Cissie takes over Cloud's life!!!!

The last blog ended with Cloud sitting on a plastic egg that I’d given her for a replacement for the dud and Cissie and Sultan getting it on in Chino’s box.

That evening about 9.15pm when it was getting gloomy I went out to the kitchen and spied Cloud coming out into the main part of the hutch – her vibe screamed ‘Rescue me!’, so I went out to her and found she had tottered back to the inner part.There I found her sitting on the part that was not the nest - with the plastic egg tossed out and rejected. I took her back inside the house to her normal night-box in the spare room. If she is sitting on an egg, real or false, then the hutch is pretty safe, but it can’t be as safe as the spare room, so if she doesn’t want to sit she may as well be inside the house.

Wed 24.6.15 – First thing I sorted out the inside of Chino’s box which Cissie and Sultan will use for a nest, if it gets that far. I laid newspaper down, then put a low shallow medium-size box inside with a bit of towelling in it, and a small piece of carpet on top. Over the top of the box I draped an old bit of plastic tablecloth to make it darker and keep out the damp, with another little towel over the top, as that’s what Chino stands on. I intend to leave Chino there, as it’s her place really, unless Cissie and Sultan are horrible to her – but I will probably have to put her in Cissie’s run when I go out. That means Cloud and Chino would at least be safe – and if Sultan and Cissie want to nest build then I will have to leave them to take their chance. It’s not really a good place for a nest at all!

When Cloud was taken to the hutch, she went in and sat in her egg-less nest – well what she does in the hutch is her decision, but she will be taken out in the afternoon to enjoy the sunshine. She’s spent too many hours sitting in the dark, on the route down a blind alley that didn’t lead to motherhood.

Midday – I got home to find Sultan cooing in Chino’s box and Cissie wandering around. Come on, he said, this can be a nice cosy little nest. Er, NO! said Cissie, why would I want the basement when I can have the penthouse? As soon as I opened up the top of the hutch and put the ‘ladder’ up , she had scooted up there and enticed Sultan in to Cloud’s old nest! So she’s not only taken Cloud’s husband but she’s also taken over her home!!!  Oh well.... poor old Cloud, she will just have to take over the run for now. All this chopping and changing!

MUCH LATER - that entry was 24th June and now it is 12th July '15, and much has happened but though I kept notes earlier on, blogger or Word lost them again, or I didn't save or something, so I will have to just precis all that happened using my photos. So back to 24th June again, and this was what was inside Cloud's egg - an embryo that stopped developing - probably due to lack of sitting from Cloud/Sultan.

So Cloud's dreams came to nothing, and here's Cissie having taken over her man and her home!

Sultan, looking a bit guilty, and Cissie in the hutch

25th June -

 Above, Dora, a little pigeon, ringed by me this year and below, Mr. Strong. His sweet mate, Frances, died or went missing some while ago now, and he teamed up with Blackie (white dove)

 Above, flock on the lawn (some of them!) and below

Sultan mates with Cissie in the hutch, while underneath there is all sorts

of kerfuffle going on. You can see Chino, brown and Cloud, white

 - while jackdaws eye up the situation for potential food.

Friday 26th June 15 - This is Lucky and Lottie's baby. I'm calling him/her Selfie as he is all by himself!  He's about six days old.

27.6.15 - Selfie's sibling egg did not hatch and was left in the nest. Today I noticed it was sticky and smelly, so I removed it from the cote.

 I cracked it - inky foul stuff, digusting!

When Cloud was Sultan's favourite lady, then Cissie wanted to take her place - now Cissie is there, 

Chino is trying to muscle in! Sultan talks to Chino through the mesh for a while.....

But, sorry, love, he says - I have to go back to Cissie and the egg!

A pigeon turned up with severe lumps or cysts - with some bleeding. I treated it with the special gel I use. You can't really see the extent of the state of it here - but it could eat and fly - I just grabbed it while it was feeding, so I didn't keep it as I really have enough to do anyway. I saw it again two days later, but not since.

Sun 28th June 15 - 

 Above, Selfie in the nestbox about 8 days old

Below - Three's a crowd!- Chino (brown) tries to get involved with 

Sultan and Cissie's nest. I had to remove her!

 Below - Sultan

 Below - Pandora - if you look closely you will see how her beak curls up from her

injury two years ago - but she can eat perfectly well.

When I was feeding on the island, a little bird turned up with an injury that made me gasp. She's a little stock dove and had obviously somehow got away from a sparrowhawk or other predator. Her feathers had been stripped off her head and there was some bleeding/damage to her skull, plus feathers stripped from her body too. 

 I didn't attempt to catch her as it would probably have been impossible as these are shy birds, and not necessary as she could fly. I felt the best thing to do would be make sure she got some food, as she hovered on the outskirts of the feral pigeon flock at first. But over several days, recovered her spirits, and started to make a good recovery.

 Above is the chimney in the spare room - with draught excluder as you can see. I went in there for something, just by chance, and heard a rustle which made me wonder if a pigeon had fallen down the chimney. It's awkward to push the draught excluder up - and extract a pigeon, but I did it. Cinderella here - given a drink of water and a green ring before release - was a lucky one. I don't think she'd been there long. One bird died down that chimney as I didn't realise it was there. Two others were rescued from the chimney in the other spare room. It sounds a lot but only Cinderella, Peace and one other - plus the one that died in the 11 years I have been living here.

Cissie laid an egg today and by the evening of 1st July another one. I saw Cissie in the outside part of the hutch, and her attitude told me something was wrong, so I went to have a look. One egg had somehow got smashed in the nest - maybe it only had a thin shell, I don't know. I cleaned up the nest, put a bit more hay down, and placed the other egg there but she had been totally put off and by the next day the egg had disappeared.....where has it gone?

 I found it tucked away in the side under the towel! Obviously hidden on purpose.

3.7.15 - 

Jackdaw - perfectly alright, just sunbathing on one of the hottest days of the year

.

4.7.15 - Cissie's egg has been hidden, ignored and abandoned - what a shame..... it's such a perfect little egg

I cracked it.... then disposed of it

 Selfie again, developing nice little feathers - an odd one or two with black markings

Scalpie, the stock dove, Lumpy with the cysts and Cinderella have not been the only birds with problems. Two pigeons died on the second hottest day of the year - though plenty of fresh water in my garden and always topped up. Another bird arrived with sticky black industrial tape round it's foot - I threw down peanuts then grabbed it so I could remove it before it did any damage. A white dove somehow got in the conservatory - and smashed some of my cacti pots but was none the worst itself!

A little racing pigeon was on the patio one evening - obviously exhausted and probably hungry. I took her in for the night, fed and watered her - and she's stayed around, probably thinking this is a better deal than having to fly miles in the heat without finding food!

 Little racer, this year's bird - bottom on the roof - and then a close up

 Below - Selfie's getting big and curious - about 3 weeks old

 Below - see the smudge of black on him - just like Daddy Lucky!

 He has very pretty markings

Friday 10th July 2013 - I fell in love! ....... more in the next blog which I will be publishing asap!

To be cont.......