For the last few months, I’ve been giving stern talkings to. I’ve also been threatening that if they didn’t shape up and stop, they were going to have consequences.
Today, I flat ran out of patience. This meant that drastic measures had to be taken. I didn’t want to. They didn’t want me to. They aren’t happy with their consequences. I’m not happy about their consequences. But I’m the mama, which means I’m in charge.
I feel kinda sad, too, knowing they aren’t happy about it. They might even be a little embarrassed, but at this point, I am in it for results. I simply had to stop the carnage.
Yep. I gave the girls the Pinless Peepers. 😆
What girls, and what are these pinless peepers??
Pinless peepers are used for to help combat plucking in fowl. My feathered girls are now sporting peepers. This is what they look like:
We’ve gone around and around and around with this. They have plenty of space. They are not bored. I have upped their protein (and left it there, because not only do they continue with a ton of eggs, but it helps their feathers come back in faster); they don’t have a dietary deficiency. I think they just have bad habits. And being chickens, once they see something unusual,will just keep picking at it, even if what they are picking at is on their own body.
This morning, Bella’s butt was once again a bloody mess and that was it. A few weeks ago, I had ordered the pinless peepers, but then they seemed to slack off on the plucking. I was glad to have them on hand today!
Our first attempt at attaching the peepers did not go well. I was trying to insert them while J (almost 13!) held onto the chicken, but that was not going well. Instructions I had read suggested using some snap ring pliers. When we tried, the pliers broke the peeper and sent the pieces flying.
Fortunately, hunny had come home for lunch and was ready to pitch in. They found the right temperature for the water (heated on the stove with the candy thermometer) and he held while J got the peepers in. He did 2, then it was my turn.
After the first one had her new peepers, we learned real fast that the others were going to go after the head to see what those were, so it was clear they would all have to have them, whether or not they were guilty of the crime. It was at this point I was really glad we didn’t have 100 chickens. 😆
While they’re not real happy, they are all sporting their gorgeous peepers. Initially, they tried picking them off with their feet, but now they are out happily roaming in the backyard.
I could probably get away with it as others have, but I am too tired to stick googly eyes on all of them right now. Maybe tomorrow. 😆
As promised, here are pictures of some of the girls. I couldn’t resist getting pics of their fancy face gear!
Sugar
Bad picture in the shadow, but this is Sunny, one of our buff orpingtons. Sunny was our foster chicken that clearly became part of our flock.
Bella, and her poor bare nekkid butt. Even under her chin and her cheeks have been plucked! 😦
Butternut. She is a buff orpington and the flock mistress.
Cupcake. She's an Easter Egger and she lays a very nice green egg. She was in laying an egg so she was the lucky last one to get her peepers put on.
Cupcake and her head shot for her modeling portfolio
Cupcake, side view
I REALLY hope this works! 😆
I’ve been reading your blog on my iphone til today! Oh my gosh! it is much more wonderful on my laptop! yea! I love it! Pinned it!
😆 Glad you made the leap over! 🙂 You can sign your email up, too, and subscribe so you’ll get the new posts via email if you want to.
Can you believe we still have ice in the backyard?! We have major cleanup to do and it’s still frozen and muddy out there. *sigh* But, yes, of course, you and your grandbaby should come over sometime! And surprisingly, I am down to a total of 4 eggs, though normally I’ll have a couple dozen laying around. Fortunately, we’re still getting at least 7 or 8 a day, so we’ll have more in no time! 😆
haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahahahahaaaaaaaaa!!!!!! OMG I thought you were talking about your kids at first! OMG! Oh. My GOD!!!
s’cuse me. 🙂 cough… allow me to compose myself. Thank you.
HAHAHAHAHA! That poor little guy’s butt is SO sore! oooh poor thing!
