Sandy's Pink Ladies

[KarenE]

Sounds like the hen rescue went well. No new flat mates for the sparklies then??

[sandy]

Karen this sound dreadful but I am thinking of rehoming the sparklies I could have had the 2 sickly crop batties and the two barren ones but no room as cannot mix Lots and Dots with the others! Of course they would only ever leave me if I find someone nearby of the exacting credentials meeting and superceeding (though that is impossible) any of the henpals mummies and daddies. I feel awlful about this but we shall see.
What an evening, came home to put the girls food away and could hear nibbling in the office, had to put the lights on which woke up the perch girls to remove everything, find the hole 'they' were nibbling at and pile up as many stones as I could in the dark! Then found Haze on the greenbench wolfing up a softie she had just done.
Haze and Violet had both been to the vets today, Haze is back on metacam, her ulcer is back and she has been poorly then softie them okay then repeating the cycle again. Almost took up Maureen as well very poorly for a few days then noticed a weird strange shaped chewy egg sticking out of her which I promptly remove before the other girls did. Okay today so just took up the two of them. Violet was taken around the back for a tip, Chris came back and said couldn't tip her and when feeling her crop felt a lump Thankfully it is a floating lump he reckons she has swallowed something alien, she is going in thrusday morning for the day for an investigation.
Has been tense opening up and locking up keep expecting to find a dead/half dead rat!Mr Ped stuffed a load of blue rat pellets in the tree trunk in the cube area as ratties were living in there, when I was out rehoming he took an axe to the tree, two live rats one half eaten, unfortunately a lot of blue pellets stuck in bits of stable wood so cemented the lot and picked up any blue pellets I could find luckily the sparklies are still ultra broody so no interference from them. Since then have found two huge dead rats on a night time and the morning and when chilling out with the girls Violet told me very loudly a life rat ambling around which I caught and handed to Mr Ped to do the deed, kindest way as rat full of poison and he was suffering.
Our resident foxy is definetely a girlie, brushed past me( no fear at all) looking like she is going to give birth at any moment.
Lots I have forgotten because I am lax in writing!

[sandy]

Well I have found a home for Lottie and Dottie, a lovely lady who has a barn and an orchard, she has hens one cow and 2 donkeys, she also looks after the seaside donkeys in the winter when they are resting. As I am home today I decided to try and mix them with the others but having a sick Lily that has all gone out of the window. Yesterday they finally went off of broodiness so I am struggling with letting them go again


Everyone has been fine though Maureen does go quiet a lot lately not like her usual manic self but eating well, with the Honeybun

I came home wednesday and 5 new girls had joined Millie, Callisto and Candice in the Ped house. A water spray was in the house, there were a few squawks but all seemed fairly friendly. Mummy Ped said she had already named them so I called her down to tell me who was who…..
The 2 white stars are Haimi and Alice, Alice has a broken bottom beak so easy to sort them out. The sussex is Suzie

Callisto(aka Duckhouse Cal) has companions at bedtime on top the duckhouse, great fun getting them all off one by one and putting them to bed!


The bovans are Flash and Nero, apparently Flash has more gold on her though I am finding it hard to tell the difference and my names for them are Fay and Nell!

Millie luckily is a good leader I don't think anyone is going to challenge such a large girlie

The teeming rain has caused flooding again, Duckhouse Cal finds a dry spot

Flash(Fay) or Nero (Nell)

Yesterday morning Lily not well, bit squishy underneath, same this morning so going to see Becky at 2.00 fingers crossed she will be fine. Was like this 3 weeks ago then got rid of a nasty egg. Only had 2 eggs yesterday they seem to be on some sort of strike!

Nextdoor the point of lays are laying lovely little teeny eggs.
A couple of nights ago heared chewing on the wood again in the office so thats all boarded up with stones for now. Something was running about hoping against hope that it was a mouse too dark to really see
Girls abed at 9.15 last night except Megan.Violet and Maureen

Violet spent the day in the vets thursday, Chris checked her every hour but the object he felt floating around had gone. She still has a big crop but he is a bit flummoxed! Charge for a day in hospital, he said no treatment no fee, big result.
I am going to take Lottie up with Lily today as her nails are so long again
Wish us luck

[bikesandbirdsbob]

