How normal is this really?

[lilwanderer]

I've been told it's a pecking order thing that may occasionally happen among young chicks, but is it really all that normal for a 4 week old chick to mount it's mother? Because that's what I'm seeing.
From what I've gathered, it's more of a dominance or a show-off thing they'll do, and they do it to their mother because she's really the only hen they know. I was also told that the pullets will sometimes act in that way, it's just more likely among cockerels?

 

[nuthatched]

What do you mean mount? Like mate or stand on? It could be a very randy young cockerel but it would be unusual.

 

[lilwanderer]

What do you mean mount? Like mate or stand on? It could be a very randy young cockerel but it would be unusual.

Yes, mating- Fluffing his lil tail feathers side to side and pulling on her neck feathers, so yes, for sure.

 

[Bigtom Turkey]

I have had few young males stand on older hens backs, for dominance reasons. But never mating.

 

[lilwanderer]

I have had few young males stand on older hens backs, for dominance reasons. But never mating.

So have I, but this was different- They say it may appear to be mating, but that's not really why they're doing it at that age- It definitely resembled a rooster on a hen though, same posture, same movements- Except it's a little chick instead

 

[SilverBirds]

Odd, I've never heard of this before. Seems really young to be doing that sort of thing but Idk

 

[lilwanderer]

Odd, I've never heard of this before. Seems really young to be doing that sort of thing but Idk

That's what I said, but apparently I'm not the first to have seen it happen so who knows