In theory I'm rushing things with the 2 new chickens, since I got them yesterday. I spent most of the afternoon with them, changed their living arrangments 3 times. Cooked them food while I wait for the feed delivery. Picked them up, put them down, lot of handling. Mostly the Roo. I had them free range in the back yard for a bit, after leaving them in the "coop" for an hour. They stayed with me, which I thought odd.
So this morning, I put the dogs up, and made everyone breakfast, and let the chickens out of the coop. With supervision, there's a family of Hawks teaching their young to hunt, so even if they stay close... don't trust the hawks. One flew over while I was out there.
But the coolest thing, I sat down about 10 feet from the coop, and when they were done eating they came over and foraged near me, like tails touching my knees, backs turned to me, like they trusted I wasn't going to do anything.
Then I got up and started walking away, and they followed me! Turned another way, sat down, they followed me! Every time I sat down, they'd hang close.
I've noticed that they don't know good food free range style even if it's staring them in the face. They're eating some icky weeds, and ignoring sweeter clover. So I picked some clover and made noises with it and tossed it to them.
They don't scratch in the dirt at all to hunt. So I start using my hand to do it. Tossing perfectly good worms that they totally ignored. I know chickens like worms, when I had chickens before I couldn't dig not one hole without their "help".
As soon as they saw me with a shovel, they'd follow to help with the digging. Very slow process, but funny. Shovel in, dirt out, chickens in. Shoo chickens out, another shovel of dirt, chickens in, shoo them out. By the time there any depth to the hole, you were shoveling chickens out sitting on top of the pile of dirt on the shovel. Lucky no one lost a toe.
But these two, no interest in bugs. I guess they'll figure it out. Maybe the next 2 or 3 hens I add will be able to show them.
Really cool that they're pets already though.
So this morning, I put the dogs up, and made everyone breakfast, and let the chickens out of the coop. With supervision, there's a family of Hawks teaching their young to hunt, so even if they stay close... don't trust the hawks. One flew over while I was out there.
But the coolest thing, I sat down about 10 feet from the coop, and when they were done eating they came over and foraged near me, like tails touching my knees, backs turned to me, like they trusted I wasn't going to do anything.
Then I got up and started walking away, and they followed me! Turned another way, sat down, they followed me! Every time I sat down, they'd hang close.
I've noticed that they don't know good food free range style even if it's staring them in the face. They're eating some icky weeds, and ignoring sweeter clover. So I picked some clover and made noises with it and tossed it to them.
They don't scratch in the dirt at all to hunt. So I start using my hand to do it. Tossing perfectly good worms that they totally ignored. I know chickens like worms, when I had chickens before I couldn't dig not one hole without their "help".
As soon as they saw me with a shovel, they'd follow to help with the digging. Very slow process, but funny. Shovel in, dirt out, chickens in. Shoo chickens out, another shovel of dirt, chickens in, shoo them out. By the time there any depth to the hole, you were shoveling chickens out sitting on top of the pile of dirt on the shovel. Lucky no one lost a toe.
But these two, no interest in bugs. I guess they'll figure it out. Maybe the next 2 or 3 hens I add will be able to show them.
Really cool that they're pets already though.
