I have 7 pullets of all different breeds. They are all about 9-10 weeks old. I've had half of them since they were week-old chicks and got the other half when they were several weeks old.
They are all pretty skittish and try to avoid me as much as possible. Growing into lap chickens would be ideal, but not terrified of me would be a good start. How do I get them to overcome their skittishness?
I've tried bribing with food, but new treats scare them. In fact, they don't seem to know what treats are. Things that my previous flock would have devoured immediately -- dried mealworms and fruits like watermelon and strawberries-- are ignored. They have no interest in eating treats or regular food from my hand if I have them on my lap. If I leave the treats on the ground for them to eat at their leisure, they will often still be there the next day, untouched and ignored. I could offer them regular crumbles while I hold them on my lap, they will ignore it, and then run to the feeder to eat the same crumbles the moment I put them down. A lot of advice online says to bribe with food and whatnot. But that doesn't seem to work when they don't want the food to begin with...
Breeds:
The cochin is the most docile and while she will try to avoid being picked up, once she is picked up, she will happily sit on my lap for a long time. All the others would like nothing to do with me.
They are all pretty skittish and try to avoid me as much as possible. Growing into lap chickens would be ideal, but not terrified of me would be a good start. How do I get them to overcome their skittishness?
I've tried bribing with food, but new treats scare them. In fact, they don't seem to know what treats are. Things that my previous flock would have devoured immediately -- dried mealworms and fruits like watermelon and strawberries-- are ignored. They have no interest in eating treats or regular food from my hand if I have them on my lap. If I leave the treats on the ground for them to eat at their leisure, they will often still be there the next day, untouched and ignored. I could offer them regular crumbles while I hold them on my lap, they will ignore it, and then run to the feeder to eat the same crumbles the moment I put them down. A lot of advice online says to bribe with food and whatnot. But that doesn't seem to work when they don't want the food to begin with...
Breeds:
- EE x2
- Red Sex Link x2
- Marans
- Cochin
- Wyandotte
The cochin is the most docile and while she will try to avoid being picked up, once she is picked up, she will happily sit on my lap for a long time. All the others would like nothing to do with me.