Sugar is the last girl to moult. She always moults around October. There have been flurries of white feathers in the chicken shed and run. The last three days there have been long tail feathers too. Yesterday Sugar had one last long tail feather remaining. Today she has dropped that last tail feather leaving her with short new tail feathers.
Sugar looks quite cute with her short tail. It will soon be back to it’s normal length.
Snow has also been dropping tail feathers. It’s easy to tell them apart because Sugar’s tail feathers are white and Snow’s tail feathers are black. Snow’s tail doesn’t look any different though. She must have had the new ones already grown in. It’s unusual for a first year girl to moult much. I wonder if this is why Snow has stopped laying. Her comb is also paler than it was. It’s three weeks now since she stopped laying.
Red on the other hand has now got a red face and comb. I noticed on my last post that her comb had finally matured. I am still having to put Mango, Cloud, Snow and Red in at night. They settle on top of the nest box and wait for me to put them in.
Red is always the most keen to be put in and as soon as I go through the gate she stands up and moves to the edge of the nest box, towards me, ready for me to pick her up. It makes me question why she doesn’t go in herself but that’s another matter! Anyway for the last three nights when I have reached to pick her up she has dropped into a squat. I have tried putting my hand behind her during the day but she doesn’t squat, it is only at the end of the day when I go to pick her up.
Despite that Red hasn’t shown any interest in the nest boxes and I still don’t think she will lay until spring. I think it’s too late in the year now and the days are too short.
The other thing I have noticed is that Autumn hasn’t moulted and it’s her second year. I wonder if it’s to do with the fact that she hasn’t laid all summer, her last egg being the first of February. She is such an anomaly. She still goes and sits in the nest box each day but doesn’t lay and she still squats. I have never come across this before.
We do seem to get our share of oddities but as long as the girls are healthy that’s okay. After the lack of Wyandotte eggs this year I am hopeful that they will both lay in the spring.
Click here to see the history of my flock.
Exciting to hear that Red is reddening and squatting! Sugar does look cute and, for an older girl going through the moult, she is looking remarkably good – she is one super- resilient little bird.
It is a pain having to lift girls in. My 8 oldest pullets only go willingly into the house if it is very windy (rain does not seem to bother them – I suppose the tarpaulin protects them, largely). Today, whilst cleaning out, I rotated the house they use by 45 degrees, to make access easier for me to clean and that has caused additional problems – usually, when they come down (lifted or jumping before I reach that point), they then go inside, but it took me over ten minutes to guide the last 4 in. I do hope they are better when the worst of the winter weather arrives.
Sugar is a very resilient little girl. She seems to have everything that can be thrown at a chicken but she soldiers on.
It’s a pain for me that it’s now half my flock needing to be put in but for you with a larger number it must be more of a pain. I am glad that I am not the only one though. Until these four girls I had never had this problem before. I know winter won’t make any difference to them either as it’s become a habit now that I have tried in the past to break without success.
Sugar still looks lovely. It is very strange that they still wait for you to be put in for the night. Makes you wonder what goes on in those little heads.
It is very odd because if I am a little late they are anxious for me to put them in, all shuffling towards me, yet they could just do it themselves. I really don’t know why they don’t.