First Week Jitters

Hi Everyone!

I just had to share my experience today. For those of you who have responded to my other posts, you know this is my first week with 8-9 week old Blue Orpington pullets. (My first week with any chickens ever actually.) It's been fun and nerve racking...

Today I went to hang out with my little girls in their coop. (I cannot wait to let them out in the yard to free range. They have a nice sized coop, but I can't imagine how boring this must be for them so far.) While I was sitting and talking with them, the youngest one, Truffles, laid in the corner. After a few seconds another of the chickens, Pepper, pecked her and she got up and walked around. Then a little while later, Truffles found a spot in the sun, laid on her side, stretched out her leg, and stretched out her wing. Then all the other chickens ran over to her and (lightly) pecked her. She got up and has seemed totally fine. I thought she was dying! I didn't know chickens ever laid on their side and certainly didn't expect her to stretch out her wing. I was SO upset until I jumped on here and read about how that's normal.

Can I just say how GLAD I am that this forum exists??? These chickens are constantly giving me a heart attack! Someday I'm sure I'll look back and think how silly I was to be so nervous about them all the time, but for now I'm just glad I have a place where I can read about "normal" behavior.

Though I still think it was weird none of the other chickens seemed to want to let her do her thing. :/

Here's a pic of my girls laying together.

I had someone ask me what is wrong with my chickens when they were all sunbathing. They do look like they are dead . . . it's so funny, especially when they are week old babies sleeping with their necks stretched out! I did think they were dead the first time I saw them like that.

As long as your yard is protected from marauding predators, you should be letting your girls out to play right now. Is the reason you aren't because you're afraid you won't be able to get them back into the coop?

Fear not, open the door, and they won't run out right away. They will slowly check things out from the safety of the coop, a brave one will venture out, and the rest will soon follow. They may spend ten minutes outside and probably return to the coop, deciding that's enough for the first time in the big world.

You can teach them to come to you by using the same container of scratch grain or meal worms each time and using a signal command of your choice. They will soon learn to come each time they spot that container in your hand or you issue the verbal command.

But they will naturally return to the coop each evening at dusk, regardless. Never fear.

Thanks for the advice! I haven't let them out yet because they've only lived with me a few days and I wanted to be sure they fully understood this is their home and the coop is their house.

smartgirlchic said:

Thanks for the advice! I haven't let them out yet because they've only lived with me a few days and I wanted to be sure they fully understood this is their home and the coop is their house.

Click to expand...

Good idea!

Best to 'home' them to coop, then the run - until they coop themselves at dusk, then let them range first time shortly before dark, then earlier and earlier as you wish.

And good time to spend time with them in the coop and run so they get used to you and it's just so much fin watching and learning about their behaviors!

Thanks for your reply. I do not have a run right now. Can I just let them range shortly before dark and skip the run? I'm getting close to letting them out of the coop to begin this process...

Well yeah, if you don't have a run then you'll have to skip that part.

Runs are good to have in case you have a predator problems, think about it if it's possible it's good thing to have.

We also don't have a run. We just got our first chickens (adult chickens, not chicks) a week ago Saturday. We started letting them out last Wednesday. We let them out for about an hour in a small playpen/dog yard thing. The next day I let them out most of the day in the pen thing and checked on them every hour or two. The next day I let them free range for several hours while sitting outside keeping an eye on them (would have done some work, but it was way too hot that day). The next day we let them free range all day while checking on them regularly. Now they get to free range all day! They are sooo happy to be out! They are having the time of their life foraging around all over. And they are willing to get pretty close to me when I am out gardening and such. We are all enjoying watching them. And every night they go in on their own and start roosting for the night. I go out every night and throw them some treats and close the door. I hope yours do itas easily as ours did!