Théo and the chickens des Sauches

[BDutch]

Lulu's feathers are getting tattered. I'm not sure if she, Annette and Mélisse will really molt. They only seem to be replacing feathers on their head and butt for now.

I am recognising this description. This is normal in a slow moult.

Great job, but why did you make so many plates? It doesn’t seem convenient to store it that way.

Was that @BDutch ? Or maybe @Ribh ?

No that wasn’t me either. I think it was @Shadrach. (PS ^^ he confirmed).

 

[ManueB]

Well, what do you know? I am not even half way through my cuppa.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...r-roosting-bar-dividers.1559137/post-26433806

I was thinking of using cardboard, but I don't have any left around. Of course we always have tons except when I need some !
I'm not sure a divider would work, it's more complicated. The roosters don't roost on the same roost. Théo always roost by the coop's entrance. Gaston has two different sleeping places. He has to go in front of Théo to access the one he favours, and that's when Théo jumps on the floor to attack him.
I tried to take pictures but with those three days of heavy rain it was very dark in the coop. From right to left :

That's why I was thinking of a curtain around Théo 's roost that could maybe block sight from both of Gaston's sleeping places.

Great job, but why did you make so many plates? It doesn’t seem convenient to store it that way.

That is not how we store it ! It needs to cure so we can keep it for a long time, so it must be spread half a cm thick, and not on paper or textile which would keep it moist. Once the paste is dry we cut it in small squares, roll it in sugar and put it in a box and it can keep forever. ( But strangely it disappears very quickly ? ).

Heavy rain again. Yesterday we received the official buzzer warning for red alert - they expected flood from the river in the valley, which is the one that throws itself in the sea in Nice. Schools and transports were closed, and people asked to stay home if possible. But it was overestimated and we just had a lot of rain and wind. We discussed with my partner how things have changed in that regard. When we were kids and then teens, it never happened that we did not go to school because of bad weather. It's both stressful and /or a bit ridiculous to have the weather on the news every day, buzzer alerts sent to all the population, and all public services closed several times a year. I guess the authorities would rather do too much and be ridiculous, than fail to warn for an event that turns out for the worse, here especially with the damage and deaths that were caused by storm Alex.
I wish the longer term threat was taken as seriously !

The chickens didn't have it so bad, because violent rains alternated with long pauses, so they were able to go out quite a bit and dig in the mud. I'm sad to say my chickens love the mud. When it's wet like that they don't bother to go on the half of their yard that still has grass : they go straight to the bare mud and dig around like mad. I suppose worms come to the surface that usually stay far below when it's dry.
We put a nice clean vet wrap on Lilly's foot every night and it turned all muddy and disgusting about an hour after she left the coop in the morning .
I saw that keepers from a french rescue uses old ski gloves to make slippers they put on top of the bandages . But Lilly would be very unhappy if she couldn't dig in the mud !

Still I love fall. It's my favourite season I think.

When Théo is wet he looks miserable and tiny, and he stinks. It's funny because Gaston doesn't smell like that, maybe because he doesn't get as wet. I wonder if the smell is due to hormones and maybe Théo is more hormonal since he is more aggressive?

 

[BDutch]

Théo always roost by the coop's entrance. Gaston has two different sleeping places. He has to go in front of Théo to access the one he favours, and that's when Théo jumps on the floor to attack him.

Could you make a (cardboard) tunnel or something like a big box in a way that Theo cant see Gaston coming in?
If it works you can make something with plywood.

Once the paste is dry we cut it in small squares, roll it in sugar and put it in a box and it can keep forever. ( But strangely it disappears very quickly ?

Like Turkish delight ?

It's both stressful and /or a bit ridiculous to have the weather on the news every day, buzzer alerts sent to all the population, and all public services closed several times a year.

Because of the greenhouse gasses and warmer seas the weather gets more extreme as it was in the old days. Its also less predictable and flooding really is very dangerous. 30 cm rain in 48 hours is incredible. Thats powerful and many meters high in a flood where the water assembles.
Please stay safe on your mountain .

 

[ManueB]

Like Turkish delight ?

