Do your chicks love you?!!!

[Farmgirl283420]

My chicks love me they will jump on my hand to come out I was wondering do other people have chicks who love them too?

 

[Party_Chicken]

One of my hens was being severally bullied by my rooster(he left). She would always hide from him and the other chickens. When I would get home she would bolt from her hiding place and run straight towards me and peck my shoes until I picked her up. Every day after we resolved the situation she still bolts to me and demands her hug. My other chickens love pets and always follow me around but if chickens can love she loves me.

 

[Farmgirl283420]

If I lay my hand down in the brooder palm UP, they come to see what's up and will climb all over my hand and arm. If I put my hand in palm DOWN, it's more like a move a predator would do - so they run away.

I find it interesting how the behaviors and instincts vastly differ between predator animals and prey animals. It's rather hard for humans to wrap our minds around the thinking of a prey animal. It's just so foreign to us! I've learned a LOT about handling cattle, goats, chickens and other animals by learning to NOT behave like a predator. Like how to put your hand into a brooder with chicks and have them come to you instead of running away.

I'm sorry to disappoint you, @Farmgirl283420 , but it's not love. With chicks, it's purely instinct. That's all. As they grow, you can gain their trust and they'll learn new behaviors with you, but don't mistake it for affection. But YOU can love them all you want. Sometimes, that's enough!

Yes I know I like to think so my adult chickens look for me daily along with my chicks my adult also are lap chickens shoulder chickens and the chicks like to perch on me every where they jump in my hand to come out but yes I know they don’t love me

 

[SueT]

My chickens all run up to me. They run away from strangers. They are cautious and standoffish to other family members, even w treats.
So they definitely recognize individuals, and I can tell they love to see me above anyone else. Define that as you wish.

 

[BarnyardChaos]

If I lay my hand down in the brooder palm UP, they come to see what's up and will climb all over my hand and arm. If I put my hand in palm DOWN, it's more like a move a predator would do - so they run away.

I find it interesting how the behaviors and instincts vastly differ between predator animals and prey animals. It's rather hard for humans to wrap our minds around the thinking of a prey animal. It's just so foreign to us! I've learned a LOT about handling cattle, goats, chickens and other animals by learning to NOT behave like a predator. Like how to put your hand into a brooder with chicks and have them come to you instead of running away.

I'm sorry to disappoint you, @Farmgirl283420 , but it's not love. With chicks, it's purely instinct. That's all. As they grow, you can gain their trust and they'll learn new behaviors with you, but don't mistake it for affection. But YOU can love them all you want. Sometimes, that's enough!

 

[HenriettaPizzaNolan]

Hmm idk if it's love or if they just know I am the almighty Giver of The Food.

Either way, my chickens seem to enjoy my presence and I enjoy theirs.

 

[SueT]

I have always believed that new baby chicks will imprint on their human. Here is an excerpt I found on the subject:
“When a baby chick hatches from the egg, the chick imprints on the first moving object that it sees. The chick believes the imprinted object to be its mother, even if that object is a human being. Imprinting stamps the mind of a bird with a lifelong image, and that initial stamp is irreversible.”
For more on this article:
https://fourstringfarm.com/2014/02/18/the-imprinting-of-birds/

 

[SycamoreHorsesFarm]

My chicks love mealworms and since mine is the hand that provides them they leap to it. I don’t mistake that for love for me.

 

[Fuhoo]

They certainly love pecking at my fingers there's no doubt.

They used to be so shy just a few days ago but I kept repeating the same sound when feeding them and now they come running for some treats (wet feed) soon as they hear it!

One of the older Brahma chicks loves to peck at the food in my hand then sneakily inch his way to my ring finger pecking harder as he gets closer, every single time.
He'd pinch the skin on my fingers then wiggle his head to trying to tear it apart, he's the only one to do that too! Looks like we got some crocodile genes mixed up in him

 

[Farmgirl283420]

My chickens all run up to me. They run away from strangers. They are cautious and standoffish to other family members, even w treats.
So they definitely recognize individuals, and I can tell they love to see me above anyone else. Define that as you wish.

Same here!