Indian Runners

[fowlman01]

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LOL...not much meat on a runner...the are all of 4LB soaking wet. They are more for eggs, pets and to sit and laugh at...they are clowns.

Thats kinda what I figured. They look scrawny! lol

How are they in snow and cold? do they get frostbite on the feet? or have trouble staying warm at all?

They lay more eggs than most chickens. Keep in mind that the long white runners are not good pets unless you raise them from a duckling and imprint them. They are a bit on the nervous side.

Walt

 

[Miss Lydia]

Are you saying just the white Runners are a bit on the nervous side or all runners? I really like those white runners, I had never seen white ones before.

 

[gofasterstripe]

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My Runners will come up to me if I have anything in my hand, will walk in the way and more or less trip me up. They eat out of my hand and up my arm, but if I try to reach out and touch 1 of them they jump out the way. have you ever seen a duck jump 2 feet backwards doing a body swerve. Its funny. 2 seconds later they are back eating out of my hand!! They really are funny little critters.

 

[fowlman01]

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I am saying that ones that look like mine will be flighty. The short fat ones might not be as nervous. I like it because they run in packs and "school" like fish.
A group of runners moving is a wonderful sight.

Walt

 

[Amiga]

Runners have a reputation for being nervous. I have had the blessing of being able to spend quite a bit of time with mine as they grew up, and except for a number of weeks between ages three weeks to about seven or eight weeks (when they were particularly skittery but eventually calmed down with extra loving kindness and PEAS), they have been sweet and sociable, most of them allowing me to pet them, all but one eating out of my hand.

If they do get spooked (i.e. glass packs on a motorcycle), they recover within minutes. They are not at all perturbed by mini bikes, school buses, the mail delivery truck. They even try to talk to the neighbor's weed whacker!

I feel it depends on their environment and ability to interact with someone who is patient.

 

[fowlman01]

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That is the key. I have 300+ waterfowl, so I don't have the time to spend with all the birds. I train the runners for show, but other than me feeding them and watching them (which I do in a chair) they have no interaction with me.

Walt

 

[TLWR]

Yeah, mine follow me everywhere and walk between my feet while I'm trying to feed them. They don't like being scooped up, but I can rub their bills and they bury them into a very lightly formed fist. If the see me walk outside, they run up to me and then follow me where ever I happen to be going.
Dogs barking, horses next door making noise, DH's motorcycle, the truck - whatever. They aren't phased by much. They keep their eyes to the sky for birds and planes and couldn't figure out the helo the other day, but once I told them they were fine, it wouldn't eat them, they were off again.
If they were any friendlier, they'd be climbing in my lap (which they did when they were a week old, but not since)

 

[Miss Lydia]

I just love the way they all move together, like fowlman said, like a school of fish too cute

 

[ejctm]

I love all the pics of everyone's runners!

Here are mine for good measure...

 

[crj]

I have fawn and white runners. They are definitely comical. Mine are affraid of me unless I get down to there level with a handful of peas or anything they want to eat. They have no interest in hanging around me but they will come close to see what I'm up too at times. I think it's from being in a large group at a hardware store and people sticking there hands in grabbing at them. Even as they were growing up they were skiddish and would run from my hand. To this day they know I wont hurt them yet they are still skiddish. I do have some in the incubator which will be hatching around the 7th. We will see how they react when they hatch. They will probably be a lot different. I get such a kick out of them. To think I thought chickens were entertaining........ HA!