HELP! Why do they Buh-gawk like this?

[skatcatla]

During the last 2 weeks or so, my girls have started Buh-gawking very loudly, and often very early (6am) in the morning. This isn't my video, I got it on youtube, but it sounds JUST like this:

The first time it happened and I went out to investigate, it seemed that the girl buh-gawking was wanting to get into the nest box, but it was occupied. DH and I had a good laugh about it. But it seems to keep happening and when I check, it seems to be coming from a girl just standing on the lawn.

I'm really concerned about the neighbors; I live in a crowded urban area and I can imagine they are not too pleased about this kind of racket at 6am! I am having a new coop built this weekend that will have three nest boxes instead of one (I have four pullets)...do you think that will solve the problem? Or is this something that chickens just do?

 

[CarriBrown]

Quote:
Probably not. For whatever reason, they all seem to favor one box... doesn't matter if you have 100!

 

[Charlie Chicken]

What you have here is the classic chicken buh-gawking that signals that they are alarmed about something. It could be for any reason often known only to the chicken. Sometimes they have a legitimate reason like just having laid an egg or spotting a predator nearby and sometimes it could simply be from the chicken spotting a leaf fall from a tree.

What makes it fun is when you have a flock of 25 or so and when one chicken starts squawking for no apparent reason and the other 24 feel the need to join in!

 

[Critter Crazy]

Mine make this noise when they have laid an egg. Sometimes they do this when one of the others has laid an egg as well.

 

[Henrietta23]

Quote:
Same here. I think my neighbors "got used to it" when I started sharing eggs with them.

 

[arlee453]

More nest boxes may help. Is there a way you could keep them in the coop and not let them out in the run/yard until later in the day?

That way it'd at least muffle the sound a bit...

 

[Wildsky]

It sounds cute.... mine don't make all that noise!

 

[skatcatla]

Quote:
Well, I could, but I'm honestly not sure how well it would muffle it. Especially since the first time I heard it, the pullet responsible was standing in the coop (and I was fast asleep in my bed

)

Also it would be a shame..during the week in the winter they only get about an hour of free-range time since I put them back in their run before I go off to work.

So far none of my neighbors have said anything about it, but I hate to be "that neighbor"..you know? I will make a point of giving some eggs to the people right behind me though. I really, really hope that more boxes will help (and that its not as loud to my neighbors as it is to me! It doesn't help that the dog starts freaking out barking whenever they get going...)

 

[Catalina]

Sometimes mine make this noise when they're just walking around - for no reason!
Maybe they're thinking about laying an egg.

 

[Ang]

That usually means that they just laid an egg and have come off the nest. Its their way of drawing attention away from the nest.