Saturday in the Yard
Today Lester and the other ducks and clucks hung out in the yard and ate grass, bugs and treats.
“Is that a bug!?” – Olivia
Gus shared some peas with Lester, and tried to stay out of O’Malley’s way.
He is still having trouble with picking feathers and eating them, but otherwise he is doing well.
Gus plucks Lester’s feathers and eats them, so we put Lester in a carrier at night so Gus can’t bother him. So far it seems to work well.
When we hang out in the yard, our crow friend hangs out with us. He is a wild crow, but he likes the ducks and chickens, and he sometimes gets treats, too.
Carol enjoyed some lettuces.
And Janet was on the look out for bugs.
Olly Astro stuck close to me, in case I planned to share treats.
And Olivia perched near the crow’s water dish in case I left some treats there.
Gus spotted some flying balloon predators and alerted everyone.
Then he got a little too close to O’Malley and The Ramona Monster and had to high-tail it back to Lester’s area.
Then it was time to settle down for a nap and enjoy a lazy Saturday afternoon.
Petunia was snoozing in the aviary, so we didn’t get any photos of her today. But she’s doing well and she sends her best.
Have a good week, and keep quacking… or clucking… whichever you prefer.
New boy picks a name
The new duck has chosen his name. I’m not sure where these names come from, but when a new kid arrives I tell them to think of a name and let me know. When Janet chose her name, I made her sleep on it a second night because I thought it was kind of dumb. But it just fits her. Carol I think I may have rushed a bit, because sometimes I call her Connie. Close enough.
Gus and his buddy Lester Leroy are doing well, as long as Gus can avoid “The Ramona Monster.” She has a little blood lust for Gus, and she caught him on Friday while I was at work. But by the time I ran home to check on him and separate her back on her side of the aviary, they had worked it out and Gus was no worse for wear. So hopefully they’ll try to play nice. I reinforced the aviary partitions a bit just in case.
In other news, remember little Eddie the call duck? He still lives in Arizona with his forever family, and he’s doing well. In fact, he is doing a little too well! It was always believed that he couldn’t mate with their other ducks because he is so small, even though he would try.
Photo courtesy of Janis
Well surprise surprise! Eddie fertilized ONE egg with Dewey duck after years of trying. She hatched this super cute little half-mallard, half-call duckling that no one thought could happen. Very sneaky, Dewey & Eddie. Congratulations to the entire family.
Carol just wanted to stop in and say hello. Here she is enjoying the fresh-cut grass on Saturday. Unfortunately Sunday was a rainy Seattle mess, but Saturday was nice!
Sunday I stopped by Greenlake park to sit and watch the ducks for a bit. I know I can sit in my own yard and watch them, but I like to get out once in awhile. This cute little mallard mom came by with her six ducklings in tow and made my day.
Aren’t they adorable? I hope they do well. It’s a tough world out there for a wild baby duckling. Stick close to mom, kids.
That’s about all from us this weekend. Meow from Simon and have a good week.
P.S. Forgot to mention that Olivia’s blood work came back okay, but she’ll stay on antibiotics for a few more days just to be safe.
Lessie’s New Wingman
Today we took Olivia the chicken to the vet and picked up a new rescued duck while we were there.
This duck was dumped in Magnolia, Seattle and was caked with feces and mud. He likely never had a deep water bowl, tub or pool to clean his face. He had a check-up and a negative fecal test at the vet, so he came home with us right away.
Look how much better he looks after taking a few baths today while I was at work! That stuff caked around his eyes was mud and feces. It’s tough to be a dumped duck.
The new guy was thought to be a girl, because he’s kind of small. But he is a muscovy-mallard hybrid male duck, and he sounds just like a hybrid we had named Kozmo Kirby. He is fairly young, and fairly unfriendly to humans. But he walked right up to Ramona and gave her sass, which made Ramona chase him mercilessly around the yard, around the pond and under shrubbery. He finally ran to me for safety, and I picked him up to save him from the mean Ramona monster.
In other news, Olivia did good at the vet today. We will have the results of her blood work tomorrow. She has cataracts, which probably isn’t rare for a 10-year-old hen. And her head swelling is gone which means her cold is probably leaving too. Hopefully she’ll be fine. We just wanted to be safe.
That’s it for tonight.
Clucks and quacks,
Silly Human
Plant Mashers
Lessie is really enjoying the new grasses in the aviary. Can you see him hiding? The grasses help him feel safe.
