If you could communicate a thought to your chickens, what would it be?

[alwaystj9]

Stay out of the garden

 

[GooseMom111]

As much as we love them, chickens can be frustrating. If you could communicate a thought to your chickens, what would it be?

Most of their chickenly behaviors are understandable and not too difficult, but today they are driving me crazy. It's hot, around 95F. This isn't abnormal for our summers. Our two five year old hens, Becky the barred rock and Lucia the buff orpington, know the drill. Our heat is dry, so evaporative cooling works well. I turn on the hose, running a mister in the shade and the convenient hose leak wets a large shaded area of dirt. They wade in the puddle and stand in the mist. When I turn the hose off and the water seeps into the soil, they dig bowls in the wet dirt and lay in the cool soil in the shade. Our eight new orpington pullets(5 chocolate, 3 lavender)...have a lot to learn. They wander into the sun, they are offended by wet dirt under their feet. They have their beaks open with the heat. One followed Lucia into the puddle and immediately closed her beak and looked more comfortable. She promptly *walked back into the sun*. If I could communicate something to our chickens, it would be stay in the dang shade and stop being afraid of cooling water.

What would you communicate to your chickens?

Get out of the rain! There's a coop, there's under the coop, there's sun shelters... Why do you stand out in pouring rain, lol!

 

[Krik Bottom Farm]

Why can't you poop outside the coop?

 

[Pigeony]

Stay out of the garden

They'd probably take that as a challenge lol.

Get out of the rain! There's a coop, there's under the coop, there's sun shelters... Why do you stand out in pouring rain, lol!

I feel this one so much. My head rooster was just standing completely in the open like a tough guy last time we got hail, wincing with every hailstone.

 

[SkyAJK]

I would ask my chickens to...
poop in one spot and not everywhere in the garden
not poop on me
not poop in front of me
not poop into their food bowls
not poop on my dogs
not fart while I check their vents
and if they really love me, just poop into the compost bin please

 

[kattabelly]

Hey, little runty chick. I threw that treat to distract the others. I promise it's exactly the same as the one I'm trying to give to you.

Please get it into your tiny, daft, malnourished brain that I'm trying to help you

 

[Sherrie H]

The nests are for laying your eggs. Only one of the six has figured that out - even with the fake eggs being there to teach them!

 

[ValkerieGunn]

You have enough nest boxes! Laying eggs in the middle of the hedge 4 feet in the air on connecting branches is not a good spot so Stop!

 

[Not-so Slick Chicken]

"What are you doing? And why?"

 

[Juliette of the Spirit]

My chickens do communicate. Sometimes very subtly. Anyhow I wanted to post that my girl started to nibble on something after trying anything and everything I could think of. What was it




















, but it can be very subtle. Like reading tea leaves. You've got to have some contact with the truly spiritual cloud. I have been trying to get my chicken recovering from coccidiosis to eat. After trying about a hundred things I found she wanted to eat some Badlands dogfood kibbles. Its not an inexpensive food and I trust the brand. Even smells kinda good. Hmmm might put it in a meatloaf (just kidding) I mashed it up with my mortar and pestal. Also important she stays inside at night with her little friend in a separate cage and I give them red light treatments together, They totally relax,like they were chicks underneath their mom. I talk to her and tell her how well she's doing. She hates me when I feed her half a dropper of poultry cell in the am. (I know how to feed a chicken through the mouth and not asphyxiate her) Anyhow today she pooped, small but normal. And she seems stronger and interested in things. I dont give up and I work with patience and persistence. I love my birds