Sandy's Pink Ladies

[KarenE]

Sandy, it's natural that you should second guess your decision and of course there is no right or wrong answer. You made the best decision you could at the time and your gut reaction was probably the right one, for both you and Olive. A supermodel like her would never have wanted to not look her best

I second HPs comment about your girls being lucky to have such a caring mum

[bikesandbirdsbob]

Hi.Sad times . As always think of the good times and the advise that you would have given and advice that you have had. Never a good time but bear up and look after the other girls .Thoughts to you and the the girls over the bridge...
Bob

[aishakali]

Aww Sandy Im so sorry you lost your babies. Dont feel bad about Olive, you did the right thing for her by not letting her suffer. I tell you, if I ever come back as a chicken, I pray that its you who gives me a home xxxx
On a lighter note. I now have three 9week old babies. Columbian Blacktails. I decided to get babies in the hope that they will integrate better with the two bookends! Will be trying them together next Sunday (bites nails to the quick!) Will try and get some pics on later.
Take care and give your girls (the ones that will let you! lol) a cuddle from me xxx

[sandy]

Thankyou all for your kind words I just know next time I will let Chris the vet make the decisions.
Violet has had to have quite a few massages and boy is she hard to catch. She only has to see me crossing the bridge and she goes to hide! I cleaned out their office today, I wouldn't let anyone help me as that was primarily Olive's job and beside I needed them out of the way while I cleaned up the mass of mouse poo. Luckily the mice have chosen behind the eglu where the girls cannot get to. I have reluctantly had to replace the straw on the cottage with bedding as noticed Violet was eating it, why I wonder she never has before! Elsie and Amanda-Jayne were straw eaters, it is such a shame as so easy to replace and at 80p for a huge bale was a bargain. The sun came out for a short while this afternoon so got the camera out. I have opened the garden for the girls as I am planting grass seed on monday and needed it dug up
Maureen and Violet

Violet with the ever ocd Iris

Iris was always one of the first to bed but is now the last up. If I go in to check the girls after a night out(me that is not them) Iris leaps from the outside perch to investigate in the dark!
Blanche

Today I turned over stones and decking squares and the girls feasted on woodlice and worms,Iris was very territorial but to my surprise Blanche,Megan and Maureen all attempted a fight with her to no avail of course. Honestly Iris must be the only one quietly pleased Olive is no longer around to keep her in her place
Gwen and Blanche


Gwen is still quieter than normal and still goes to bed early but chatters away and is eating well even if it is mainly wormy pellets!Strangely since Beth, Elsa and Martha-Joans have gone Gwen shows no interest in lap time as alas do any of them. I may set up a chair in The Ped's House, Naomi Num-NUm likes to get on my back.
Megan, her comb never seems to have grown?


Preening time


Maureen likes a bit of adventure and decided to investigate Gwen and Blanche's bedroom, no one is sleeping in the cottage since Beth passed on.


Insects and worms, yummy


Laying has now commenced in the office, I know Violet is laying in there. Ruby always did, two eggs there and two in the cottage, wonder if they will change now the straw has gone?
Gwen and Blanche

So strange having no one pecking at me all the time or helping me clean the houses but I am sure the girls are enjoying uninterrupted dust baths

[sandy]

What a lovely monday, out came every bit of plastic from the girls house to be washed and dry off in the sunshine while I emptied the drawers and had to throw away my limestone flour and sudocreme as both out of date last month

The girls and The Ped girls were most miffed when I took their dog bowls away one by one to clean thouroughly , everytime I poured pellets inot another bowl they got so excited it was treats!

Iris was up very latelast night and tonight but to my horror she,Violet and Maureen have started sleeping right at the end of the outside perch, foxy look at us
Iris


Megan preferred to sleep down the end on her own

Today gave the girls some treats early, and a very few as they are being wormed, Ped girls wanted to know where theirs were

Over in The Peds….Naomi Num-Num,Sally,Candi and Millie

The majestic and HUGE Millie

Shandy was having a softie problem again yesterday so gave her another purple squirt incase it came out in view of the others, and it would be in view due to bare bottie

Candi also bare


Threw The Peds treats in their dustbath


Naomi's bottie

JUst Peds….

What do you want mum? Maureen,Gwen,Blanche and Violet


Locking The Peds up at 8 three were still up, I put their food away and off they trotted to their bedrooms. Gwen and Blanche were still up at 7.30, late for them. Of course everyone expects treats when I go in , as soon as Gwen and Blanche saw me putting the food away they both trotted off to heir bed. Gwen's bottie much better have given her a feather cut!

Maureen is stuffed, having a rest


Gwen has been bending her feet under on her right foot and noticed a very slight limp but she runs like a hare when treats are being distributed. Wonder if this is why she is sitting down more? Eye sight seems fine

[KarenE]

Lovely pics and tales as usual. Just how many plastic containers do you have??

I didn't know limestone flour went out of date. I've hardly used mine, it's quite a big pot.

Gwen hasn't got something stuck in her foot has she, like a splinter or a stone?

[sandy]

Yep I had a huge tub of limestone best before March 2015 it says on the bottom, what a waste, wish I had a 'prolific' hen keeper living near to share! Gwen has a little spur growing on her leg(Dee used to have huge ones that had to be cut down) I shall def investigate her foot tomorrow.

