I want my chicks to love me!!!!

[Chick15]

I feel like my chicks hate me! When I hold them almost all of them will cheep loudly and squirm out of my hands, I want them to enjoy being handled but I do not want to be the monster that abducts chicks.... I love them, they are so cute, does anyone have any tips to get them to like me?

 

[True Grit]

Try covering them up completely with your hand if they are still small enough and they may fall asleep. Chickens don't like anything coming down on them from above but hard to get completely in the brooder with them isn't it? Once mine could fly up to the top of the brooder, one or two would come to visit me but they would still scream if I went to pick them up. They have their own personalities and some are still not wanting to have much to do with me 11 months later but some are more friendly. I think they all get a little more friendly once they are ready to start laying eggs. Also once they are old enough for treat, mealworms are sure fire, of course you have to pretend it's you they love, rather than the mealworms.

 

[<3ChickenForever]

Just cuddle them with no other sound around you. Calm her down by holding her close to your chest and they will sometimes fall asleep on you. Just do that everyday and then they'll start to love you!

 

[crash0330]

Agree the key is to spend as much time with them as possible, chicks will get used to you altho there are some that will ever like you no matter what, and that's because chicks are just like humans they all have their different personalities, and then it may also have to do with their genetics as you know some breeds might be more active while others might be more calm

 

[theoldchick]

Young chicks do not like to picked up. Due to their evolution they don't like shadows, loud noise, or fast movements. They like their feet to be on solid ground, and once they are a few weeks old will perch on your offered hand if you keep it still long enough. Also if you spend time with them on a daily basis by sitting quietly with them they will eventually use you for a perch. Once they get old enough to realize you are the food dispenser they will crowd around your feet. The only time I pick up a chick is to check it for injuries, medicate or to correct aggressive behavior.

Try to think of how the mother hen treats her chicks. She is on the ground with them, clucking and pecking. When she senses danger she will chirp the alarm call and fuzz out her feathers for her chicks to hide under. She'll herd the very young with her body and wings or the occasional peck to a wayward chick. I find it interesting in how ducks will follow its mother in a single file while chicks are usually scattered toward the front of mama hen.

Once you remember the nature of chickens you'll better understand their behavior and hopefully be less frustrated. It's not because you are doing something wrong or they are thankless chicks. This reluctance to be held is part of their survival instinct. Gotta keep your feet on the ground in order to escape. While they are very young, chicks sense humans as a predator. And for many chicks, in the end, that is correct.

 

[Chick15]

I sit in front of that brooder for hours simply watching them, I only sometimes hold them, and they were getting better and starting to like me more. I discovered that some had pasty butt... at first I thought they were new feathers, but then I realized differently. One had it really bad, and it seemed to really hurt the chicks when I was getting the poop off. I got them all clear anyway, but now they are even more terrified of me.

My chicks will never fall asleep, but maybe taking one when i am holding it away from the others may make them more peaceful...

I will try to handle them less.... BUT IT IS SO HARD! THEY ARE SO CUTEE!!!! oh well... Thanks for all your help...

 

[Nicole01]

My RIR is the highest energy and most flighty bird! She would shake and shiver whenever we picked her up. I've spent sometimes up to an hour a time holding her. Finally, she is comfortable and stopped shaking when being held. Her favorite way to be held is when I swaddle her like a baby.

 

[Chick15]

<3ChickenForever :

Just cuddle them with no other sound around you. Calm her down by holding her close to your chest and they will sometimes fall asleep on you. Just do that everyday and then they'll start to love you!

I tried this and it worked!! I tried it with three of them, the rhode island red fell asleep almost immediately, the silver laced wyandotte took a while, but finally fell asleep on my belly and the speckled sussex didn't really seem comfortable, but i will work with him! thank you so much!!!​

 

[sunshineyarns]

Like everyone else said, just spend lots of time with them... give them treats (hello yogurt/mealworms!) and hold them. I pet mine alot, so they are used to it now... I pet them on their chest, so they see my hand coming and I can actually make my Ancona fall asleep petting him/her there... I talk to them all the time and they definitely recongnize my voice?!

Hope that helps!

 

[Judy]

Quote:
I think it's more a matter of convincing them it's on their terms than it is how much. And I've found them more receptive as they get a little older. Heck, they don't even see scrambled eggs as a treat at first. Just takes a little patience -- and treats.