help! i aquired "wild" pullets!

[chkinut]

i need some advice. i friend of mine (who has loads of chickens) sweetly gave me 3 silkie crosses (no fluffy feathers, they have smooth regular feathers) but they are small girls! she says they're 8 months old but they are smaller than my 2 pullets who are not quite 4 months old. i'm going to clip their wings tonight because today i found them roosting in the neighbors tree! it's a tree that hangs over our property into my chicken's run. my tame girls are allowed free range, but these wild girls, i have yet to let them free range yet. they are even scared when i throw out scratch for them. my 4 standard, tame girls come running when i have snacks, and the new girls run in great fear. they are not technically "wild", it's just that my chickens are pets, and she has a farm, so of course she never had time to tame them. anyway, my question is, should i clip one wing or 2? i was always told ONE wing to throw them off balance. but i have read stories on here where chickens will STILL fly quite high no matter what you do. i want to give them a chance. i have a parakeet who has only been with me for about 2 weeks. and the pet shop clipped BOTH of his wings and he can barely fly up to a perch! i plan on letting his wings grow out once he's tamed. so.....i'm asking, one wing or two? and do you guys think i have any hope with these 3 little girls? i am an illegal chicken owner and my neighbors know and don't care that i have chickens and i often give them extra eggs. but i'm worried about these girls getting hurt by neighbor dogs or cats. i have a 6ft high privacy fence. i've had chickens for over 2 years now and have never had any problem. my friend said i could give them back if i want to.

 

[stoopid]

I get nervous when people clip wings, mainly because the bird cannot escape predators.
Maybe give them a few days to become familiar with their surroundings, and new friends.
If they have Silkie in them, they should be mellower than most birds, and may calm down quicker than you think.
Good luck!

 

[dretd]

If you clip, I recommend to clip both sides equally. I start with the first couple of primaries on the end of the wing. Nip them at the shaft under the coverts turn them loose and see how they do (make sure they are fully grown feathers and not blood feathers, BTW). The goal is to still have some loft but not fly up. You really don't want them to jump up to a perch then drop like a rock becasue they can't support the glide with their wings. If you still have upward flight after the first two, then I would only clip one feather more at a time until you achieve your goal.

Personally, I would watch their behavior ans see if they are actually flying up to the tree limb of if they are able to hop up through a series of intermediate perches. You will need to remove the boosters before thinking about clipping the wings. As they mature and get heavier, they may no longer ba able to fly very high. I do understand your concerns with them being new birds and all.

Sounds like the pet store did a good job in clipping. I usually go for a gentle glide down or level but no upward motion. Do be mindful of letting your parakeet free-fly if you don't clip. One of my friends spent a frantic day trying to coax her African Gray back to safety after she escaped and went fly-about when the workman left a door open.

 

[chkinut]

thank you both so much! they don't have any "boosts" (perches, small bushes etc) to help them up. they just flew up to the top of the fence, then up the tree. the fence part that they flew up to was only 5" high. even though our fence is 6" high, there is ONE area that is only 5" high cuz of a small hill. i sure hope their "silkiness" genes will help them calm down. they've been with me about a week. VERY skittish! i will clip both wings. since i live in town, we don't have predators, at least we've had no problem for the 2 yrs i've had chickens. my cat and our boxer dog is great with the girls. we have a 1yr old dog who i do NOT trust and we keep him under close surveilance at all times. he's not even allowed in the yard when the girls are free. that's why i have a run (even though they free range the whole yard)....it's for when Rocko (the dog) needs his running time in the yard as well. then the girls go into the run and are locked up.
i worry that they don't have much more growing to do. if she's right, and they are 8 months old.....wow, they are SMALL!

oh and good thought on the parakeet! i do have a special needs son, and although i am with him constantly, and my parakeets cage is right beside where i sit in the living room....and i would only let my keet out under close supervision. but i do believe you always have to expect the worse. and if my son were to open the front door, and my keet were to get out!!! that would be awful!!! i love my keet already! he is so spoiled! his name is Smudge, sometimes i call him Smudgie the Budgie. so far he's eating out of my hand and he doesn't seem to mind my hand being in his cage to just "hang out" with him.

 

[Moonkit]

Don't throw in the towel so quick... keep in mind these girls have just gone through a major upheaval in their life. They're in a new place, with chickens they never saw before and this human keeps coming near them. You need to give them a chance.

I went through this when I introduce a bantam cochin/d'uccle cross to my established flock. She'd been raised on a farm with little interaction besides flockmates. She refused to be touched, screamed like we were death incarnate whenever we caught her, etc.. This came as a shock to me since I was used to my other hens who I'd raised from chicks and fledglings to my hand. Here's what I did..

Take a chair or something to sit on into the run with them and settle down. Just sit, talk to them quietly and have something tasty to toss to them.. like BOSS or mealworms, live or dried. Toss the mealworms a distance from you and make encouraging sounds, people often use something like "chook chook chook." or "chick chick chick chick". Just let them have a chance to get used to your presence. As days pass, gradually drop the treats closer and closer to where you are. Remember, no sudden movements. Keep everything slow and smooth. Animals can read your body language, you need to look relaxed and non-threatening.

It can help if your regular flock loves to be with/on you. Chickens are big time followers and ruled by their stomachs. If they see your flock pigging out on tasty treats from your hand, they're going to want to join in. When you finally get to the triumphant day that they are eating from your hand, don't try to pick them up.. give them more time, then gradually start stroking their backs or sides. Never come at them from above. Do that, and you're a predator to be avoided.

Eventually, they'll relax and be as tame as your established flock. My 'wild girl' now lays on her back on my lap for belly rubs or jumps up to our shoulders to chat. Patience and good luck! Feel free to PM me with questions.

 

[Appylover]

I recently got a flock of partially wild birds from the same lady I alsways get my birds from. They would not even come with in 100 foot of me. Which made it hard on them because my pen and coops are not that big. They would go into panic mode when i walked in there. I used Ruby and s couple of no names to get them use to me. I boiled up some pasta and took some spinich out there with me for several days. They soon learned that this big bad evil human carried treats and now eat out of my hand. They wont actually hop up on me like Ruby will but they are no longer trying to break their necks when I walk in.

 

[chkinut]

thanks Moonkit and Appylover! great advice! i've been feeding them treats while they're in their little run (i have 2 chicken runs and 2 chicken coops.....my big huge run and big coop AND a little coop enough for 4 hens and a little run...i usually use the little run for chicks, like a grow out pen) anyway, i'll crouch beside their little run and my other girls are freeranging and i will say "bock bock bock" and my tame girls come running cuz they know that's the treat call. then i drop some treats through the little run for the wild girls, and drop treats on the ground right outside the little run for my tame girls. their little coop also opens out into the big run and i have been giving them about 1/2 the day in the big run with the tame girls. there's a bit of squabbling, but not much at all, which is good. i can try to sit in the big run with them as you suggested and try your tips in the coming days. i really do want to work with them. this morning i was wanting to give them back out of fear for their lives and frustration (this is my 1st experience with wild girls, lol). but with you guys' help today, i feel much better.