Hen flips out when being lowered to ground

[porokelle]

Just wondering if anyone's experienced. We have the runt of the litter and very scared hen who we have to pick up for her bumble feet and poo butt baths quite often.

We're wondering if she could have vertigo or what might be going on with her.
Any time we go to put her down after picking her up, - no matter if it's fast or slow, she freaks out.
It could be 1/2 an inch from the ground, and wings flapping like crazy.
Have a plastic container on the ground for her bath, pick her out of the bath half a foot and go to put her down on a towel, absolutely flips out.
If I do it quickly, flip out, then once on the ground she immediately hunches down and be in a mild shock.
If we do it slowly, it's just a long freak out.
We've tried covering her head, no luck.

Any ideas of what to try or has anyone else seen this?

 

[kattabelly]

My first thought would be that she just really doesn't like being held and/or the treatments you need to give her. Chickens that are particularly unhappy about being held will often flap and struggle to get away as soon as you either relax your hold on them, or do something that makes them think they're about to be let go (like lowering them down to the ground).

If that is the case I'd try to, while holding her as securely as possible, get into a position where she doesn't need to be lowered before being let go. That could be sitting on the floor, or sitting on something like a bench or some steps where there was enough space for her to walk off your lap onto something the same height. (I'm saying the same height because you mentioned bumble foot, so I'm guessing you've been lowering her to the ground because you don't want her landing from any higher up. If you're happy for her to jump from, say, the height of your lap while you're sitting on a chair, down to the ground, then don't worry about the same height thing.) Keep a good hold of her, wait, and then when she's calm quickly but gently release your hold on her completely, so she's free to "escape" without anything to struggle against.

If you know how you'll be able to give her treats after that without causing any more stress, you could add a treat as positive reinforcement every time after you let her go while she's calm. When I say causing more stress, I mean things like trying to hand feed if she's not always/ever ok with that, or dropping the "treat" at your feet if she doesn't want to be that near to you once she's free, or throwing it while other chickens are around so that she has to fight to get any herself.

If she's willing to take treats while being held, and trying to feed her anything isn't just going to cause more stress, then you could reward her for being calm while still being held, too. (Careful if you do this, that you don't adjust your hold on her and cause her to struggle at the moment you go to give the treat.) "Treats" can usually just be something slightly novel like their usual food being scattered on the ground, or held in your hand if they're tame enough to be hand fed, or wetted into a small portion of mash if they usually have dry feed.

 

[thecatumbrella]

Ditto to everything Katta said!

I've had many birds do this and assume it's normal. The only tidbit I can add is that sometimes they do better if they're raised and lowered while facing you (as opposed to outwards and ready to flee). I don't know if this is because it helps focus their attention on your body vs the environment or what. But it's been a noticeable help on our end.