August 16, 2010, 10:26 AM PDT
Fuzzy Bottom Gals: Umber (far left), Ginger and Amber
Even though they are not bugs, the Fuzzy Bottom Gals, Daniel’s three young hens, are among the most liked postings on the What’s That Bug? website, and there have been requests for updates, including from Lisa J. The gals are growing, and they are beginning to flex their wings. Amber, who seems to be low on the pecking order, actually flies the best, and she nearly cleared the chicken wire a few days ago. She got trapped in the door area and put up quite a squawk when Daniel put her back into the chicken run. The Gals love scratching around in the compost pile, searching for bugs and other tidbits. Daniel lets them out of the coop at least twice a day, and they especially like being out in the late afternoon. Their feathers are starting to come in more, though Amber still has a thin patch in front by her crop. The feathers were thin from the time Daniel brought the Gals home from Verdugo Pet Store on York Boulevard in the Highland Park neighborhood of Los Angeles last month.
Fuzzy Bottom Gals: Amber, Umber and Ginger (from left) in the Compost Pile
The Gals have maintained their distinct personalities. Ginger is the most bold returning to the coop last, though Umber still tends to be the first out of the coop. Ginger has the most tail feathers, and Umber has no tail, looking the most like an Aracauna. Daniel suspects they may not be pure bred. The Gals love eating worms that are tossed their way when Daniel turns the dirt in the compost pile, and they also love the fleshy weeds that he tosses into the chicken run while weeding.
¶ Posted 16 August 2010 § ‡ ° July 28, 2010
Irene came to visit yesterday afternoon and she thinks the young hens need a facebook page, so the collective name Fuzzy Bottom Gals was coined to reference that the chicks still have their peep fuzz over much of their bodies.
Fuzzy Bottom Gals: Ginger, Umber and Amber (left to right)
I have finally named all three chickens. Ginger, the golden hen, has had a name for days. Ginger is still the alpha hen, the one that scratches the most and seems the most independent. She was the first to fly out and IN through the front door.
Ginger
The dark brown hen is Umber. Umber flies the best, and she easily covers the ground between the front door and the railroad tie at the edge of the compost pile without touching the ground, a distance of more than six feet. Other than jumping and flapping their wings, the hens aren’t truly flying at this point as they cannot gain altitude once they are airborne.
Umber
The golden headed hen is Amber. Amber seems to be the slowest of the three and tends to be the follower. The name Amber was a happy accident. I was writing about the Fuzzy Bottom Gals on a piece of cardboard, and I accidentally misspelled Umber, and Amber was given a name.
Amber
The Fuzzy Bottom Gals really like the compost pile, and they eat the sprouted sunflowers and grasses that fall from the nearby bird feeder.
Fuzzy Bottom Gals: Ginger, Umber and Amber (front to back)
¶ Posted 29 July 2010 § ‡ ° Homes for Chickens
July 20, 2010 9:50 am
I love your site. I photograph and paint bugs, and recently linked to your site on my blog and became an official follower. I just figured out we’re practically neighbors. Since I know the Heritage Square Museum has many many young chickens and roosters ready to be given away and relocated, I thought I’d let you know. You know, in case you’d like some more.
Barbara
http://whatisee-baf.blogspot.com/
Hi Barbara,
Thanks for the nice letter. Though the thought of more chickens is tempting, three is about my limit, especially since the chicken run appears that it is going to be woefully inadequate for containing the little jumpers who can already lift off the ground easily. Hawks are a threat to chickens in Mt. Washington. We are going to continue this conversation a bit more with you offline.
¶ Posted 20 July 2010 § ‡ ° July 19, 2010
Last Wednesday, we decided we had waited long enough on the construction of the chicken coop and we were ready for our three hens. Sam at Verdugo Pet Store in Highland Park, Los Angeles, had some 6 1/2 week old Aracauna hens for $4.50 each. We saw them just before leaving for Ohio last month and they were just peeps. They grew into attractive adolescents. I bought a gold one, a brown one and a brown one with a gold head so I could tell them apart.
The Chicken Coop with 3 resident Aracauna hens
The chicken coop was completed earlier in the week. The locks on the three screen doors were a big challenge. There is an upper floor composed of two lofts with a perch between them. When my hens are large enough, the nest boxes will go there. the back of the coop has two small holes currently covered with screen that will eventually become the egg doors when needed. There are three screen doors on the coop, each made from a picture frame, including the shattered pieces from a piece of Vacillation art dating to 1992 that was a casualty of the great 1994 earthquake. I need to tile the top of the converted work table so the chickens don’t get wet when it rains.
Two of the Hens their first afternoon in the coop: 14 July 2010
I continued to work on the chicken yard over the next few days, eventually surrounding their area with a two foot high fence all around. Then I went over all but the final side with four foot chicken wire before I ran out. I need to buy more from Verdugo Hardware Store on Eagle Rock Boulevard. I have to figure out how to make a door too. This is all quite imperative since the little gals are starting to go airborne. I need to take them to Sam to have him clip their wings. I also extended the fence for the chicken run to include the compost pile.
My three Aracauna fledgling hens in the compost pile: 16 July 2010
¶ Posted 19 July 2010 § ‡ ° 
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