Does every flock have a complainer?

[smarsh]

around my place, I am the complainer, and if you don't believe me, ask the wife; bless her heart. My chickens try to console me, gathering around me with soft clucks of encouragement. But, alas, I still complain. Too hot, too cold, too wet, too dry, not enough eggs, too much chicken poo. Life's full of poo, then you die.

 

[7 Biddies]

Another question; do some of your chickens seem ... ummm ... less "gifted" than others? I have a new flock of 7, with 2 EEs. Betty seems fine, but Wilma can't find her way out of the run when I open the door for them. She stands inside the fence looking at her sisters running loose outside, while she runs back and forth screaming, "Hey! How'd you get out there????" She's always the last one out and he last one in: "Hey! How'd everybody get inside???" I chase her around and around the pen until she finally, after a half dozen passes, notices the open door. Poor thing is dumber than a bag of hammers.

 

[BayBay Peepers]

My complainer is also my "less gifted" girl. Since chick on she would lose the group and sqwak and sqwak until she could eventually locate them. My "special" little girl haha.

 

[6of6chicks]

Another question; do some of your chickens seem ... ummm ... less "gifted" than others? I have a new flock of 7, with 2 EEs. Betty seems fine, but Wilma can't find her way out of the run when I open the door for them. She stands inside the fence looking at her sisters running loose outside, while she runs back and forth screaming, "Hey! How'd you get out there????" She's always the last one out and he last one in: "Hey! How'd everybody get inside???" I chase her around and around the pen until she finally, after a half dozen passes, notices the open door. Poor thing is dumber than a bag of hammers.

This made me giggle (and thanks because I needed the laugh!)

One of mine is "less gifted" as well. One day they were all hanging out in the coop, and I opened the door of the run to put a treat tray in there. I called them and five girls thundered out the chicken door and down the ramp. I looked up and saw one chicken pacing back and forth at the window, banging away on the glass in a complete panic because she was missing out. The kicker? The window is RIGHT NEXT to the chicken door, lol! By the time that silly girl figured it out the rest had devoured the treats!

 

[Chicks Galore3]

Another question; do some of your chickens seem ... ummm ... less "gifted" than others? I have a new flock of 7, with 2 EEs. Betty seems fine, but Wilma can't find her way out of the run when I open the door for them. She stands inside the fence looking at her sisters running loose outside, while she runs back and forth screaming, "Hey! How'd you get out there????" She's always the last one out and he last one in: "Hey! How'd everybody get inside???" I chase her around and around the pen until she finally, after a half dozen passes, notices the open door. Poor thing is dumber than a bag of hammers.

Most of my chickens, even after more then 2 years of experience, always miss the door and start pacing back and forth.

 

[DarleneE]

My Easter Egger Olivia is THAT chicken!! She screams up a storm if I pick Daisy up, NOT because I didn't pick HER up, but because Daisy isn't on the ground beside her!! They were hatched together, though Daisy is a Barred Rock and Olivia thinks Daisy is her mother!! She crawls under her wing at night and sleeps that way as long as she can till she gets pushed away. She's the one who has to scream to be let out every morning yet the same one screaming to be let back into the coop in the evening.. (they have an outside little house that's in their backyard play area for protection.. the coop is completely separate from this area and I hand carry them both to and fro every day). She's a riot!!

 

[Chiquey]

Oh I'm laughing so hard I had to come in and tell you this. Daphne got her comeuppance! Picture this: Ida was in the nest box, patiently waiting for her egg. Daphne was pacing the nest box bar yelling at Ida and waiting for her to come out so she could peck her on the head. Suddenly, up from the coop floor flew dear, timid Mathilda! She slammed right into Daphne, and knocked her to the floor. Mathilda calmly got into the nest box next to Ida's, turned a couple of circles, then poked her head out. A very stunned Daphne squawked at Mathilda a couple of times and Mathilda sassed her right back. The Devil chicken flew up onto the bar and just as she was about to peck Mathilda Ida sang out her egg song. Daphne glared at her and when Ida came out Mathilda pecked Daphne on the head.

Last I saw Daphne was in the run, at the center of a circle of Golden Laced Wyandottes (I think they are her groupies) telling them all about it. Ida sidled out of the coop into the run, looked at the group, and I swear if she could have stuck out her tongue she'd have done it. Oh, I'm laughing so hard tears are rolling down my leg!

Reminds me of those middle school girls I used to teach. Too funny!

And yes, we have our own complainer, Gertrude. Sigh....

 

[lazy gardener]

Chickens are just like a bunch of middle school girls for sure.

 

[Teila]

This is my Bantam Langshan 'Dusty' aka 'Dusty-Dustbin' .. she is 2IC in a flock of 5 ladies and she is constantly whinging to the point I am always asking her "what are you going on about now?"

She has never made any normal bok, bok, bok chicken noises; she has this unique whinge which is a cross between a cow in labour and a crying baby .. or, sticking with the evolutionary scale, a baby dinosaur!

"I want to free range!"; "I want to be in the coop!", "I want breakfast!", "I want a different breakfast!", "She is too close to me!", "Where is everyone?!", "That is my nest box! and that one, and that one ...!", "She stole my bug!" "PAY ATTENTION TO ME!"

Hhhm, to try and spell out the noise she makes, I would have to go with something along the lines of "mwaaaaark, mwaarrk"

Edited to add:

"Mine, mine, mine .. it's mine I tell you!"

(Dusty is on the bottom, she is not laying an egg but apparently, no-one else is allowed to either)

 

[chickennanna]

I have six hens and most of the time they are quiet, they do sing the egg song but it is not at such a high volume that it is disturbing. So I really don't think you need to be overly concerned that your chickens will disturb the neighbors. My hens are 5 barred rocks and one red star........ There are 2 roosters down the road however that do make a lot of noise, I can hear them crowing even in the house if it is quiet. It is not an unpleasant noise, at least not to me.