Not only do hens have a strict pecking order and a mistrust of newbies, but ducks and geese , too, hate any sort of change and that change doesn't always need to occur within their own species.
And so, ducks will chase and challenge new hens and visa versa. Geese will chase and honk at anything new even if the victim in question is a dropped piece of paper. And old established cockerels will chase down and batter any new male with a cock of his own and an attitude to match.
It's West Side Story , with webbed feet and fat bills instead of flick knives and a warbling Natalie Wood.
And the air is filled with loud quacking , shrill squawking and hysterical to-nig and fro-nig
Only Bingley is calm
I fed him his treat of dog food this morning and he calmly ate the lot
As all around him descended into chaos
He's obviously completely deaf to all the chaos around him as long as he gets his treat :-)
ReplyDeleteLaying siege to the purple paddling pool is the perfectly proper English thing to do.
ReplyDeleteOr Welsh...
DeleteI wonder how long they will all take to settle, so that peace reigns once more
ReplyDeletethe new ducks have interesting colours. hope all returns to normal soon.
ReplyDeleteOh John! It's Shakespeare with feathers - I now have a vision of a cross between Fiddler on the Roof (cue Ukrainian village) and Baz Luhrman's Romeo and Juliet. Perhaps you need to outfit Bingley with a light blue beret and deploy him as a UN peacekeeper, it sounds as though he's the only sane fowl in village. Hope it all works out without too much stress and bloodshed. xx
ReplyDeleteI always enjoy hearing about your various ducks.
ReplyDeleteHow are Sylvia and Irene taking all this fuss?
ReplyDeleteSounds as if they do not like any interruption of the social hierarchy.
ReplyDeleteAfter that feast Bingley will be ready for a walk to the middle of the zebra crossing
ReplyDelete!!!
DeleteAre the guys still at risk from marauding badgers?
ReplyDeleteI feel exhausted.
ReplyDeleteBingley is the smart one. Ignore the politics and keep your eye on the prize.
ReplyDeleteOnce again, I'm glad I'm not a hen. They seem to get the worst of it.
ReplyDeleteI hope all things calm down and order will be restored soon. And 2) I totally applaud you duck-caring with a little swimming pool! Having to change the water out when we had ducks was a chore I really couldn't deal with, so I was glad to re-home them
ReplyDeleteIt's probably equal mayhem to take them in one at a time as in droves.
ReplyDeleteAny guestimate how long before quiet reigns again? I Like those ducks!
ReplyDeleteGood old Bingley. When I grow up I want to be like him.....calm.
ReplyDeleteSuch is the life of a bird rescuer, chaos before the eventual calm. How old is Bingley now?
ReplyDeleteBeautiful green ducks…not seen them anywhere before!
ReplyDeleteGood God us darn Americans try to take over again, even a lurid purple wadding pool.
ReplyDeleteWhich I kind of like. It looks so festive next to the green plants.
cheers, parsnip.
Perhaps the badger will tire of the squawking and come to restore order.
ReplyDeleteDo the ducks lay eggs?
Your life is a musical John. :)
ReplyDeletePandemonium! Such as Mr Milton never envisaged!
ReplyDeleteNow there's a turkey with his priorities straight.
ReplyDeleteI hope things settle down soon, with no casualties.
Do the old ducks take it in turns to have a little swim and how long do they each get ? Do you have to go out there at intervals with a megaphone. " Come in duck number one, your time is up ' ! XXXX
ReplyDeleteOh! Brilliant comment... laughed out loud!
DeleteGosh, I was thinking the same thing. Or do they all squish in at one time !
DeleteI like Andrews comment. Bingley's always been my fav.
ReplyDeletePretty much like the state of the world then.
ReplyDeleteWe used to have the frog version of that paddling pool, but we called it a sandbox.
ReplyDeleteMaybe it was a turtle.
DeletePecking order isn't just a phrase is it?
ReplyDeleteGood God - it's like the horrid confusion of Northern Iraq/Syria is being replicated across the road from your cottage. You must be President Obama and Chris is David Cameron. You're gonna have to get boots on the ground real soon.
ReplyDeleteGeez, how fortunate that the human race is not territorial like this, eh John?
ReplyDeleteBut the Cayuga ducks sure are pretty!
ReplyDeleteI guess Bingley is too big to worry about what goes on around him. He has his dog food and all is right with his world. :-)
ReplyDeleteHope things settle without too much bloodshed, John.
You could write 50 shades of poultry
ReplyDeleteOnce again, the natural order of life has disrupted & is running afowl in the Ukranian Village. Hope none of the birds meets the same end Piggy did. Makes me think of a fitting rhyme for which the source escapes me - "When in trouble, when in doubt, run in circles, scream & shout". Glad to hear that Bingley is keeping a cool head & not letting his feathers be ruffled by all those crazy ducks & geese. Who knew dog food would be a gastronomic delight for a turkey.
ReplyDeleteJust like turkey would be a gastronomic delight for the dogs, I guess...
DeleteOnly Bingley is calm
ReplyDeleteHe's plotting his big move, which will doubtlessly take place when all of his opponents are worn out from their conflicts.
Just a normal day in Trelawnyd...........
ReplyDeleteYes John, do write a book about it!
I meant to ask for a photo of your new hens, you show me yours and I'll show you mine lol!
ReplyDeleteLike the pool. I got one like that for the girls... they're not made for 80 pound Boxers.
ReplyDelete