Do Chickens Get Married?

[kcan2]

We once purchase a pair of silkies and integrated them onto a flock of hens and one rooster.

The silkie pair stuck together, the silkie rooster took absolutely no interest in any of the other hens and the silkie hen would boss our other rooster around so he would never bother her.

When the silkie hen went broody, the silkie rooster stayed with her the ENTIRE time, they would actually sit on the egg together.
The egg hatched and the were the best parents ever, they cared so well for it.

To me it truly was like they were married and had a little family! They were such an interesting and unique family. I had never seen anything like them before!

What a sweet story about your monogamous chicken pair!

 

[BDutch]

I dont like this experiment at all. Chickens are not human. And the setup is awful.

 

[Shadrach]

I cannot find any scientific article that addresses. I vaguely recall an account on Grey / Sonnerat's Jungle fowl where male roosted with juveniles. Cannot find that now. Behavior described not as intense as the games I have watched.

I've found that the junior roosters here in family flocks respond to any family chicks after mother has finished being broody. Some are more attentive than others but the responses to distress calls and the checking on the chicks who may not yet have learnt to follow the main tribe is fairly obvious under observation. While not the same level of responsibility you are seeing, It does demonstrate some of the same capacities.

 

[aart]

I dont like this experiment at all. Chickens are not human. And the setup is awful.

Don't you worry, this guy knows what he's doing.

 

[Manhen]

Yes. We bought 3 batches of 30 birds last summer, and a few days ago I moved the roosters to free-range outside of the pen. One, a Dominique, is always hanging around the fence with one full-feathered leghorn pining on the other side. They miss each other.

 

[centrarchid]

Congrats, @centrarchid! I'm glad, this is a thread I am happy to follow and this makes it easier to find. You guys get a little technical for me sometimes but what I am wondering now is, what do the kids think? Do chickens (in their minds) get married? Was there a ceremony? Singing, flowers? How did the kids know it had happened -because there were eggs? How will you explain removing the rooster from the nesting area? Will they think a divorce occurred? (I'm all about the kids!) Thanks!

They can form bonds between members in a flock. Such bonded birds can work as a team against birds outside the group. The kids are seeing marriage is hard to define unless it is recognized outside the family unit. With humans it is pretty much the same and in most western cultures there is paperwork as well.

The kids are seeing the rooster is being a problem and needs to be removed. I am already explaining that the rooster is acting a lot like someone stuck in jail for a while. He is acting out on impulses he cannot control because he is stressed. When the kids where younger, they watched several times how the rooster's free-ranging parents worked much more as a team. The kids are learning haphazardly that how a family functions can be impacted by the situation the family is in.

Later we may let the rooster interact with the hen and brood, but free-ranging will not be option this year because of all the rooster pens placed near the house. I am making so we have two wooded areas to keep rooster pens during the summer so they are kept out of sun and storm winds. A lot of brush removal will be followed by placing pens over cleared area to help manage vegetation that comes up later. This needed for when we get sheep as pens will be moved around a lot in concert with paddock rotation for sheep.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

They can form bonds between members in a flock. Such bonded birds can work as a team against birds outside the group. The kids are seeing marriage is hard to define unless it is recognized outside the family unit. With humans it is pretty much the same and in most western cultures there is paperwork as well.

The kids are seeing the rooster is being a problem and needs to be removed. I am already explaining that the rooster is acting a lot like someone stuck in jail for a while. He is acting out on impulses he cannot control because he is stressed. When the kids where younger, they watched several times how the rooster's free-ranging parents worked much more as a team. The kids are learning haphazardly that how a family functions can be impacted by the situation the family is in.

Later we may let the rooster interact with the hen and brood, but free-ranging will not be option this year because of all the rooster pens placed near the house. I am making so we have two wooded areas to keep rooster pens during the summer so they are kept out of sun and storm winds. A lot of brush removal will be followed by placing pens over cleared area to help manage vegetation that comes up later. This needed for when we get sheep as pens will be moved around a lot in concert with paddock rotation for sheep.

I see. This sounds like a wonderful learning experience for your kids. Thank you for giving them this very practical real-life experience, and also for taking the time to share it here.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

We once purchase a pair of silkies and integrated them onto a flock of hens and one rooster.

The silkie pair stuck together, the silkie rooster took absolutely no interest in any of the other hens and the silkie hen would boss our other rooster around so he would never bother her.

When the silkie hen went broody, the silkie rooster stayed with her the ENTIRE time, they would actually sit on the egg together.
The egg hatched and the were the best parents ever, they cared so well for it.

To me it truly was like they were married and had a little family! They were such an interesting and unique family. I had never seen anything like them before!

Awww. I love this story! ❤

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I dont like this experiment at all. Chickens are not human. And the setup is awful.

I don't see that it is hurting the chickens, it is temporary, and it is an object lesson for the children.

 

[trudyg]

We had a pullet get grabbed by a hawk several years ago. The damage made her blind and one little cockerel stayed by her side day and night. He would steer her where they needed to go. Already had a good roo, so he had to go and they went as a pair.