The tail end

It's finally happened, Fizz has lost his very last tail feather!   Just to remind you what he used to look like, in all his former glory

Fizz in his Sunday best outfit

And this is what he looks like now

To make matters worse, he's acting even dafter than usual!   When he got up this morning he chased Rebecca round the run as usual, then she scooted between the cage and the fence to try to get away.   He thought he'd "head her off at the pass" and took a short cut by running into the cage.   The pair of them were running up and down on either side of the cage wire, with Fizz trying hard to work out why he couldn't get to his girl!

I like my mornings to start off quietly and gently, not with tears running down my cheeks from laughing so much!

Jumping Jiminy!!!

Mad Irene gave us a fright yesterday evening by jumping onto the barbecue!   Luckily she landed on the rim of the bowl ..............

Our barbecue

........ which only gets slightly warm, and didn’t try to join the lamb steaks which were cooking nicely in the middle. 

 

She’d seen me bring a dish of lovely, home-grown new potatoes down to the garden and had already done a spectacular bounce to try to get at them.   When I sat down, she jumped on my lap to see if I’d got them up my T-shirt.   When that failed, she thought she’d look on the barbecue to see if I’d hidden them there.

It’s no wonder I’m going grey!

Fizz on dad duty

Quite often  Fizz is to be found in a nest box, trying hard to emulate the girls.   At first he accompanied Rebecca and watched while she laid her egg.   He didn’t seem to have much patience, turfed her out and used the area as a dust-bath.  Rebecca forgot why she was there and also had a dust-bath in the nest box.   Then they both sallied forth into the sunshine. 

Inevitably Mother Nature reminded Rebecca why she’d gone inside in the first place, and she returned to the coop and laid her egg.   Fizz also returned a little later, and it was after this second trip that I found him sitting quietly in a nest box.  He still does this from time to time, even though there is never anyone’s egg beneath him, as he always chooses the wrong box.   Still, he gets marks for trying.

To be fair, when Pom-Pom is “in labour” he stays with her and makes encouraging noises.  I’m sure he knows how much she hates the whole egg laying business.   With Punk and Rebecca he just pops in, chats for a while, then pops out.   He has more sense than to show his face when Irene, Maggie, Tu-Tu or Titian take up residence in a nest box.

A visit to the vet

We had to take Tu-Tu to see the vet - luckily they're a rural practice and know about chicken health issues. Madam had developed a dry, flakey skin condition above one eye.

Tu-Tu

We were given some cream to apply to her skin twice a day, but is she grateful for the attention?   Not judging by the way she glares at us when we put it on her!   When she's released after being treated she stalks off in a right huff.

It never ceases to amaze me how chickens can make their feelings so very clear!

Food glorious food

Irene found something edible in the bottom cage and dashed out with it in her mouth.   Everyone dashed after her.  

Irene in a quieter frame of mind

She headed for the gate, tried to get out through a gap at the bottom which nobody is small enough to get through.   So she feinted to one side like Ronaldo, jinked in the opposite direction (all of them fooled by her feint), and took off again.   Punk managed to catch up and snatched it from her mouth, Irene snatched half of it back and they both ate their pieces before anyone else could get there.

You can't help feeling sorry for this poor, half-starved flock!