Same idea but very thin.
----------------

I tried putting a separation for the roosters after they were both on their roost with what I had on hand - an old piece of plastic I use when I want to separate the run in two. It worked really well ! Once they couldn't see each other they went calm in not even a minute. About 15 mn later, Théo crowed and Gaston almost jumped with surprise - I think he had convinced himself Théo had disappeared!
I need to improve the logic a bit because as it is, it would not stop Théo from seeing Gaston on the ground. The tunnel idea isn't really practical, because they would likely jump over it, and it would also startle all the chickens going in the coop for a few days. Extending the separation toward the floor could work. I can't go to town for the next ten days so I'll see what I can do with the stuff we have here.

Sharing some pics from the last days, not all chicken related. I'll put the random stuff at the end for those who want to skip it.

Now that the tomato plants in the tunnel are mostly dying, but with tomatoes slowly ripening, we let the small chickens hang out in there during the day and they love it.

Gaston stays on watch but not as often as when he feels well.

Feathers growing back at different speed.

Lilly is finally looking a bit less terrible. I really hope she ends up growing back feathers all over.

Mélisse looking terrified as Piou-piou comes out of the wood shed toward her !

Some serious sunbathing

Random stuff :

We traded some of our squashes with a friend. We gave her a few of these, spaghetti and Hubbard (?)

And she gave us some of these, the long "courge de nice" that I couldn't translate, and the round one is the very local courge de Daluis. These can ripen after being harvested, not like the ones above.

So now my partner is a bit less worried that we will starve this winter.

Running yesterday on the new educational nature trail.

And saw this baby dozing in the sun in the old barn yesterday. My partner says it's a baby aspic (aspis) viper, the only dangerous snake here. It is disturbingly identical to the tiny snake I saw Mélisse gobble a while ago !

For my partner 's birthday I got him a comic book (or would you say a graphic novel ?) adapted from "the hidden life of trees" by Peter Wohlleben . It wasn't a great gift actually because I think my partner would have preferred the book, but I am loving it as I really like the drawing. And it's so interesting, even if I'm slow to catch up, because most book people I know read this already. But if you haven't, you should .

Loose translation:

They have so much to teach us.
They interact, exchange, help each other..it's a real community. And just like our neurons, they are connected by an incredible number of links. One thing is certain :

Whereas tress have made earth habitable and have been enriching it by associating with fungus for billions of years, we have only been doing outrageous damage and plunder for two centuries.

About books, I also read for the first time a book by Kazuo Ishiguro, "Klara and the sun", and I was totally hooked. @MaryJanet put it on your list for the day you have time for leisure reading. It's a very simple fiction on AI that's both heartwarming and devastating, kind of a mix between "the little prince" and "flowers for Algernon."

 

[MaryJanet]

Same idea but very thin.
----------------

I tried putting a separation for the roosters after they were both on their roost with what I had on hand - an old piece of plastic I use when I want to separate the run in two. It worked really well ! Once they couldn't see each other they went calm in not even a minute. About 15 mn later, Théo crowed and Gaston almost jumped with surprise - I think he had convinced himself Théo had disappeared!
I need to improve the logic a bit because as it is, it would not stop Théo from seeing Gaston on the ground. The tunnel idea isn't really practical, because they would likely jump over it, and it would also startle all the chickens going in the coop for a few days. Extending the separation toward the floor could work. I can't go to town for the next ten days so I'll see what I can do with the stuff we have here.
View attachment 3969730


Sharing some pics from the last days, not all chicken related. I'll put the random stuff at the end for those who want to skip it.

Now that the tomato plants in the tunnel are mostly dying, but with tomatoes slowly ripening, we let the small chickens hang out in there during the day and they love it.
View attachment 3969718
View attachment 3969720
Gaston stays on watch but not as often as when he feels well.
View attachment 3969721
Feathers growing back at different speed.
View attachment 3969722View attachment 3969723
Lilly is finally looking a bit less terrible. I really hope she ends up growing back feathers all over.
View attachment 3969724
Mélisse looking terrified as Piou-piou comes out of the wood shed toward her !
View attachment 3969725
Some serious sunbathing
View attachment 3969736View attachment 3969737View attachment 3969738


Random stuff :

We traded some of our squashes with a friend. We gave her a few of these, spaghetti and Hubbard (?)
View attachment 3969729
And she gave us some of these, the long "courge de nice" that I couldn't translate, and the round one is the very local courge de Daluis. These can ripen after being harvested, not like the ones above.
View attachment 3969728
So now my partner is a bit less worried that we will starve this winter.

