chicken sounds- what do they mean?

[Pinky]

I have always wondered what the "bok bok bok bok bok BAGERK" sound means - I have read that it can mean either laying or predators - but our chicken does it with neither of those cues. She will often do it when the other hen is laying an egg, almost as if to announce that the other hen is laying, but I would've thought that this wouldn't be a great strategy - announcing to possible predators that there is a hen all vulnerable on a nest!

The egg song is a way to distract potential predators from the nest. It allows the chicken to get the predator's attention so the nest stays hidden and unharmed, the eggs can't protect themselves.

 

[dreamcatcherarabians]

My birds trill and coo and purr a lot, I LOVE the sounds they make. When I walk into the yard, I'm always sort of 'talking' back to them, kind of sing songing "Bokka Bokka Bokka Bok, bokka bok, bokka bok bok bok", silly stuff like that. They all come running to see what's going on and to see if I have food. I hear them talking and I bet they're saying stuff like, "Poor thing, that accent is GAWD awful but she tries, Bless her heart!" or "OH LOOK! She's got those RED sleippers on, let's go peck 'em!". I pick them up and give 'em a quick cuddle and I can hear them sort of mumbling, "MMMMMM this jacket's toasty." LOL! I love sitting in their coop at night when it gets dark and they all come and 'roost' on my shoulders and legs, a couple in my lap and they all start that purrrrrrrrr, it's just soooo relaxing. Who knew these girls were such great conversationalists?

I always grew up thinking chickens were just dumber than dirt, but as I've raised more and more of them, I find that just isn't so. They constantly amaze me with how smart they are for having such tiny little brains.

 

[tigerfurie]

my chickens make lots of different sounds. if one gets seperated from the flock it wil make a lot of short bocks and then one loud long bacaw. when they are in the coop and want to get out they make a couple long bocks. sometimes my sweet chicken speckles will stand completly still (sometimes on one foot) for a couple of minutes the whole time making a low soft caw.

 

[trooper]

I find that my birds are spoiled.When I go down in the morning to feed them they are waiting at the end of the run making all kinds of sounds.The ones that aren't outside when I go out are running as hard as they can with wings moving to get to me.I have a Red Sex Link that follows me around making a sweet sound.I have a Blue Wynadotte Rooster that growls at me when he thinks I'm threatening his ladies.He also makes a different sound when he is chasing my Buff Rooster away from his girls.

My Brother-in-law went to see my chickens one day.As he turned the corner to go to them they were heading towards him.When they realized that it wasn't me they stopped,turned around and headed back to the other end of the run.He was surprised.

 

[Xtineart]

I love the sounds my girls make, everything from really high pitched OMYGOSHWE'RESOEXCITED squeaks, to loud, almost forceful purrs. The egg song in the morning, the Help help help buk-buk-buk-bukaww when something is wrong, a predator or as yesterday when one of the girls got her leg stuck and couldnt get free, the others came screaming for help from me. Dafties.

My big betsy lady has a long low whooooooo whoooooooo noise like an owl when she wants my attention, whereas ginger goes 'toot-toot' which I find hilarious. Naomi even has a purrup??? which sounds like she's asking a question.

I could listen to them all day, especially when they are happy out in the garden with me and spend time purring and chirping.

 

[SVTechChick]

My girls each make different sounds, and my daughter wanted me to look them up. The New Hampshire makes a racket while she's laying, and then general clucking noise... bucka bucka buck...as she goes about her day. The austrolorp is a silent layer, but she talks a little and sings alot, almost like a whistle. The EE cackles, makes a little noise as she lays, and screams her bloody head if if she sees a predator. The barred rock has a very plaintive voice, almost like a mourning dove, and clucks when she lays. I'm assuming the trills, whistles, and singing are happy noises, and i can tell which one is headed my way based on their voice.

 

[fortoria]

I have a hen who...best I can describe is "cries" to us for prolonged periods of time.
I'm familiar with other chicken sounds and this one is unusual to me.

We know it's directed at us because she stands as close as she can to our bedroom window (where she knows we can see and hear her) and cries or wails until one of us comes outside. She then seems to mostly want us to hang out with her, pet her; she'll come sit in a lap briefly, peck at our clothes a bit then hop off. Sometimes she just stays close and browses.

We hand - raised our three girls and held them regularly but figured they'd forget about it/be more independent as adults. I've had hens in the past who have obviously associated humans with food and safety (or at least as the closest thing to a rooster) but have never heard/experienced this much of an attachment. I've been trying to eliminate any other possibilities because I can't believe that she just misses us and wants to see us, but she'll still do it even if she has everything she needs (food, water, etc).

It'd be cute if it wasn't really loud and I worry that it might bother the neighbors. It's about as loud as a rooster call.

Anyone else experience this or have any other insight?

 

[BestChickens1]

Yes, that happened to my hens before, they call when others are laying eggs but not when they are.