Eggs and bedtime continued

Eggs

Much to my surprise Ebony and Flame are still laying nearly every day. Dandelion and Cinnamon are also laying so we are still getting plenty of eggs.

Apart from the seramas we haven’t had girls laying this late in the year for many years. Ebony and Flame are amazing layers. This month Ebony has laid 18 eggs and Flame has laid 23. Ebony had a short broody break making her total a little less. Cinnamon has laid 10 and Dandelion has laid 9 this month.

Dandelion has continued to lay long eggs.

Yesterday’s eggs

Dandelion’s egg is on the left and isn’t actually egg shaped. There is no pointy end and you can’t tell which way round it was laid. Cinnamon’s egg is next then Ebony’s beige egg and on the right Flame’s white egg.

With only these four girls laying it is easy to identify their eggs. I am thinking that it will be a whole different story next year when there will be twelve girls laying.

Bedtime continued

It was difficult to get the timing right last night. A few times I went up and none of the girls had started going in. The next time I went up the amigos were already in a heap in the back corner. I had missed them going in again!

I started moving the amigos to their perch and at one point Smoke actually jumped up to the back perch, which the three bigger girls were on, but at the opposite end. I moved Smoke to join the others but I am now thinking of another change in strategy.

I wonder if they would more happily accept perching on the back perch. I think for five girls it may be quite difficult for them all to get up on to the smaller length of perch.

I closed the door and heard a thump. I checked back and Vanilla was on the bottom rung of the amigo’s perch. I assume she had jumped down and when trying to jump back up had only made it to the bottom rung. I put her back up again and she stayed. I didn’t want her underneath the rest of the girls where she would get pooped on.

I use the side perches for the seramas because they are narrower than the back perch and I head read that broom handle width was a good width for seramas’ smaller feet but last year the seramas  perched on the back perch in the middle of winter when it’s was at it’s coldest. Also the amigos perch happily during the day on the wider, branch, perches.

I am now thinking that tonight I will try the amigos on the back perch and see if that works better. This is really a work in progress and after all no rules are set in stone. It’s just a matter of finding out what works best.