"Chickens Show Empathy" - we knew that already...

[Erica]

I farm my birds... They're not pets. But I had a hen try to pick the catching net up off another hen. She was looking me in the face, squawking angrily at me and trying to pick the net up. I have no doubt she was trying to help the other hen get away.

They do the cruelest things sometimes. This was one time when it was the opposite.

 

[Momo]

Well said, GallusGal!

 

[ARose4Heaven]

hens cruel??? Have you watched the local news lately? I would say that human beings have a corner on the cruel market.

 

[donnavee]

We have a flock of hens but for a little while last year had a rooster. As he was coming into his randy teens, he tried to jump all the girls. Most of the time they escaped him - but once I witnessed him get one of the older girls down and one of her "sisters" that was on a roost a good 10ft away took a flying leap and knocked him off. At that point he gave up and she walked away with a "job done" look on her face. I'm not sure if she was actually protecting her "sister", but it sure seemed that way.