[bikesandbirdsbob]

Hi ,enjoyed it all . You have a very good place for chickens .
Good to see .
Bob

[sandy]

Um I have orange containers for mealworms, green for sunflower seeds, blue for corn. Then pink for pellets and a blue for leftover pellets from the night before. They are light and easy to carry,got them from the less than a pound store. Big buckets are for diatom, boxes of gloves, kitchen roll etc.
For the first time in ages decided just to sit with the girls this afternoon after work. I got comfy on the bench to transpose calendar entries to diaries , I am still on 2014! Sad as I got upto April when of course I lost both Janet and Georgina all the time watching the girls preen, potter and nibble. Gwen had settled on a pallet and noticed she was breathing very hard , just as I was writing about George's problems. Diary down and crept up for a Gwen close up. She got straight up of course shook herself and her breathing was back to normal. Of course it was the heat, she was trying to keep cool.
Callie has started trying to sleep on top of the duckhouse last night, real struggle to get her down. Iris and Violet slept out in view together last night while Megan and Maureen were down by the cottage. Tonight they are all in plain sight again, Megan must have been hot as wings right out, eagle fashion. Iris is sneezing and croaky but still acting like a hen on speed!





Gwenser of henser

Blanche seems to be getting smaller everyday heightwise

with Megan who if she had a bigger comb would look the spit of Sally Ped

Ladies chilling and pottering


Maureen, bottom girl reminds me so much of Beth, bottom but full of spunk

The girls had a huge trunk root after it had to be dug up last year, Violet had been taken a great interest in eating off of it, worried about the bark I hauled it out this morning with great difficulty. Do not want Violet of all hennys filling her crop with rubbish
with Gwen and Blanche



Maureen takes a peek to see if Gwen and Blanche have made their bed

Meggy Meg

It was just lovely being with the girls today and actually watching them. What was sad is Gwen no longer is interested in lap time, I know last year everytime I sat down Beryl got first dibs with Elsa, Beth and Martha-Joans vying for a place.

[KarenE]

I've seen those buckets myself and was tempted to buy them but didn't think they were big enough, I didn't think of treat buckets.

Megan is such a pretty girl, such interesting markings.

It's a pity Gwenser is no longer a lap sitter. I wonder if she is missing her other girls? I sometimes think Tigs misses Juno - even if they didn't know each other for very long they came from the same place and came at the same time and stuck very tightly together. Whereas Casp and Remie I think might have settled in so quickly with each other because they were both in the same pen in the farm at the same time so perhaps recognised the smells and maybe even each other. Nugget and Remie were never the same after they lost their best mates Cassie and Weeps respectively. It does make you wonder.

Either way, Gwensie is looking very fine and matronly even if she is still needing her naps and early nights!

[sandy]

karen use buckets for pellets too(that is why there are a ton of them, easier to load them up from the garage where the very nice dpd man puts them for me so I can carry them over the rickety bridge.
Violet gave me a scare tuesday morning, stood quiet, yes I actually managed to catch her! Thinking must be crop had a massage then felt underneath all seemed fine but not happy so seperated her in the cube area and continued mornings chores. When I got back she was stood bolt upright more like a runner duck than a penguin. She began to strain and my hand was feeling for my phone to rush her up the vets. I wish I had videod it of course I wouldn't have even if I had had my camera on me because I was serioulsy worried! Her head went back slightly and out popped a perfect white egg that landed intact. Violet assumed the 'proper' hen position and was fine, never ever seen anything like that before, the egg I found the other day in the run must have been hers too! Iris is bossing everyone around a lot lately, think it is more to stay in control as no Olive to buffer her. She is particularly sharp with Maureen

Blanche is still Gwen's bed pal , so glad Blanche is so well in now bless her

Iris,megan and Blanche

Cubists Gwen and Blanche

(that means they sleep in the cube )
Maureen, Gwen used to be the bottom girl at one time


The part runner duck part hen Violet

Leader of the pack Iris


Gwen had a bit of blood and chewy shell on her rear thursday, discovered it one hour before my hen talk so a quick spa was given with an examination, thank goodness all seemed well, she seems to be investigating Blanche's rear here

They seem to be such best buddies recently(hmmm wonder what they are plotting)


These are my now 4 little maids sleeping quarters!

Gwen hunched this morning so seperated while I was at work, by the time I got home back to normal bless her xxxxx

[sandy]

Full day at work so full day routine, home for poo picking and water changing, they had a mini cabbage to play beak football with! All okay, Gwen and Blanche off to bed at 6.30 until they heard the half cup of mealworms coming out and down they shot. I need some rain, I want to grass seed their garden and get it growing! Ooh and I have ordered 6 ex bats from FSFH, feel guilty not ordered from BHWT when they let me represent them last week but the aim is the same isn't it. Manged to swap job days so will be collecting them June 13. The BHWT hens are for collection April 26 but that is only 2 weeks before my hols and would not be fair on the newbies

[bikesandbirdsbob]

Hi good for you .
Did you send a photo of your coop...
Bob

[sandy]

Well Violet is obviously having a peculiar time laying, keep findin her brilliant white eggs all over the place in the run so guess she is still laying penguin style? Hmmm not sure if I am happy with this, hope it dosent hurt her, bless. Gwen and Blanche still going to bed early then trotting out again for afternoon treats. Yesterday Candi Ped was chasing Naomi Num-Num around and having a go at her , Nay was screeching and scared, went over and say Nay had a sweetcorn stuck on her back! Girls been on avipro my goodness it does seem to have bucked everyone up. 4 eggs today, do you know I used to record them everyday, now I really dont care even though I have orders, as long as the kids are alright

[sandy]

Girls all fine this afternoon, Gwennie was particularly active kicking up the woodchips and craning her neck to get at the dandelion leaves. 3 eggs today no bright white one from Violet intact as she must have laid it on her night time perch, it was under where they sleep and had broken. Have gotten mini corn on the cobs out of the freezer just now for the girlies tomorrow