Running yesterday on the new educational nature trail.
View attachment 3969731
View attachment 3969732
And saw this baby dozing in the sun in the old barn yesterday. My partner says it's a baby aspic (aspis) viper, the only dangerous snake here. It is disturbingly identical to the tiny snake I saw Mélisse gobble a while ago !
View attachment 3969733

For my partner 's birthday I got him a comic book (or would you say a graphic novel ?) adapted from "the hidden life of trees" by Peter Wohlleben . It wasn't a great gift actually because I think my partner would have preferred the book, but I am loving it as I really like the drawing. And it's so interesting, even if I'm slow to catch up, because most book people I know read this already. But if you haven't, you should .
View attachment 3969717
Loose translation:


About books, I also read for the first time a book by Kazuo Ishiguro, "Klara and the sun", and I was totally hooked. @MaryJanet put it on your list for the day you have time for leisure reading. It's a very simple fiction on AI that's both heartwarming and devastating, kind of a mix between "the little prince" and "flowers for Algernon."

Sounds like a great read, thanks!

And I'm delighted to know the roost divider has done some good for the roosters!

 

[RoyalChick]

the hidden life of trees" by Peter Wohlleben

Kazuo Ishiguro, "Klara and the sun"

Both very good reads.
And while you are on Kazuo Ishiguro, I recommend 'Never Let Me Go'.

 

[ManueB]

Spoiler: Digression about books

Both very good reads.
And while you are on Kazuo Ishiguro, I recommend 'Never Let Me Go'.

Honestly, I'm going to read everything he wrote. Just maybe not in a row because I'm prone to binge reading.
The title "never let me go" always made me think of this song- I'm a child of the 80s.

Some months ago, I had asked my parents for recs on books in english language and they suggested I take
a look at the booker prize website thematic lists. They are very diverse, there is something for everyone
Being me I tend to look for dystopia or books that relate to environmental crisis.
All those I read have been interesting. Some were downright disturbing and stuck with me a long time like "prophet song" that had the price last year or "the bee sting" that I didn't know if I hated or loved.
"Klara and the sun" stands out, I don't think I have enjoyed a book as much in years !

I did something really fun yesterday! I went to harvest walnuts at Gaston's place. Most of the nut trees are next to the chicken's stable.
Gaston got three weeks ago ten "used" (I can't find a word that doesn't sound awful) layer hens out of a local commercial place. Pied-Beau has taken them under his wing and he was showing them how to crack walnuts open. When I called him he came straight away and then he called the hens to show I was going to open the nuts for them .
The hens look rough, but they are already very well adapted. I think they were used to have time outside in that commercial operation.
I think I gave them about a third of what I picked up so it wasn't very efficient, but it was a lovely two hours. I'll go back next week to do some more serious walnut picking.

In the back there was a hen who looked a lot like Léa with a lone small chick.

This is one of the other rooster, but I couldn't approach him, even with walnuts.

This morning when Piou-piou came out of the coop she had a black spot on her ear - a tiny tick! I was afraid I wouldn't be able to take it off on my own as my partner wasn't there for the morning, but it came off very easily with the cat's tick remover, and still alive. Probably it hadn't been in for long.

Molting is slow this year. Maybe the warmer weather is delaying things ? The hens are still laying almost normally. The heavy layers, Lilly, Alba Lulu and Nieva, lay six eggs a week instead of seven ; Mélisse, Piou-piou and Annette lay two to three instead of three to four. Merle and Léa are still laying every day until the next time they decide to sit. Should be soon for Léa who is beginning to make her typical "smurf" whines !

I was doing stretching exercises in my bedroom this morning when I felt someone was watching me through the window door...

Chipie's tail is missing a new feather every day!

Taking a nap before the rain

 

[RoyalChick]

Oooh - I didn't know chickens could crack open walnuts - I keep meaning to gather some for mine but the cracking open is a bit daunting.
And given the genre that you enjoy you will definitely enjoy Never Let Me Go (the book).

 

[Perris]

"used" (I can't find a word that doesn't sound awful) layer hens

we call them 'spent' - an even worse word than 'used' for hens that are barely 2 years old (if that)

Pied-Beau has taken them under his wing and he was showing them how to crack walnuts open.

he's such a good chap! I imagine he was pleased to add 10 to his retinue

Your link to Depeche Mode sent me back to the 80s too. This was one of my favorites of that era/style

 

[Molpet]

Anyone ever heard of this way of catching chickens with a folded leaf and sticks holding the leaf together?

https://www.facebook.com/share/r/aBiY4wq4tN5QH1hV/