Inadvertently trained chickens

[la-pro]

I have apparently trained my chickens! I have been giving them a mealworm treat when it's time to go in the coop at night to encourage them to go in on their own. I set up a new run area for them yesterday and was trying to herd them into it this morning and discovered that they are now trained to follow any clear plastic container, like the one I use to deliver their mealworms. Seems that no matter what they're doing, they will come running after that container! After I got them into the run they looked at me like "Hey! Where's the worms lady??"

 

[ailurophile23]

We have had similar issues with our girls too - the funniest is how they follow the tractor around. The reason? My husband will sometimes get a scoop of compost (which is often filled with grubs) with the tractor and dump it in the outdoor run. So now, any time he has the tractor out, the chickens are following it. They also follow bowls as that is the container I often use for treats - I even had a couple of the hens leap at the bowl while it was still in my hands and then yesterday, one of the brahmas jumped/flew up onto my arm while I was holding the bowl. They get a little impatient sometimes.

 

[dsqard]

Mine are trained to come running when I have the "treat bucket". It is a blue bucket but really, if I have any bucket in my hand they will come over and investigate. You know, just in case I happened to change buckets.

 

[newchicksnducks]

If I call "here, chicky,chicky, chick" I'll have 14 hens running from all corners of my property, out of the woods, fields, garden, lol! It comes in convenient when I need to move the flock for some reason

 

[calicokat]

Mine run across the yard to greet me when I get home from work and step out of the car - the dog is not happy about this as she considers that her job! LOL One of the neighbors said she sees this and it makes her chuckle.

 

[galanie]

I was chopping leaves with my riding mower this winter and they learned that there were bugs in those leaves so they started following the riding mower.

This spring when I mowed the back yard with it for the first time, I nearly fell off the mower laughing at them RUNNING LIKE CRAZY after the mower! A few rounds around the yard and they finally gave it up.

 

[Saltysteele]

mine recognize my truck and will start pacing and trying to find a way out of the pen when they see me coming down the road in the morning (they know i'm going to come out and give them some corn before i go in to go to sleep)

 

[CrazyFowlFreak]

I holler, "YUM YUMS ladies!" and they come running!

 

[Nonny]

LOL - these are funny stories!

My girls come running when I do the weeding. I sit on the lawn with a bucket and hand pick all the bindi weeds (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soliva_sessilis). I'm trying to get them all before they set seed because those prickles are awful and if I miss just one plant there'll be 20 more next year, but with a toddler, a baby, a cat and the chooks all sharing the lawn I'm reluctant to use chemical warfare on them so I get out there twice a day and pull them by hand.

Now when they see me approaching with the bindi bucket the come running full tilt from all across the yard, and within seconds are hovering right there waiting for me to pull a weed out of the lawn so they can snatch it out of my hand and eat it. I'm trying to figure out how to get them to cut out the "middle man" and just go for the weeds themselves rather than waiting for me to hand feed them.

 

[Squirrelgirl88]

We have a big yellow cup from a take out restaurant that we use to fill the feeders and to carry BOSS to the girls for treats, DH says he could probably lead them to slaughter as long as he was carrying a yellow cup.

I give them yogurt once a week as a treat, and now ANY plastic bowl incites a riot. We also get the chicken stampede when coming out the back door, or if you go to the garage where the BOSS is kept. Now they have learned to stampede when they see me with leaves, greens, or weeds from the garden too.

I drink from a sports bottle instead of a cup now outside so they don't think that I have something for them!