Unfortunately the chickens have a “scorched earth” policy towards plant life, and even ripped up 4 out of 7 of the brand new “deer proof” plants we planted on Sunday… the day before they ripped them up. I could see them ripping them up live on the webcam, but couldn’t stop them from my desk at work.
This is my first attempt to keep the chickens from ripping up the plants. We’ll see if it works tomorrow. Wish the plants luck!
In other news, we got a prank call today from… a turtle. It turns out it was Jose and Angela, fellow duck nuts. Thankfully my recording has not been posted online yet, and maybe it won’t be. We can only hope! It was pretty fun though, but of course this means I have to plan my payback. Mwah ha haaaaa.
Be afraid, Jose & Angela. Be very afraid.
Weekend Update
Reggie & Benson have become friends with Larry Turk, a white muscovy drake who was rescued two years ago and bounced around a bit before ending up at Baahaus. It’s great that so many feathered friends that pass our way have ended up together again.
In other news, the neighbors gave us this great grass when they were rearranging their plants. We took the pool out of this side of the aviary and replaced it with the grass so Lester can be in the aviary without fear of drowning in the pool. As you can see, Petunia has decided that she is king of the grass. The chickens have been tough on it, but I think it’s still alive. Keep your fingers crossed. We also added a few other deer-proof plants this weekend in hopes that the chickens won’t kill them. Lester loves this big pile of grass, and I’m happy he can socialize with the chickens and other ducks during the day now.
Little Olivia developed a cold this Friday night. The side of her head swelled up, which can happen with respiratory infections in chickens. By Sunday her entire head was swollen, which was quite scary. But finally the medication seems to have kicked in and the swelling has gone down. Hopefully she can recover and feel better soon. She’s over 10-years-old so a bad cold is not good for her. She is still eating well and is pretty active, so I’m hopeful that she’ll fight off the infection with her cranky demeanor and be back to her old self in no time.
Ramona is doing well. As you can see here, she is trying to talk me into giving her another treat. But I can tell she is still working on the last treat, so I won’t give her another one (See the bulge in her neck? That’s a little piece of cookie working its way down).
On most mornings, the ducks, clucks and I share one vegan cookie between us for breakfast. Olly Astro has found a way to get the best share of the treats. She jumps up on my lap and eats the cookie right out of the package, if I let her. If not, she has to ask nicely and wait her turn.
Lessie seems a little perkier since he’s been spending days in the aviary. He adjusted well to the new routine, and it gives him a new view and new stuff to do during the day. It’s much better than sitting all day and night in the same spot in his night pen. I think he’s starting to like the chickens, too. But he won’t admit it so don’t ask him.
O’Malley is both sweet and a biter as usual. He has his hands full with both Ramona and his long-term girlfriend Petunia. But he still finds time to bite my ankles and sit on my lap now and then.
Janet and Carol are both doing well and both laying eggs I think. Ramona lays eggs now and then too. We save them and feed them back to the chickens so they get some extra shells and protein to make more.
Last but not least, sweet face Simon is doing well too. He had a great week because he had me all to himself. There are no roosters or sick ducks or recovering chickens or anything else inside the house competing for his attention. There’s just him and me. And that’s the way he likes it.
Happy Mother’s Day to all the ducks and clucks out there who work with love to raise their babies to be strong, smart birds. Have a great week everyone.
Snooze Button
Obsessed with Fabio
Right now I am obsessed with Fabio. He is such an amazing little creature. He will only be with us for another week or two while he finishes medication, but then he’ll go to the same sanctuary as George, Benson & Reggie.
Fabio has a fabulous tail. It is poufy and fluffy and super soft. When he walks, his legs look like fluffy pantaloons.
Fabio has CRAZY FEET! Silkie chickens are known to have extra toes. Other chickens have a center toe, one to each side and one in back for a total of four toes. Roosters also have a spur, which is like an extra talon above the back toe. Silkies have four toes crammed to the inside and one toe on the outside covered by feathers. Fabio here also has a spur, visible at the bottom center of the photo. Crazy feet. Crazy.
Fabio sits on the couch in the evenings with me until it’s completely dark. He has to stay inside at night so his 5:30-6:30am crowing doesn’t wake up the neighbors. But if it’s not completely dark when he comes in, he doesn’t like to be in his carrier. Instead he sits next to me and tucks his beak under my arm.
Fabio is a super fun addition to the yard. I only wish he didn’t crow, because it’d be great to keep him around. But he’ll do well at Baahaus and be able to crow to his heart’s content.
In other news, Ramona is doing well. Petunia still prefers to be away from Ramona, so they share different night time space.
But they get along well-enough to share the aviary during the day, so I have hope that they’ll be able to move in together with O’Malley eventually.
