2.5 Month Old Silkie Who Doesn't Like Human Interaction

[ChattyChickens4Life]

Hi everyone! Thanks in advance for all your help. I hope I can find some information to help with my little silkie problem! So here's the basic information. I have a small flock of 5, two and a half month old female chickens. They were all raised by me from day one. I was (and still am) with them all the time, talking to them and handling them frequently and gently. Our 4 Easter Eggers are sweet as can be! They come running to the run door when they see me, and are constantly in my lap. They just love to hop up on me! However, our one silkie, Sunny seems to shy away from me. Although she comes running like the rest, she doesn't seems to want to be around me. If I reach down slowly to pick her up, she runs like there is fire at her feet. Occasionally she will walk up to me and climb on my shoes, and sometimes even let me reach down and pet her. Once she is in my lap, she calms down and lays there forever. In case you were wondering, all of my chickens get along great. There has been no pecking, feather pulling, or other problems. So if anyone could let me know why Sunny is acting this way, I would greatly appreciate it. Maybe it's just that awkward teenage behavior? Thanks again!

 

[sourland]

Chickens are basically prey animals. Some just retain more of the 'fear' that is normal to save them from predation. Generally allowing them to approach on their own terms is better than approaching them - especially from above.

 

[NNYchick]

I noticed my silkies are more stand offish when younger, as they age they become more comfortable. Sit with her on your lap and hand feed her mealworms. You may have to start with sitting on the ground tossing treats closer and closer to you. I would spend time with just her.

 

[MageofMist]

My hens went like that when they became close to laying age, despite being clingy buggers that'd cry for my attention as chicks. They calmed down though once their hormones settled and they started laying eggs, and I get buried in purring fluff if I sit down with them around and they all follow me and my dad for treats, but they do freak out a little if my dad picks them up, while they are almost always fine with me picking them up.

 

[ChattyChickens4Life]

Chickens are basically prey animals. Some just retain more of the 'fear' that is normal to save them from predation. Generally allowing them to approach on their own terms is better than approaching them - especially from above.

Thanks you so much for the information!

 

[ChattyChickens4Life]

I noticed my silkies are more stand offish when younger, as they age they become more comfortable. Sit with her on your lap and hand feed her mealworms. You may have to start with sitting on the ground tossing treats closer and closer to you. I would spend time with just her.

Thanks so much! I was just down there with her. I had her in my lap as I fed her some feed straight from my hand. She seemed to calm down a bit.

 

[ChattyChickens4Life]

My hens went like that when they became close to laying age, despite being clingy buggers that'd cry for my attention as chicks. They calmed down though once their hormones settled and they started laying eggs, and I get buried in purring fluff if I sit down with them around and they all follow me and my dad for treats, but they do freak out a little if my dad picks them up, while they are almost always fine with me picking them up.

Alright thank you! Hopefully Sunny will calm down within the next few months. Thanks again!

 

[Patinas]

I have a wide range of "friendliness" in my flock in that some really like me and follow me around and want to jump into my lap or just hang out at my feet. Some want nothing to do with me and keep their distance. Some are just completely neutral in that, they don't fear me but have zero interest in interacting with me.

What I have found is the more you ignore them, the more they are willing to approach you. If I try to initiate the contact, even the friendly ones will move away from my hand so I don't try to touch them unless they initiate the contact.

I suspect trying to reach for them and them moving away is a natural instinct and a good one to have since mine free range part of the day. I think if I was always the one initiating the contact, it would just reinforce that instinct of "something is trying to get me".

Lastly, I've come to understand that chickens, like all humans and animals, have their own personalities and they are never all going to behave the same. I'm fine that some don't like me much and I'll probably never gain their full trust but that's okay. I never went into raising chickens with the intent to make them all lap chickens. I view them all as pets but I don't have to touch and hold them for them to qualify as my pet.

So my best advice is to ignore her unless she initiates the contact. If she runs if you try to make contact at that point, let her go and try the next time she seeks you out. Even my friendly ones want to interact with me on their terms so I let them have their way.

 

[ChattyChickens4Life]

I have a wide range of "friendliness" in my flock in that some really like me and follow me around and want to jump into my lap or just hang out at my feet. Some want nothing to do with me and keep their distance. Some are just completely neutral in that, they don't fear me but have zero interest in interacting with me.

What I have found is the more you ignore them, the more they are willing to approach you. If I try to initiate the contact, even the friendly ones will move away from my hand so I don't try to touch them unless they initiate the contact.

I suspect trying to reach for them and them moving away is a natural instinct and a good one to have since mine free range part of the day. I think if I was always the one initiating the contact, it would just reinforce that instinct of "something is trying to get me".

Lastly, I've come to understand that chickens, like all humans and animals, have their own personalities and they are never all going to behave the same. I'm fine that some don't like me much and I'll probably never gain their full trust but that's okay. I never went into raising chickens with the intent to make them all lap chickens. I view them all as pets but I don't have to touch and hold them for them to qualify as my pet.

So my best advice is to ignore her unless she initiates the contact. If she runs if you try to make contact at that point, let her go and try the next time she seeks you out. Even my friendly ones want to interact with me on their terms so I let them have their way.

That makes sense! Thanks so much and I will try this! Hopefully she will see me as friend and not foe!

 

[Patinas]

That makes sense! Thanks so much and I will try this! Hopefully she will see me as friend and not foe!

I forgot to add, your skittish one will see the others interacting with you and that will help too. Chickens very much teach each other what is good/bad and safe/unsafe. One of the hens most afraid of me early on and lowest in the pecking order now loves to sit on my lap but it took a few months of just ignoring her and her watching the head hen hanging out with me. One magical day while I was sitting on the patio, the lowly hen suddenly jumped in my lap and from that day on, she is the second friendliest in the whole flock!

This may sound silly but since then, she has a lot more confidence and tries to assert herself more within the flock like, not letting them bully her off the treat trays. She used to not even try to approach the treat trays because inevitably, someone would give her a hard peck and she'd run off and not get any treats. Now, she is allowed to eat off the trays. There is still the occasional peck at her but she ignores it and just moves away from the one that pecked her but she doesn't run away from them anymore.