Fainting Chickens???

[Bring]

I've never heard of them until I saw them being sold on craigslist. Does anybody have pics of them? How do they survive an attack if all they do is get scared and fall over? The person on craigslist was selling them for $600.00

Somebody replied and asked if they would accept $400.00 for them. Are they that special and rare??

 

[amazondoc]

Very interesting!

I dunno nuthin about fainting chickens, BUT -- in fainting GOATS, the fainting trait is accompanied by efficient muscle production -- so they are good meat goats. Perhaps the fainting chickens have the same trait. I'm just guessing here!

 

[alicefelldown]

I did a bit of googling - nothing anywhere for "fainting chickens" that looks legit.

There was this bit from http://georgiafarmwoman.blogspot.com/2008/08/tale-of-hawk-fainting-chickens-and-eggs.html:

That hawk had his nerve! He landed on the bin there and was still watching the chickens as we headed that way. Then he flew off and landed in the oak trees behind the saw mill and watched. The poor chickens were terrified and running around and around. We saw 2 Dominecker hens laying down looking dead. They had fainted
Farm Man got one chicken up and I got the other. We dipped their beaks in the water trough. Slowly they came around. I guess the excitement of a hawk trying to eat you for supper and all the chickens running around was too much for them. They are fine now.

Fainting goats though - are AWESOME. http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query="fainting+goats"&search_type=&aq=f​

 

[Guinea Goonie]

You must be thining of this BYCer:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=93831

 

[aveca]

Fainting chicken, wouldnt that be called NARCOLEPSY?.

I didnt think a chickens brain was big enough to have narcolepsy but I guess if they sleep and they do then they could have it?

same thng with fainting goats or fainting sheep its called narcolepsy some people have it too.

 

[amazondoc]

No, fainting goats don't actually have narcolepsy. They don't actually "faint", despite the name.

What they have is a condition called myotonia congenita. When they are startled, their muscles spasm all at once -- which makes them fall over, or "faint". This trait is associated with efficient muscle growth, which is why the breed is popular -- they are good meat goats.

 

[Ariel301]

Quote:
Indeed, it is not narcolepsy in goats. A narcoleptic will be unconscious/asleep during an episode, while a myotonic goat is perfectly awake and aware of its surroundings. It's not truly fainting, but contraction of their muscles so they are paralyzed. They don't even always fall down, some just run around with stiff legs. They are often raised for meat, but I think their biggest popularity is just as a novelty pet.

I'd be inclined to think maybe this is a scam, being on craigslist. There's lots of them on there, unfortunately. If you are interested in them, I'd request to see the birds in person and witness their 'fainting' episodes...I'd also want to know what causes it before dishing out that kind of money, in case they are sick! Also, I think it would make them more prone to predator attacks if they are helpless when startled...fainting goats are sometimes placed in a flock of sheep so that when a predator chases the sheep, the goat will fall over and attract the predator to eat it while the sheep get away.

 

[amazondoc]

Quote:
That probably depends on where you live.

I live in mid-TN. I am surrounded by herds of goats (and I have goats of my own, although a different breed). Fainting goats were originally brought into this country just two counties over from me -- there's a reason why they're called "Tennessee fainting goats".

Around here, meat goats (fainting, boer, kiko) seem to be the norm, although there are also some dairy types.

Anyway, this is OT from the original post. I'm just chipping in since this is pretty much goat central!

 

[ve]

If they spell like me-this can be "fighting"

 

[alicefelldown]

Quote:
This.