9 week old chicks behind in development?

[OneChickenTwoChicken]

So I have two chickens who are about 9~ weeks old. We got them when they were about 1 to 2 weeks old and they've been outside ever since about 6-7~ weeks old

The problem is, they don't know how to 'chicken' as I would say?

Usually chickens absolutely demolish your backyard in their scratching around for worms. However these two don't do that at all. They might scratch around a little bit but they mostly just try to eat plants off the ground. (Unsuccessfully at that as well because they don't know how to tear off chunks of plants.) Anything that can't be eaten whole has to be broken into tiny pieces for them since they can't/won't do it themselves.

They also like to stand around on the porch all day sometimes which mean they aren't foraging.

The biggest problem is that they don't seem to know how to find their own water/will only drink from a specific waterer. The issue is that the waterer is from is homemade and beaten up. So I'm afraid they'll stop drinking entirely when it runs its course.

How can I best help them so they can 'chicken' properly? Thank you.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

We have two pullets we hatched here ourselves last April that were just about that stupid at that age. We named them Dipstick and Dingbat and they're not much smarter, to this day. If there was an open gate in front of them, they couldn't follow the other 18 hens through it without getting lost. The two of them still hang out together and are not well integrated with the flock, as if they don't know they are chickens. I guess some chickens are just ... dumb. Get a new waterer, put it beside the old one, and put some pretty marbles in it. Maybe that will entice them to drink. Good luck!

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Oh ... and, have you tried tossing a little scratch or worms on the ground to get them to scratch and peck? (Although our D & D were afraid of the dried worms, sigh. They do eat them now, though.)

 

[NatJ]

You might check to be sure they can see. Medical issues are rare but they do happen sometimes.

What kind of chickens are they?

Extra feathers are a real problem with some breeds (big floppy crests hang down over the eyes, or fluffy muffs on the sides of the face block vision downward or in front.) This is probably not the cause of your chicks problem, because of how young they were when it started (too young to have that many feathers yet.)

Some chickens grow so big and fast that they have trouble walking, so they do not forage much. But those chickens usually do fine with eating and drinking, so that probably does not explain the issue with the waterer.

And as @BigBlueHen53 suggested, they might just be chickens who are less smart than most other chickens.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

@OneChickenTwoChicken if you know what breed they are, look up the description of them in the hatchery catalog. Some breeds are noted as being "good foragers" while others are not. You'd think that all chickens would be, but apparently that's not the case. Perhaps yours fall in the "not so much" category.

 

[OneChickenTwoChicken]

@BigBlueHen53, they're Rhode Island Reds as far as I'm aware and I don't think their behavior is caused by any medical issues. They walk, run and fly fine.

I have tried throwing some mealworms for them, except half of the time they don't seem to understand that food on the ground is up for grabs? They just look at it until I come over and feed it to them. Maybe they have a problem with their eyes? I checked today and they seem fine so they really might just be less than intelligent chickens.

I'll try the waterer trick after the marbles arrive. Thanks so much!

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Keep us posted!

 

[OneChickenTwoChicken]

Update: I don't have the marbles so I opted for something shiny, thinking that would work. In hindsight, I definitely should've thought it out better. I ended up using an earring to try to help them drink the water, annnd one of them ATE the earring. She dipped her beak into the water though to get to it, so progress? But I think they inherited my lack of common sense...

 

[NatJ]

Update: I don't have the marbles so I opted for something shiny, thinking that would work. In hindsight, I definitely should've thought it out better. I ended up using an earring to try to help them drink the water, annnd one of them ATE the earring. She dipped her beak into the water though to get to it, so progress? But I think they inherited my lack of common sense...

Shiny pebbles will work too. Or sometimes even pebbles that aren't shiny, because they still make it look like there is something in the water to peck. The usual idea is to have it be something too big for them to eat, as you obviously discovered.

 

[thecatumbrella]

Mine took a little while to start foraging behavior. I actually posted on BYC asking if they were depressed because they just sat in a cuddle puddle most of the day. Once the combs and wattles started coming in, they became super active.