how much do you handle your chicks?

[rascal66]

I raise a bunch of chicks at a time and usually don't spend enough time with them, but ive noticed they get to know me with time! As they get older, they start associating me with food and water, and will often begin to crowd around me. Picking them up still upsets a few. But practicing a gentle and calm pick up helps them get used to it. Just calmly scoop them up and make sure to let their feet feel something beneath them, and they're often a lot calmer this way. Oddly enough, even now, I have a lot of curious chicks that start to approach me and jump on me. I have a couple of snuggly ones too! It takes me by surprise because I really don't spend that much time with them.

The biggest and best thing though of course, is to try to dedicate some time just hanging out with them as they eat, drink, and do whatever. Often theyre curious, and will learn that you're not so scary. I Often just crouch down and watch them be chicks. And in time, some warm up to me enough to start climbing on me themselves. It will ultimately depend on the individual chicks personality too. Sometimes you just have ones that will scream bloody murder if you touch them, and that's just how they are.

Hand feed them, hang out with them, attempt to snuggle them if you want even, should all be some ways to help tame them down. I band mine too, and some cooperate so well and others not so much. Good luck!

 

[cmom]

My brooder is a cabinet type. One thing I discovered is the way to a chickens heart is through it's stomach. Every time you pick up a chick, have a chick treat. Chickens will do almost anything for their favorite treat. Good luck and have fun...

 

[halefamily_flock]

I reach in from above without a problem, and like others have said, scoop them up from underneath. I try to handle them as early and often as possible. I pick them up & hold them each at least once per day, even if it's only for 30 seconds. In addition, I've recently added some manhandling in that first few weeks----touching them on the back, poking them in the chest, petting them, pushing them around gently, without picking them up. It only takes a minute to touch them all, so I can usually do it several times a day and it helps them get used to my hand coming in from above. After the first few times, they pretty much ignore my hand, especially if they're scratching through fresh shavings and/or food. Sometimes, if I'm about to add food to the brooder, I'll put it in a flat palm, held low, for them to eat from for a couple minutes before I pour it in the feeder. They tend to climb up in my hand when I do this, just like they climb all over their feeder.

My brooders are plastic tubs that I swap out for bigger ones as the chicks grow. I've learned not to upgrade too fast in the first week, since smaller spaces make it easier to catch and handle them, and they seem to develop a lot of confidence in that first week.

I've selected breeds for their free ranging, predator savviness over friendliness, so they're necessarily a little flightier than some. I'm not trying to turn them into lap chickens, but I need to be able to pick them up when they need medical attention, or have roosted somewhere unsafe, etc. I'm finding that, as they grow, as long as they don't mind me touching them, it's pretty easy to catch them when I need them, even if they don't like to be held.

 

[cmom]

Melon boxes work great. Most grocery stores will give them to you.

 

[cmom]

Any chicken can be had by predators. There are no guarantees.

 

[Minky]

thanks everyone- that is a good article.
I could cut a hole in the side, but then I need a table- I am not crawling on the floor.
I will have several brooders going shortly, so I will keep going in from the top although I know now why they run!
Very interetsing.
Im not raising pet chickens for my lap, and my others have always eaten from my hand, it just usually takes time, somewhere around 4 months.
These chicks will be out in the barn mingling with the hens in a week or two, in freezing cold weather so I wont be snuggling them everyday anyways.

Nice to hear how others do it.

I am VERY interested in the person who said their chickens come when they call.... I would like to see a video of that. Ive never known a chicken who knows its name....

 

[mcdze]

i free range so my chickens know my routine .. i start them from day1 .. chickens are very vocal and constantly 'talk' to each other so they dont startle each other, you should learn that procedure as a good chicken dad or mom ... always talk to them in the tone you use for animals etc as you approach ... every time im getting into the brooder box i talk to them and touch them, not necessarily pick them up, by the first time i pick them up to switch into another box to clean theyre already used to my hand, they may protest but i dont have to chase them, and i try to never make it a shocking experience ... by the time theyre a couple of weeks old im switching them by hand to an outside pen .. and theres fresh food, sand to play in and sun .. a good experience .. when they go back up in the brooder at night theres fresh food its warm and cozy and thats a good experience .. by 3 weeks or so theyre hopping up on the sides ready for the routine ... at 4 they'll start flying to me between pens ... thats how it goes ... not cuddly petting, but my birds will jump on my arm or shoulder .. or head if im not watching it with poopy feet lol ... they all have different personalities though, some are much warmer than others ..

 

[rosemarythyme]

I could cut a hole in the side, but then I need a table- I am not crawling on the floor.

Im not raising pet chickens for my lap, and my others have always eaten from my hand, it just usually takes time, somewhere around 4 months.

I actually don't handle mine very much (as I raise them outdoors) so 2-3 times a day for a couple minutes is normal for me, but being at "ground level" does actually help a lot, as it makes you less imposing. So once the chicks get to come out of the brooder I spend a lot of time with them hunkered down, and it just makes me less threatening. Plus yes my brooder opens from the side.

Indoors you can replicate that by shutting them in a safe room (i.e. bathroom) and sitting on the floor and letting them explore you as part of the environment.

I don't need lap chickens either but I want them to be relatively easy to handle/catch when needed, so tame enough to be picked up is enough for me.

 

[VonSFarms]

I find that my chicks go crazy every time I sneeze, speak, laugh, sometimes even walk by.
there are too many and Im too busy to pick each one up and cuddle it...but when I do try to handle them, they act like im going to eat them..
does anyone have a great solution to having calm friendly chicks? my hens are calm and friendly, but that usually happens once they start free ranging and see the rest of the flock coming to me and eating from my hand... wondering how to gain some trust with them early on...it will make switching out leg bands and taking notes, photos easier. thx

I found that when I put my chicks in a wire dog cage so they can see me and everything around them they weren't timid anymore. We always talk as we approach to calm them and so they can get used to our voices too. We had to put plastic garden fencing on the bottom 1/2 of the dog crate bc as the chicks got adventurous they would send out the search and rescue team and search the house, peeping and hopping around trying to find us! So eventually we had to put the brooder in the living room so they could be part of the action We also found out this time around having our hen hatch the eggs was even better and sweeter bc the chicks are so relaxed, let us pick them up, aren't scared of our hands coming in above their nest and are so lively and calm! Obviously momma hen is best but the wire dog crate was a game changer for us and for them not being scared when we approach. Try bringing treats too and letting them eat out of your hand!

 

[Shezadandy]

For the chicks without a momma hen, I make sure my hands are warm and I settle my hands over their backs. I don't pick them up, I just act like my hands are the under-side of a hen- the best part is when they start to push their backs up into your hand and they'll headbutt and work their way around. Then hands = warmth and don't always mean someone's picking them up. I second the scooping from underneath when possible.