interesting hen behavior

[eichenluft]

I was outside working when my "broody" hen and her three foster-chicks came strutting out of the barn - the chicks are big enough now to get out, I was trying very hard to keep them shut in the barn in the horse-stall area so they would be safe from dogs (I put them in a crate at night)
The chicks stay very close to "Plucky", follow her very closely - they started pecking around under a tree where there are some kennel panels leaning up.
Hearing some clucking coming from the other side of the barn, I watched one of my red hens walk toward the tree - and Plucky walked out from under the kennel panels and no sign of the chicks. They always stuck to her like glue, so I was wondering where they were. Plucky stood out in the open, and when the red hen got close, she started walking in the opposite direction - still no chicks - she let the red hen approach and she hunkered down = the red hen gave her a mean peck or two and she walked off again still in the opposite direction. Red hen followed, then went off on her own way, and Plucky returned to the tree, where three chicks poked their heads out and came running out to her!
I believe she told her chicks to hunker down, don't make a sound, and stay put while she led the red hen away from them. Is this normal behavior for a hen? I was pretty amazed.

molly

 

[Llysse]

How interesting! It sounds to me like you translated the chicken pretty well. I have no idea if this is common, though... I'd love to hear more stories like this from others.

 

[CarriBrown]

I don't doubt that's what she did. She's a mother, after all, and it's her job to take care of her babies!
She sounds like she's a great mom.

 

[crazyfeathers]

Sounds like "Plucky" should get the mother of the year award. What a good mama she is. You should be a proud chicken owner.