Ambers diary.

[amber66]

Hello All.
Just a quick up date on the girls.
They are all out in the garden today doing their own thing ( digging holes in the lawn, dust bathing and re arranging the flower beds).
I think this moult with Marigold has taken it out of her, she seems to keep away from the others a lot of the time and will often stand and have a little doze for a few minutes every now and then. She is even slow on the up take when the treats are on offer.
I have been putting Molly and Ruby into the coop at night now as it is getting colder rather than letting them sleep on top and Ruby even went in on her own last night but Molly is still protesting.
One of them is still laying softies and i think it may be Marigold so she is really going through the wars.
Hope everyone's girls and boys are well.
Amber.

[amber66]

Afternoon All.
The girls are out having a wander around the garden and doing a bit of dust bathing and sun bathing in the afternoon sun.
Marigold started to lose a lot more feathers along with Lily (the run looks like an explosion in a feather duster factory) and has now perked up a lot and is back to her old self.
On the egg front i am getting on average 2 per day which is an improvement, so they must be feeling better.
They are all taking themselves to bed in the coop at night now the nights are getting colder so extra poop picking now needed in the mornings.
Amber.

[KarenE]

Great to hear the girls are all doing well and that Marigold is doing better through her moult. How lucky that you have been getting eggs! Mine have either packed in completely or are laying softies. At least they are all moulting at the sensible time and not in the dead of winter

[sandy]

Love hearing all well news always Amber

[amber66]

Hello all.
It's been a while since i have posted but have been popping in to read the posts most days.
The girls seem well at the moment, Lily is still moulting but has new feathers coming through, Marigold is back to her old self and taking no nonsense from Ruby and Molly. Molly has started to moult and is looking quite scruffy and Ruby, bless her is just being Ruby.
The rats have come back again so i am ordering some paving slabs this afternoon to put on the base of the run with the wood chip on top as the little b*ggers are tunnelling in from between the shed, which is next to the run and the run its self. I have also ordered some extra chicken wire with very small holes to put up the sides. The bait box with Eradibait mixed with Peanut butter has also been placed in the run. (They don't touch the poison on its own).
The egg tally is hit and miss at the moment. Sometimes there is empty shells in the coop as the girls have eaten the egg. I am not sure if they are breaking the shells to get to the egg or they are soft and break anyway so i have upped the Limestone flour hoping this will help.
They haven't been out FR much as it has been too wet and i am trying to reseed parts of the lawn that they have dug up or the dogs have destroyed.
I hope every ones girls and boys are well.
Amber.

[sandy]

Hello Amber so pleased to hear the four girls are all well Darn rats, I hope you succeed in quashing their antics

[amber66]

Hello All.
Its been a busy couple of weeks making adjustments to the run, but i think i am happy with it now for the moment.
I spent last weekend laying the paving slabs in the run to stop the rats tunnelling in. i left a slight gap of about an inch as the slabs did not quite fit and they managed to squeeze through that so i have placed more slabs on top of the gap and i think that has worked.
I also fixed more wire up the sides of the run and hung some new tarpaulin at one end to keep it dry.I hope they appreciate it. The Eradibait does not seem to be working so i have resorted to professional strength rat poison and placed this in the shed in a trap as they have now chewed a hole into the shed. This way i know the dogs or hens can't get to it.
They seemed to have stopped laying, apart from the odd one, for the time being so I had to buy eggs today and they seemed really small even for the ex large ones.
The girls are being wormed as from today as i noticed a worm in one of the poops, before i could remove it Ruby rushed in and ate it . That girl will eat anything.
Molly is moulting badly and looks scruffy at the moment but Marigold and Lily seem to have finished their moult. Ruby is only dropping one feather a day so looks no different.
They all seem well at the moment so fingers crossed they stay that way.
Amber.

[sandy]

I do hope you get rid of those rats soon, I ended up getting in a professional. How very lady like of Ruby to eat one of her worms Glad to hear Lily and her flock are doing well

[amber66]

Evening all.
The girls seem well at the moment and long may it last
They all are moulting to some degree or other as there are different coloured feathers in the coop of a morning and on the run floor during the day. The egg tally has gone right down with only one egg every other day, i think it is just Ruby who is laying. Molly has a pale face and comb so i am sure it is not her.
Lily's feathers have grown back and she looks very white with the odd black feather on her wing and side, Molly, bless her looks very scruffy while having a bigish moult. I was worried about her at the beginning of the week as she was very quiet and keeping herself to herself but is ok now thank goodness.
I am going to give them a good clean tomorrow and no doubt will receive lots of "help" from them all. I enjoy the time i am with them as no matter how bad the day has been they always put a smile on my face.
Amber.

[KarenE]

Hi Amber

It's good to hear the girls are all doing well - they seem to have been moulting forever though! Funny how they can really string it out Molly was probably just feeling a bit under the weather with her moult, you'll probably see another flurry of feathers in the run soon

[amber66]

Hi all.
It's been a while since i have posted, but have been popping in to read the "Chicken" posts.
I have been feeling a bit overwhelmed with the rat problem as i seem to be fighting a losing battle with them. In the end i called in the council pest control and he has put 3 bait stations down and 2 bait trays in the shed, these don't look like they have been touched but i can't see into the bait stations as i don't want to touch them and pass my smell onto them. The man should have come back on Wednesday last week to check up on them so i will have to chase him up tomorrow.
On a happier note the girls are over their moult and have started to lay a bit more regularly now and are looking quite posh with their new feathers even in the wet.
I hope every ones girls and boys are well.
Amber.

[amber66]

Hi all.
The girls all seem well at the moment. They all "helped" me clean the coop at the weekend and were pleased with the extra straw i put in so they could snuggle down and keep warm at night as it has been quite cold here the last few days. I also put down some Stalason f after i had dug over the soil part with Marigold collecting the worms as we went.
They all had a good time in the garden in the afternoon, i was moving some slabs to make a better path to the coop and were right behind me every time i lifted one up to gobble up any worms from under the slab, so they all went to bed with full tummies.
The egg laying seems a bit hit and miss again but i am sure they will settle down again soon.
Molly and Ruby didn't want to go to bed tonight so i ended up putting them both in myself and closing the coop door. I could hear them muttering under their breath in protest as i walked back to the house.

Below is some photos of the girls helping on Saturday.
Molly inspecting the nest box, to make sure I cleaned it properly.


Ruby is also joining in.


Marigold and lily inspecting the coop.


Marigold making sure the rubbish goes into the bag.


Marigold and lily.


Even Sable decided to join in.


Hope everyones boys and girls are well.

Amber.

[KarenE]

They look fab Amber, they are obviously enjoying life in general and doing Keep Britain Tidy duties!

Are you still having rat problems? I think we've still got one Jasper better get out there again!

[amber66]

Hello Karen.
I haven't seen any for a while but still have the 3 bait boxes spread about, you can just see one in the last photo it is at the top of the photo in the middle. I also lifted the slabs that had a slight gap at the edge of the run and put small holed chicken wire underneath and nailed it to the frame to stop them tunnelling up into the run along with bringing their pellets in over night. Fingers crossed it is working.
Amber.

[bikesandbirdsbob]

Hi I saw 2 eggs ....
White and a brown -Lily`s doing well....
Bob