Do not go quiet into that dark night

[aart]

In hindsight, I don't know why anybody would advise against talking.

I don't know either.
Voice is definitely key, as is wrapping hands around those wings and holding on tight.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

oh, K0k0shka, you paint such wonderful word pictures! Thank you for this! I love your stories/ experiences! Poor rooster.... I can just imagine how he felt, lol. We usually deal with our chickens at night too, bc they are not hand tame, but we approach talking to each other, The Man and I. Never thought about it being important for the chooks to hear our voices, we are just not in the habit of shutupping, lol. They mostly do okay (for leg greasing, wing trimming, etc.), except for one or two who see thenselves as the Alarm Belles (see what I did there?). Thanks for the literary reference, too! I also feared you had lost one of your beloved birds, glad that was not the case - at least not in the terminal sense! ❤

 

[K0k0shka]

I’ve never had this issue with my older chickens since mine recognize my footsteps. It’s actually quite annoying since I can’t sneak up on them even when I want too. But I have panicked chicks before. Luckily nobody escaped when this happened.

I think by now I've been there often enough at night that they know if somebody opens the door, it's gonna be me (nobody else goes out there at night). So they're fine even if I don't talk at first, though I always make a point to talk to them just in case. Sometimes I pet them, too, which they are fine with even if they can't see me, as long as they can hear my voice. With those particular chickens back then, I just hadn't had a reason to be in the coop at night, and they weren't used to it, maybe that's why they freaked out like that.

 

[K0k0shka]

I love the family portraits on the coop walls.

I totally missed those! Looooove it!!!

Thanks! My kids drew those as a housewarming present to the chickens when I built their coop.

 

[K0k0shka]

Absolutely agree! When my chooks are sounding off because of cat or strange human, my voice is what quiets and calms them.
Good fun story ♡♡♡ Dylan Thomas, rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Oh definitely! Mine are VERY comforted by my voice and presence in the face of any perceived danger. If something spooks them during the day, they'll flee for cover and sometimes even go into the coop to hide (I spy on them through the coop/run cameras). But if I'm out there with them and they get spooked, they start heading for cover but then I talk to them, and they pause, and come to me or go back to what they were doing, and don't hide. And if any one of them is being chased or bullied by another, she'll come to me or hide behind me for protection. It's heart-meltingly endearing And surprisingly long-lasting! Last year I rehomed another cockerel I couldn't keep, at 1 month old. He was very bonded to me. I visited him occasionally, something like once a month, and he always remembered me and came to me, sat in my lap etc. My visits grew farther apart and it had been a few months since I last saw him, when one day I went to visit him again. He'd been bullied by another cockerel, who went after him as I stood there watching that day, and my buddy ran straight for me and ducked behind my legs! There were other places to hide, but he specifically ran for me. He was about 8 months old at the time, and hadn't been in my care for 7 of those months. His new owner said he doesn't do that with her, but she doesn't spend time with her chickens so hasn't really bonded with them. I didn't think he'd still remember me, let alone seek me out for comfort and protection, but he clearly did. The depth of the bonds they form continues to surprise and amaze me.

 

[K0k0shka]

I don't know either.
Voice is definitely key, as is wrapping hands around those wings and holding on tight.

That was the plan. But he was packed tight between the other chickens on the roost and I couldn't get a good handle on the wings on the first try... Now that I talk to them, they are calm and I can grab them every which way and they're fine. But back then it was the perfect storm of the spooky silence AND a bad grip..

 

[K0k0shka]

oh, K0k0shka, you paint such wonderful word pictures! Thank you for this! I love your stories/ experiences! Poor rooster.... I can just imagine how he felt, lol. We usually deal with our chickens at night too, bc they are not hand tame, but we approach talking to each other, The Man and I. Never thought about it being important for the chooks to hear our voices, we are just not in the habit of shutupping, lol. They mostly do okay (for leg greasing, wing trimming, etc.), except for one or two who see thenselves as the Alarm Belles (see what I did there?). Thanks for the literary reference, too! I also feared you had lost one of your beloved birds, glad that was not the case - at least not in the terminal sense! ❤

Thank you for the kind words! I do love writing (as well as sharing useful information), and had fun writing this post.

Unfortunately I did end up losing that guy in more ways than one. First, when we had to part ways, and then when he actually died, a couple of months later. Fatty liver syndrome, the sneaky killer. He just dropped dead without any warning. He was a glutton who was always hungry, and I think he ate himself to death. Normally they can self-regulate, but not this guy. The first thing his new owner told me after I gave him to her was "Wow, don't you feed those chickens? He was starving!"

 

[Battlepants]

This is good to know about the voice. Going to be relocating my entire flock in the next few weeks when I get their new coop sorted out. I'm on good terms with some of my chickens, but some are rather rowdy including one that I've never been able to touch for more than a half-second before she runs off. It's surely going to be an interesting process getting them moved over.

 

[3KillerBs]

I always talk to mine when I'm out there at night throwing chickens out of the nest boxes or filling feeders/waterers when I know it's going to rain the next morning.

Some of them panic anyway when picked up -- the Mottled Javas being the worst and the Blue Australorp cockerel being the calmest -- but at least they know when they hear "Get out of those nests. You know better. ..." that it's just me.

as is wrapping hands around those wings and holding on tight.

I've been training my frequent nest-sleepers to step up on my wrist like a parrot.

They don't like to be grabbed and pinned, but at this point they're perfectly calm about being moved while they sit on my wrist -- except for Mocha and Latte, who freak out when I try to sit them on the roost, start flapping, and either fall or knock someone else down.

(I have tried to explain that if they would just get up on the roost at dusk like sensible birds we could avoid all this drama, but they don't listen. )

This is good to know about the voice. Going to be relocating my entire flock in the next few weeks when I get their new coop sorted out. I'm on good terms with some of my chickens, but some are rather rowdy including one that I've never been able to touch for more than a half-second before she runs off. It's surely going to be an interesting process getting them moved over.

When I had to move 19 chickens to the new coop late last summer we organized a chicken moving service with me catching and crating chickens for my boys to carry then hand-carrying one -- moving about 5-6 at a time with DH uncrating them from the pet carriers and putting them onto the roosts.

If you're not using pet carriers, this might be helpful to you: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/how-to-carry-a-chicken.1509468/

 

[Aunt Angus]

My flock has been in 3 coops over the last few years. We've moved twice. And I'm moving them again in April to their new fancy-shmancy coop. Maybe mine are used to it by now, but I don't have problems. I know that's not the case for everyone. And I always do it at night.

For the long distance moves, I used crates and small animal cages and made sure to be thoughtful about grouping (like I put the bottom of the pecking order Welsummer with her mama and the rooster with his two favorite girls, etc). For the across the property moves, I just carried them 1 or 2 at a time under my arms, like footballs. But I only have 12 chickens. If I had more, I'd use carriers or boxes.

In fact.... I DO have more now. I will need those carriers for the chickens. I have ducks now that need to move, too. Ooh. They're an unknown. I could see them freaking out - haha! They are wacky.