Close ups of the girls

I have been so involved with introducing the new girls lately that I realised I haven’t photographed the big girls close up recently.

The bantys are not so used to the camera so there is a limit to how close I can snap them at the moment and this is probably the best I can get.

Amber in the foreground and Honey facing head on

Close up of Bluebell

Bluebell is still missing some neck feathers from the feather pulling but it doesn’t show so much on her.

Close up of Dotty

Dotty still has a bare neck and is missing feathers from under her wing but the good news is the feathers on her bottom have started to regrow and there are now no bare patches showing.

Close up of Pepper

Pepper still has bare patches on her bottom and has a full fluffy neck but the most tatty behind.

Bluebell

Bluebell’s comb has a few marks from Pepper pecking her when she doesn’t want her to join herself and Dotty on the coop roof before bedtime.

Dotty

Dotty’s comb was quite dirty a while back but is now clean. I’m not quite sure how it got clean again! Her wattles are also quite a bit longer than Pepper’s.

Pepper

Pepper’s comb is not as dirty as it was but not as clean as Dotty’s.

Yesterday we had a really busy day, a function to deliver in the afternoon, a long wait at the opticians and we were going out for my birthday to a restaurant that was an hours walk away (it being the first nice day in ages). This didn’t leave much time for getting the girls together so I decided before going out that I would sprinkle some corn, open the dividing gate and see what happened. Amber didn’t want to come out but Honey came out and was immediately attacked by Bluebell. She then ran back in and I shut the gate.

I then realised that her comb was bleeding. I was quite upset that in just a few moments (the shortest time they have been together yet) Bluebell has managed to draw blood. Luckily she seems fine and it soon dried but I decided to give them a break from integrating for now.

However this morning when I returned to see what the girls were up to, Bluebell was in the nest box laying her egg so I decided to open the gate and see what happened. Both the little girls came straight out, they obviously realised Bluebell wasn’t there and they had about fifteen minutes of mixing happily with the two big girls until Bluebell reappeared. She immediately went for them and they ran back into their side so I shut the gate. I decided that was enough for today.

The day before yesterday, Honey laid her third egg in the run then sat in the coop for half an hour just like the two previous times. I decided to put a plastic egg in the bantys coop to see if this would encourage her to lay in there. I moved the egg to one side at bedtime so that it wouldn’t be in their way overnight.

In the morning Honey went into the coop and moved the plastic egg into the middle of the coop. She went in and out a few times after this. The next time I went to check she had laid her egg next to plastic one, in the coop. Hurrah! Maybe she has got the hang of it at last.

I think my next step is going to be separating Bluebell for short spells while the bantys mix with the other two on the big side. I hope this will build their confidence a bit as at the moment we seem to have come to a bit of a stale mate!