Flock Diary - September 1999

At the beginning of September the new pullets still hadn't learnt that at chickens' bedtime they needed to go into their Ark. Every evening, as bedtime approached, they would congregate on top of the rabbit huch for a while. When the rest of the flock made their way into their house, the pullets would huddle together in the nestbox of the hutch, waiting for me to collect them and place them one by one on their perch in the poultry Ark. Right. Anticlockwise from top of picture: Roaster the Light Sussex, Ashley the Exchequer Leghorn, Little Wing the Jersey Giant, & Flathead the Ancona (the black bird with white speckles. This is a good picture, showing her flat head very well.) Above, from left to right: Roaster, Colin's Welsummer, Ashley, Little Wing, Flathead.

Above: Little Wing, the Jersey Giant pullet, 2nd September 1999.

The Professors, the second batch of rescued Battery Hens, continued to settle in well.

Below left and right: Professor Helm, 3rd September 1999.

Above: Professor Hawking	Above: Professor Darwin, 9th September. Darwin is a very friendly little hen. She is extremely curious about me, and always comes to investigate me whenever I go into the garden.
Above: A portrait of Professor Sigmund Freud	Above: Professor Mendel

Above: White Tara on 9th September.

During September there was a huge crop of marrow and courgette at the LETS Allotment. There were so many that we couldn't possibly sell or eat them all, so the hens got to have a treat of an extremely large marrow, sliced into four !

Above: At first the birds were unsure of the strangely shaped pale objects on the ground. They peered at it suspiciously, until....

Below: One of the original batch of Battery Hens plucked up the courage to take a peck.

And before long, the rest of the flock piled in to attack the pieces of marrow !

On 14th September the hens were weighed and checked for mites, lice and evidence of moulting.

All the young pullets are growing well,; increasing in weight and their combs and wattles are beginning to develop.

Above: White Tara (right) and Roaster (left).

On 24th September I decided to compare White Tara and Colin's Roaster in size. Although Roaster looks as though she is almost the same size as Tara, this is an illusion caused by bulky feathering. Roaster is actually quite thin compared to the well upholstered White Tara. Light Sussex tend to grow their body framework first, then start filling it out with meat after full size has been attained.

Below: Biscuit on 25th September 1999.

At present Biscuit is moulting. Interestingly, she is growing more white wing feathers, and is becoming more speckled with white.

To Flock Diary 2001 - January, February and March 2001 / April and May 2001

To Flock Diary 2000 - January 2000 / February, March, April 2000 / May 2000 / June 2000 / Stroud Show 1st July 2000 / July 2000 / August 2000 / Painswick Show 13th August 2000 / September 2000 / October, November & December 2000

To Flock Diary 1999 - January 1999 / February 1999 / March , April 1999 / May , June 1999 / Stroud Show 1999 / July 1999 / August 1999 / September 1999 / October 1999 / November 1999 / December 1999

To Flock Diary 1997 & 1998 - August to December 1997 / January, February and March 1998 / April 1998 / May 1998 / June 1998 / July 1998 / August 1998 / September 1998 / October 1998 - Part One / October 1998 - Part Two / November 1998 - Part One / November 1998 - Part Two / December 1998