folded into 4 layers on top of her box and 2 big towels covering the top, back, and sides. We have also attached a small piece of blanket at the front which we will drop down once she has gone in and is sleeping. In the morning when we go up she is normally just waking up so will lift the cover off the front for the day and drop it back down for her at night.  Does that make any sense? No. I thought not 🤣🤣🤣 It would have been easier to explain if I knew what the stuff was called. Any ideas? anyone? 

I had wanted to bring her indoors in the colder weather but it would be a shock for her to put her back outside in the run every day. The run temperature isn't too bad and nothing like outside but still colder than the house obviously. We'll just have to see how the temperature goes. It's been chilly here in Hertfordshire but nothing like some areas of the country, thankfully. Hope I haven't spoken too soon. So for now she seems to be doing fine and having warm porridge every day and today she had little pieces of chopped mango and sultanas in it to make a change for her. We've also given her extra straw shavings on the ground of the run to give her something more to do looking for bits to eat in it. 

So all is good here and we are doing the best we can for her, especially with her nighttime box. Just hope there is still enough room for her in there to turn around if she wants to. I think that white stuff is called wadding, maybe, not sure though but that name just came to my mind.

Keep warm everyone.

Edwink x

Cheery_Daff

That sounds extremely cosy edwink! Remember she has her own fluffy bloomers too so she should keep plenty warm enough - I believe there are reports of hens happily living at -10 and lower so I'm sure she'll be fine in the run 😊 I assume she still has ventilation holes - I read somewhere that damp can be more of a problem if ventilation isn't enough, but as an experienced hen friend I'm sure you are on the case! Love to think of her so cosy 😊😊

Is there any word on the avian flu this year?? We were in flockdown this time last year, and I think the year before but I've not seen an announcement. I left all the chicken Facebook groups (except the official BHWT announcements page) so I might have missed something. 

edwink

Cheery_Daff said:

That sounds extremely cosy edwink! Remember she has her own fluffy bloomers too so she should keep plenty warm enough - I believe there are reports of hens happily living at -10 and lower so I'm sure she'll be fine in the run 😊 I assume she still has ventilation holes - I read somewhere that damp can be more of a problem if ventilation isn't enough, but as an experienced hen friend I'm sure you are on the case! Love to think of her so cosy 😊😊

Is there any word on the avian flu this year?? We were in flockdown this time last year, and I think the year before but I've not seen an announcement. I left all the chicken Facebook groups (except the official BHWT announcements page) so I might have missed something. 

 Thank you for posting Cheery.

Yes, she has ventilation in her hotel. There is a ventilation panel above her box. We fixed it there when we put their big coop there and occasionally give it a bit of a brush down as it gets spider webs across it. It has a very small holed wired panel across the opening which is the size of a letterbox. Although she is in a made-up wooden box it doesn't have a bottom to it because we have left the perches exposed so she keeps some normality in there at night as hens like to perch. The box as I call it only has 2 sides, a back, and a roof but no bottom or front, if that makes sense. She is all good there and not draughty for her, bless her.

I've not seen anything on the Avian Flu either but I am keeping an eye out because now it's December. I keep an eye on the BHWT website, BBC online as don't have a TV, and also the Government website. Not seen anything although I could have missed something as have been poorly this week. Both myself and Mr Edwink have colds or a virus which we must have picked up at the funeral we went to last week because we haven't been anywhere else besides that. So if you do hear before I do please post on here and let me and others know if you get a minute. I'd appreciate that but know you are busy at times. As you know I follow your thread and how you find the time to do all you do I'll never know plus you were poorly a little while ago yourself too before your short break away. Glad you got better and were able to go x

Edwink x

Cheery_Daff

Aw, I knew you would be on the case! Biscuit is so lucky to have you looking after her 🥰🥰

Yes I'll post if I hear anything about the bird flu. Are you signed up for DEFRA alerts? I never got round to it but I know they send texts out