Ya, poor baby! 😥 At some point, I’ll go and get more pictures. She’s the worst out of the bunch at this point. I’ve got a few with no long tail feathers, but she was actively dripping blood big time this morning. When it looks like something coming out of the freezer- I don’t care what anybody says, that is just wrong. And since I don’t have a quarantine box in the house anymore (ya, I really miss not having a house chicken!), I had to do something so they wouldn’t end up killing her. Chickens bleed and bleed and bleed- hard to get the bleeding stopped (because their blood is thinner), and then of course, when one of them sees something, they don’t have the brains to know that they shouldn’t DO that.
Yes, it’s convenient having girls of the human variety so I can write stuff like this, lol. 😉 Brought the hammer down, I did. 😀
Oh, that poor thing. (psst. I hadda couple glasses of wine expect silliness)
Oh my goodness (silliness aside) OMG that’s awful. They’re kinda cute and uh… stupud… oooh shame!!! OMG, yes those green things area good idea!
LOL You did bring the hammer down! I can’t “believe!” they did not listen! sounds like teenagers. 🙂
They’re all adorable but I think I like Sugar best. Do, ready for this question? Do chickens all have different personalities? No really, I’m sincerely curious.
Oh, yes, they ALL have their own personalities, of course, just like any other pet. Sugar became my sweetie the day she crawled up the leg of my shorts and took a 3 hour nap. 😆 She is still quite lovable. And Cupcake, the one in the kitchen pics, really is nice, too. Certainly calm enough with her face gear for me to get good pics! 😆 Some are more aggressive (like all the barred rocks will be pushy with the others but not with themselves); some are more reserved.
Roxy (the only production red we have) is a real sweetie and loves to pick at my boots. She also takes a daily trip into the garden by flying over the short fence.
Rocky (one of the barred rocks) was the one who used to pace and pace and pace in front of the door when we were still taking them in at night- she is still the first one to go to bed, and the one who flies and lands on you when your in the run.
Cocoa (another barred rock) is pretty pushy and pecks everyone else if she wants food and they are in her way. She’s also one of the prime pluckers, but the first to lay an egg, so I couldn’t get rid of her. She’s pretty sweet, though.
Butternut is the boss, no doubt about it. She’s fat enough that at this point, while she can still run and fly, she actually waddles. 😆 She likes to sit on the arm of my rocker while I’m out reading and rock with me. She also figured out she could hop up on the back of the chair and get the popcorn off the bowl on my head.
We know every single one of them; can usually tell who laid what egg (Cinnamon, for example, lays a very light blue egg, while Chocolate Chip lays an olive egg, and the others are mixed in there with varying shades). Shoot. One of these days, I should write a separate post, lol. And they pretty much all like to be petted and scratched under their wings.
Noooo… that is so kewl! Get outta here. That’s cute.That’s just cute!
See other post, I’ve had wine 🙂
LOL! I recently saw some of these made in metal on a Storage Wars episode! Too funny….
BEYONCE!!!!! *sigh* I would LOVE to have a large Beyonce. (you know about Beyonce, yes? For the uninitiated, go here: http://thebloggess.com/2011/06/and-thats-why-you-should-learn-to-pick-your-battles/- warning: language alert!) Unfortunately, hunny’s love of chickens ends with chicken stuff in the house and the live ones outside and um, all the other chicken stuff around….. 😉 I swear, though, if I can ever find one for cheap, I’m gonna sneak it on home. And when he finds it, I’m gonna tell him Laura told me to do it…… 😆
Looking good!
Sexy, aren’t they? 😆 So far, all of my buffs have gotten them off. One we put right back on, because she is still plucking……… *sigh*
Haai 🙂
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Ooh – never seen these before. Hope they work!
So far so good overall. I love seeing the fluffy butts with new feathers!! But the one BO- sheesh. She shakes her head and you can tell she is trying to see out the side to pluck. And when hers came off, even when they were out roaming the yard, she was still going and plucking. Don’t know what her problem is. At some point, I may have to consider making her a penalty box if these things don’t fix her in a month or two.