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Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

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Dustbaths

September 7, 2010 by Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

I know what you’re all going to say, and you’re right, we probably do have the most spoilt chickens on the planet.

They’re fed the best food we can afford to give them, from whole heads of cabbage to sourdough pancakes to oven roasted tuna. And because we’re running a chicken spa, they also get a custom dust bath every couple of days.

With the recent wet weather, it’s been hard for the girls to find a spot in the chook dome to take their dust baths – an essential grooming process, necessary to keep them clean and parasite-free.  So…we’ve half-filled an old recycling bin with carefully sifted dry dirt, and this goes into their coop every afternoon for an hour or two.

It’s hysterically funny to watch them – they line up and take turns in the tub,  rolling around in the dirt and flicking it under their feathers to clean them.  They end up coated in a fine sheen, which makes them look as if they’ve been dusted in talcum powder.

Despite being brutally windy yesterday, the sun was quite bright, and I managed  to record this clip of Francesca undertaking her daily ablutions. I thought you might enjoy a glimpse into poultry preening…

. . . . .

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Posted in Frugal Living | Tagged backyard chickens, chicken dustbath, Frugal Living, keeping chickens at home, pet chickens | 30 Comments

30 Responses

  1. on September 7, 2010 at 12:44 am Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella

    Celia, you are indeed a great mum to all, including those very lucky chickens! Hey you never know, maybe chicken spas are the next thing to happen? :D


    • on September 7, 2010 at 6:29 am Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

      Could you imagine, Lorraine? We’ll be issuing them with monogrammed towels next.. hahaha


  2. on September 7, 2010 at 1:18 am Marilyn

    Mister Pretty, our very large cat that likes to roll in the sandbox, approves.

    >^..^<

    (And the Danny and Annie video made me cry too.)


    • on September 7, 2010 at 6:30 am Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

      Maz, I guess if you don’t like to get wet, sand and dirt and self-preening are the only ways to get clean! :)


  3. on September 7, 2010 at 4:26 am Abby

    You totally made my day with this post and that video! And the little guy (who is sitting on my lap) wanted to watch it over and over. =)


  4. on September 7, 2010 at 4:47 am Peter Bryenton

    Nice piece thanks. Will show this to Den.


  5. on September 7, 2010 at 5:49 am cityhippyfarmgirl

    Celia thats so funny that you have trained them to line up and take turns for their afternoon ablutions. Your girls are very well looked after!


  6. on September 7, 2010 at 6:32 am Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

    Abby, so glad your little man enjoyed it! :) In case he hasn’t seen them, I’ve also uploaded some chicken videos here and here!

    Peter, thank you! Den’s hens are beautiful!

    Brydie, we didn’t train them – they just seem to have figured it out for themselves. But it is so funny to watch – Frannie is always first in the bath, even though she’s not at the top of the pecking order. But she’s our glamorous Italian supermodel, so it figures.. :)


  7. on September 7, 2010 at 6:33 am InTolerantChef

    I tried washing my chicken once, I used a very expensive Stephan shampoo of my mums. Let’s just say that neither were impressed, and most of chookies feathers fell out! I learnt that dust was actually ‘clean’ the hard way.


    • on September 7, 2010 at 4:06 pm Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

      Oh dear…thanks for the warning, R! :)


  8. on September 7, 2010 at 9:49 am Sarah - For the Love of Food

    This dry dirt bath is a great idea – I’ll have to pass it on to my friends with chooks as I think they are a bit muddied out after all this rain.


  9. on September 7, 2010 at 10:23 am Amanda

    I’m sure that our girls would love this, too – if only we could find some dry dirt.
    A couple of them could do with a relaxing massage, too, after a close brush with an over-excited wolfhound yesterday!!


  10. on September 7, 2010 at 10:41 am spiceandmore

    I love it – the Chicken Spa!!


  11. on September 7, 2010 at 11:37 am bagnidilucca

    I love your chooks!


  12. on September 7, 2010 at 12:08 pm Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

    Sarah, they do love it!

    Amanda, we’ve been having the same problem – it’s been so wet! Poor chooks have struggled to find a dry patch to bury themselves in!

    SG, Deb, thank you! :)


  13. on September 7, 2010 at 1:16 pm Lee

    You are a worry, a real worry! ;-)


    • on September 7, 2010 at 4:09 pm Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

      Hahahaha….hard as this might be to believe, Lee, you’re not the first person to ever say that to me!! Hehe..


  14. on September 7, 2010 at 1:39 pm Christine

    I do love the ritual of the dust bath, it’s so fascinating to watch! What a clever use of the recycling box too, do you put some grain in there for them to peck at while they bathe? Franny looks completely content. How lucky your girls are to have you taking care of them :)


    • on September 7, 2010 at 4:11 pm Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

      Chris, no grain, I think Frannie’s just picking at bits of grit. I don’t want to think that she might be eating any bugs that she’s flicking off her feathers..ugh… :)


  15. on September 7, 2010 at 2:22 pm Blue Penguin

    Oh, this did bring a smile to my lunchtime – loved hearing about your chooks. If they were much more spoiled, they just might be my family’s trifle-eating timeshare cat!


  16. on September 7, 2010 at 3:12 pm Anna Johnston

    Oh Wow…, I’ve just spent 20 mins reading all your chicken posts, but this ones fabulous. Your girls are indeed loved, you can practically see Frannie’s smile from ear to ear. (Do chickens have ears?… )
    thanks for sharing.
    Anna


  17. on September 7, 2010 at 4:14 pm Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

    Penguin, a time-share cat!! Too funny! Hopefully the shared custody arrangements all work well.. :)

    Anna, thank you! One of the chooks – I think it’s Harriet – likes to tuck bits of twigs and leaves into her feathers just before she has a dust bath – no idea why. Fashion statement, I suspect. Oh, and chickens must have ears, because they can hear me coming out the back door… :)


  18. on September 7, 2010 at 8:37 pm J Cosmo Newbery

    Well, when I die, I want to come back as one of your chooks.


  19. on September 8, 2010 at 3:18 am Joanna @ Zeb Bakes

    What a sweetie she is! I love her happiness noises while she bathes :) Thanks for sharing that, brought a smile to my face.


  20. on September 8, 2010 at 5:08 am sallybr

    I tried to comment yesterday, got kicked out twice… not sure why. Maybe I haven’t been a good girl lately ;-)

    both me and my husband loved seeing the video of the dust bath – we had no idea they enjoyed this sort of thing, very cute to watch

    I hope you keep posting about your adventures with them, I learn a lot from you


  21. on September 8, 2010 at 3:33 pm Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

    J Cosmo, thank you! :)

    Joanna, so glad you enjoyed it! It’s good fun to watch them!

    Sally, loved your photos of your new nano-house! Glad you enjoyed the clip and sorry you had trouble leaving a comment – not sure why that is. I know I’ve had trouble leaving comments on blogspot lately – maybe I’ve been naughty too. :)


  22. on September 9, 2010 at 3:55 am Choclette

    Now there is one very happy chook – if only they all had such good lives.


  23. on September 9, 2010 at 7:57 am Cat

    That video is priceless! They certainly have personality. It almost sounds like she’s singing in the background.


  24. on September 9, 2010 at 8:01 pm Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

    Choc, thank you for saying that – it means a lot to me that they’re happy! :)

    Cat, you made me laugh – I had to listen to the clip again, it really does sound like Frannie’s singing in the shower… :)


  25. on September 11, 2010 at 3:11 am Peter Bryenton

    I was amused by her “singing”.



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