could she be deaf or just a late sleeper?

[rainbowgardens]

Twice now in the past week or so, as I let my 13 week old girls out of the tractor, I notice one is missing.
When I peek in to look for her I find that she's sitting snuggled up on the roost sleeping. I call to her, but she doesn't move. When I open the lid she wakes up, jumps down, looks around and notices everyone else has left and she runs out to start the day.

Since all of my chickens are the same breed, I can't tell them apart. When they were only a few weeks old, I remember encountering one occasionally snoozing when the others were up. Since I can't tell her apart from the others, I don't know if she's the same one. I also can't observe her behavior throughout the day. I do know my little sleepyhead is always on the same spot of the roost when I find her, so I think it's the same one.

 

[Judy]

Interesting. Don't see why a chicken couldn't be deaf. Or maybe she is not a morning chicken.

I'd probably spray paint a little spot on her back to ID her. A leg band would be handy, of course. Zip ties don't work, don't ask me how I know.

 

[texaschickmama]

Try banding her leg with something to make sure it's the same one. If she is not acting sick in anyway, being deaf is a real possibility.

 

[DTchickens]

I think i remember reading that it's "impossible?" for a bird to be deaf because they'll regrow "Whatever they use.. i forget"?.. It was on a thread about how to decrow a rooster and one of the theories is if they couldn't hear, he wouldn't crow (go figure how that's gonna work..).

 

[rainbowgardens]

I'll look at tractor supply for leg bands, been thinking about banding them anyway for monitoring purposes.

You don't think marking or banding them would lead to any picking problems, do you?

She seems very alert and energetic after I wake her. I would think if she was sick she would be slow and sluggish. She just seems surprised that everyone else is gone, and runs out looking for them, stretching her neck up to see over the bushes.

 

[EweSheep]

Either she is a sound sleeper or deaf but either way she would be ok!

She will have to be dependent on her flock members to do the hearing for her if she goes out to free range.

 

[Uppity Peon]

If you want to know if your chicken is deaf, they clapping your hands and look for a reaction. I'm sure mine would all stop what they were doing and give me the look.