Fabio and Carol tolerate each other in the yard. I guess it’s because they’re both new. Carol is a force to be reckoned with, and the other three chickens steer clear of her whenever possible.
Janet, Olivia and Olly Astro are all doing well, but were too busy looking for bugs to pose for photos this weekend.
Lester is doing pretty well. He had a nice swim on Saturday in the sunshine, but he really prefers the safety of his pen. I think his handicap makes him feel unsafe, so when he’s out in the yard, he’ll hop back to his pen. Hopefully we can eventually help him feel safe in the aviary so he can be around other animals and get some social time, but he seems content for now.
Last but not least, Simon is doing well too. He is a lovable character, and adjusts really well to all the new feathered kids in the yard. He definitely likes his 1-on-1 time with me though, so we took a nap together this weekend.
Here’s to a good week ahead from everyone here at Ducks and Clucks!
New Kids Fit In
The new Rhode Island Red chicken chose her name tonight. I think it fits in pretty well with Janet, who is her look-a-like. Carol & Janet. Let’s hope they get along! So far they’re all doing okay. Carol sleeps in a soft-sided carrier inside the chicken pen at night, so the other chickens can see her, but they can’t hurt each other. Then during the day they all share the aviary together. When introducing chickens, it’s best for them to have enough space to run away from an attack while they sort out the new pecking order. So when they’re locked up in the smaller coop at night, it’s important to keep them separated but let them see each other so they can start to work out their differences.
Fabio is such an adorable little fluff monster. I can’t stop taking photos of him. His blood work came back today and he does indeed have an infection, so he’ll be treated here for at least 10-days before heading to the forever sanctuary. Hopefully the infection was caught in time and he can recover.
Look at that mop top! So cute.
That’s about all here at Ducks & Clucks tonight. Bok bok and quacks. The rooster alarm comes early so we’d best get to bed. G’nite.
Incoming!
Check. It. Out! This is Fabio. He is a faaaabulous silkie rooster we rescued from the Seattle Animal Shelter this morning. We were hoping he might be a hen, but either way we wanted to help him out. Since he is a rooster, he will get a little healthcare here and then move on to Baahaus to live with George, Benson & Reggie. He has some issues with his balance, so today the vet did some blood work. We’ll see what that says. His fecal test was negative so that’s good (no parasites). He is eating and drinking well, so hopefully he’s not too sick, because he is awesome. I have missed having a fluffy muppet around since Racquel L’Oreal passed away from old age. This guy has a similar little personality, but he crows. So while he’s here, he’s sleeping in the dining room so he doesn’t bother the neighbors early in the morning.
As always seems to happen with chickens we rescue, they come along with unexpected chicken FRIENDS. Remember when we picked up Olly Astro only to find she had a friend named Janet who needed a home too? Well Fabio has this friend here who needs a home, so she came along with him. She’s definitely a hen, so she’ll stay with us forever. She hasn’t told us her name yet, but it’s pretty funny that she’s also a Rhode Island Red chicken like Janet.
As you can see, chicken politics are complex and the vetting process can take some time. I think Olivia complained when Olly Astro and Janet arrived for OVER A MONTH. But now they are great friends. I’m hoping the newest girl doesn’t take that long to fit in, but she’s already made it clear she is NO ONE’S LACKEY. All the other chickens are afraid of her.
Check out that vertical jump! We’ll keep you posted on her new name as soon as she tells us.
Fabio roamed the yard a little bit, but he has to stay mostly separate from everyone else until we know he’s not sick with something contagious. The other chickens were just fine keeping their distance, because they had NO IDEA what he was.
He’s very sweet though, and I’m sorry we can’t keep a rooster here because I would love to be his permanent hair dresser and personal stylist.
The back story on these two is sketchy. New red head was found running loose around 97th & Phinney in Seattle. Fancy fluffy Fabio was treated for something at an emergency vet, and then turned over to Seattle Animal Shelter. That’s where we found them both.
More news on the new kids to come. That’s it for now.
Bok bok!
Is Larry really Turk?
Remember Turk? He was one of two muscovy drakes we rescued from a park in 2009.
They were misidentified as “aggressive nesting geese” but at least the city put up a sign to warn people that these two dumped guys would attack you if you got too close.
We originally placed Rex & Turk with a nice family near Duvall, WA. But as you can see in this photo, Turk was too aggressive for the small children in the family. So we picked them back up and arranged for a sanctuary to take them in.
Then two years passed and we started talking with Baahaus Sanctuary about taking in George the goose.