Hi ,Vet`s get a bad name at times. Not eough is said when they are more than resonable. The two I use have never treated me badily.
I think if you attend regularly they value your custom and also treating chickens is a not common experience and they all try and get involved . Not a dog or cat
Maybe we should have a site of good vets and things they do . Bad vets and ways they could improve .
Might get a vet read and pass a comment . Also they get customers talking about the chickens as well (attraction ) I have had people say a lady brought a chicken last week (SHMBO) which made me laugh .
Bob

[KarenE]

Glad to hear Violet is okay, and good luck with Lily

And the sparklies... how torn you must be! At least you have adopted Ped hens to look after. How odd, I didn't know there was a Mrs Ped as well! Maybe if you got more new hens you could introduce them to the sparklies, bantams and full growns do seem to co-exist so maybe get 2 flocks first and then bring together - if you really couldn't bring yourself to let them go of course.

[sandy]

very sad news Lily had the dreaded eyp which I guessed. She spent the day under the bench looking sad. A big kiss goodbye then the lovely Becky took her. Too welled up now for more chat

[bikesandbirdsbob]

Sorry .
Terrible as not much can be done .
Bob

[amber66]

Oh Sandy.
That is sad news re Lily, my heart goes out to you.
Amber.

[KarenE]

Oh Sandy, what sad news. I'm so sorry to hear about Lily. I will say the same as you just said to me - you gave her a chance of a wonderful and free life, it's a pity she couldn't have stayed longer but she will have loved it all. to you & the pink ladies. Terribly sad week all round.

[Bridgets Mum]

Gosh Sandy, your girls are keeping you busy as ever. I'm having a catch up on the diaries and inevitably there are losses recorded. I find it has got a little easier because I am really working on the ' we give them more love and care than they would have almost anywhere' mantra and even our girls who leave us early have been exceptionally fortunate. That's my brave view anyway!
I've completely lost the plot over how many chickens you have a the moment. I'm down to 13 although that's still 7 more than the original plan!
Keep up the excellent work
Pam x

[sandy]

Hi Bridget Hello henpals so much has happened in the Pink ladies and Ped houses but I will update some time next week I hope as if I am not working am looking after 3 little ones so exhausted, reading diaries on phone when I can xxxxx

[KarenE]

Hope everything is going okay in the Pink Palace Sandy

[bikesandbirdsbob]

Hi Sandy , cannot wait to read what you have been getting up to.
Bob
Best and hope all good.

[sandy]

Oh my goodness havent been on here for ages, so much family trouble am on the happy tablets again!
But enough of that….I have been a very neglecting mummy the girls beds have not been changed for ages, something I must attend to this afternoon. The cottage is only being occupied by Honey as Gracie is now a regular out on the outside perches and Haze has taken to sleeping o the low down green bench which ordinarily I would permit but with big rarttie about I am having to lift her up on the perch where she wobbles like a weeble for a few moments before getting her footing! I have 7 holes which have been blocked by heavy pavement stones awaiting a major cement but I have to dig out more roots first of the old tree or the exercise will be fruitless. Unfortuntaley I seemed to have blocked them up so well ratty was trapped inside. He was making a home behimd the door which is always kept open in the office. I found corn on the cobs, egg shells and a mass of rat poo and him! He ran out and climbed on the roof. There he was upside down knawing at the wood between the mesh! I opened up one of the holes again cleaned all his rubbish up and have moved everything away from the walls and am leaving the door ajar so he has no hiding place. He seemed to be gone for a few days so I blocked the hole up again. Yesterday I found rat poo in the office nestbox and remains of an egg! The hole by the cottage had been disturbed so have left it for now and will block again tonight. Unfortunately it has not stopped raining hard since yesterday afternoon so the ground is very soft. Ratty is very big so a big worry with the little ones of whom Dottie has now gone broody again, she will not be happy when I turf her out for new sheets later.
Maureen was very unwell, she felt fine all over but wouldn;t eat mealworms so off to vets. Andrea said she was fine so took her home, after two days of making her eat on her own she bucked up and then the flurry of white feathers. Poor Candice next door is very hard underneath and breathing funny have permission when she is too bad to let her go to vets from daddy Ped
Apart from that and the leaks in the roof again all are well. Must not leave diary so long!

[KarenE]

Good to see you back Sandy, you big slacker! about time you stopped lying around eating milk tray & swilling champers and got back to your henpal duties!

Sorry to hear you're having troubles. Happy pills don't sound good, although I think that big rat would be a good excuse. Maybe what you need is a henpal mummy & daddy meet up!