At the end of my rope with 3 1/2 week-old chick.

[thecatumbrella]

I've posted about Tilly, my sexed female Frizzle Mottled Cochin Bantam, before. Her energy levels have been off the charts since Day 1. That's not the problem.

She's a jerk to me and my husband.

We spend lots of gentle, calm time with our chicks. Slow and careful handling. "Bite" training with yelps and appropriate peck corrections. Now we're getting "attacked" (if you can call it that from something as small as a mouse) in the brooder. She postures and bites when I need to remove another chick for its vitamin treatment. Postures and bites when I clean shavings out of the food (I wait until she's under the plate, but she'll come out for a confrontation). Every bite gets her picked up, carried around, and bopped on the head.

My other two chicks are Silkies, and it's starting to affect my interactions with them. Seeing Tilly get constant corrections, snatched out of the air, listening to her constant cries as she's carried around in punishment... they're becoming fearful of us, because why wouldn't they?!

I have a sneaking suspicion that Tilly's a roo. I mean, she grew little wattles at two weeks-old.

Any advice? Has any re-homed a young chick before? We're about to hit 4 weeks of this BS. I'm leery of going down to two chicks for the integration period; if anything, Tilly is a nice buffer chick between the Silkies and the older Cochin Bantams. But I'm starting to feel done with this bird.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Can you share a picture? Some chicks are just more vigorous. I would just block it when it approaches. Sometimes handling them too much makes them too forward.

 

[Chicken Heel]

Today I placed fresh shavings in my brooder coop and my 18 bantams that range from 5 - 8 weeks scampered around my boots being curious. But without any signs of aggression. I don’t make a habit of treating chickens or turkeys like puppies or kittens though.

 

[thecatumbrella]

Can you share a picture? Some chicks are just more vigorous. I would just block it when it approaches. Sometimes handling them too much makes them too forward.

Pics attached from this morning. 3 weeks 6 days old.

Other than her taking the walk of shame after a hard bite, I only handle for health reasons or transport. I do try to desensitize them to hands in the brooder so that they're not petrified of us (with hand cleaning instead of using tools, or tapping on their food/water/toys to encourage wanted behaviors). The shy Silkies seem to benefit from it, but it does give Tilly more opportunities to misbehave.

Thanks for your help.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Pics attached from this morning. 3 weeks 6 days old.

Other than her taking the walk of shame after a hard bite, I only handle for health reasons or transport. I do try to desensitize them to hands in the brooder so that they're not petrified of us (with hand cleaning instead of using tools, or tapping on their food/water/toys to encourage wanted behaviors). The shy Silkies seem to benefit from it, but it does give Tilly more opportunities to misbehave.

Thanks for your help.

It's very adorable, and looks like a tyrant. If it's a male the comb will generally turn pink than red by 5 weeks.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Pics attached from this morning. 3 weeks 6 days old.

Other than her taking the walk of shame after a hard bite, I only handle for health reasons or transport. I do try to desensitize them to hands in the brooder so that they're not petrified of us (with hand cleaning instead of using tools, or tapping on their food/water/toys to encourage wanted behaviors). The shy Silkies seem to benefit from it, but it does give Tilly more opportunities to misbehave.

Thanks for your help.

With that comb, I'd be very suspicious of male.