As we started talking to Glenda at Baahaus this year, she noticed the old stories on our blog about Rex & Turk. That got her thinking about a violent, aggressive muscovy drake she took in last year and named Larry. She asked if I thought it could be the same duck, so when I dropped off Benson & Reggie I took this photo of Larry for comparison.
In comparing the photos, the caruncle really does look similar in shape, especially near the beak. But those black feathers on Turk’s crest aren’t visible in the photo of Larry, and Larry has a lot of different freckles and coloring on his caruncle. The thing that made me think they cannot be the same duck most of all is how interactive Larry is. Turk was stand-off-ish and really didn’t look you in the eye. But Larry looks right at you. So I wrote Glenda back and said “It’s close, but I don’t think they’re the same guy.”
She had a hunch they were the same guy though, so she dug through a year’s worth of old emails and found this note from the first sanctuary:
“We currently have a resident, Turk, a Muscovy duck, who is very unhappy. He came in with his buddy Rex, who sadly disappeared from the pasture about a month ago. Ever since then Turk has been very depressed. He rarely leaves the barn to explore the outdoors…”
“Either he is standing alone, or is chasing the others. Would you be willing to take Turk? Or even try him out there, to see how he does? I think he needs the company of other Muscovies to be happy. He breaks my heart daily.”
Unfortunately, that news means that Rex is no longer among the living… but he did have a second and third chance at the good life. And it also means Larry is Turk! And Larry is at the same great sanctuary as George and Benson & Reggie and so many other wonderful feathered and furry pals.
Small world, eh?
It also means that caruncles change and grow and freckle over time. It’s hard to see with O’Malley since I see him every day, but it’s true. So what has Larry been up to lately? Well he unfortunately has retained his violent behavior and attacks Glenda and her volunteers at least once a week. So he lives in a special area with other trouble makers (attack roosters, among them). I got to see him and talk to him and he had just had a bath. He seems healthy and happy and full of life.
We also heard that while his pen was being cleaned, he snuck out and waaaaay around the other side of some cages to talk to guess who? Benson & Reggie! So Glenda is going to see if he can get along with those two young boys. My money is on Benson pestering Larry-Turk until he snaps and goes postal on him. But we’ll see… we’ll see.
It was sad to hear that Rex had passed but it’s always nice to hear about a long-ago rescue still doing well. From his original unknown home to being dumped at the park in Mill Creek, WA to a new home in Duvall, WA to staying here at Flapper’s house to a first sanctuary and finally a forever sanctuary at Baahaus, Larry-Turk is a great example of the determination and dedication of the animal community around Seattle, especially the good people at Baahaus.
In other news, Lester Leroy is doing okay. He’s not great, but he’s okay. He can’t move around as much as I’d like him to, and I was really hoping to get him moved into the day aviary for the day time, so he could socialize with the other ducks through a fence and spend days with the chickens.
But so far Lester hasn’t shown me that he can get OUT of his pool by himself. He has done it once, but usually he just gets completely water-logged and quacks at me until I rescue him. I can’t leave him alone in the aviary if he’s in danger of drowning. So for now he’s outside but in a pen by himself during the days and nights.
The pool is set up with easy ramps in and out, so I’m hoping he’ll figure them out. Until then, he’s in there on the weekends when I’m home and I set a timer to check on him every :15 minutes to ensure he isn’t swimming too long.
Also new, I sprained my ankle a week ago. It was pretty bad the first few days, but now it has greatly improved. It still hurts with every step, but now I can do daily duck chores without too much pain, and I’m back to just a general level of crankiness.
New girl Ramona is doing well. She has a lot of energy and attitude, and Petunia is a little afraid of her. So Petunia hangs out with the chickens during the days to get a break from Ramona. O’Malley seems smitten with the new lady duck, but he also still likes his girl Petunia. He’s got it good right now.
The chickies are all doing well. They have a scorched earth policy on plant life, so I’m trying to keep them contained long-enough to re-grow some grass in the aviary. Time will tell if I’m successful. Meanwhile they are content to eat the main grass area as long as I share my morning cookie with them.
That’s about it from the Ducks and Clucks this week! Hope you have a great week ahead of you.
P.S. A note to all rescuers and sanctuaries: When you are trying to re-home a problem animal, please be EXTREMELY up-front about it. The first sanctuary described Turk as “chasing the others” when they really should have described him as “the most violent, aggressive duck you’ll ever meet. Seriously, he’ll sneak up on you and murder you while you sleep.” Be clear, so the next home knows what they’re getting into. It’s only fair.
