Just Curious...

[southerndesert]

Allot more good folks are keeping chickens these days as pets and as livestock and for a wide variety of reasons. Now I have been around chickens for much of my life in one way or another and have seen them do some amazing things, gross, stupid, smart, evil, impossible, disgusting, and I am sure there are more words that will fit.

My question is this to you folks fairly new to chicken husbandry,

What is the thing that surprised you most about your chickens that you never knew until having your first flock? So what is your best "I never would have thought" story?

Just thought it may be fun to hear some of your experiences....

 

[Minniechickmama]

I never would have thought that chickens have their own "language" but they do. After hours and hours and hours spent around my flock, I have discovered the different sounds that the chickens will make in different situations. From the crow, the bawk bawk from the girls, to the sound the roos make when they find treats for the girls. Then there is the growling alert from the roos to let everyone know that danger is near. I have had a couple of occasions where I have been out doing chores and observing the goings on in the flock, when one or more of the boys will let out a growly screech and all the birds (ducks included) run for cover. I have looked to the sky in these situations and lo and behold, there is either an eagle or hawks up above.
Chickens aren't very smart, but to say that have no sense or are just stupid creatures who scratch and peck around is just way off the mark.

 

[Theeggboxtoo]

I've only had chickens for 3 years and the thing that surprised me most was their separate identities. I could not believe it when Lemon jumped on my arm! I couldn't believe it when Big Mama (later Big Red) flew out of the brooder and crowed!

 

[mrsbos]

I never knew about the wide range of noises hens can make. I thought roosters crowed and hens bawked and clucked. Raising my 3 EEs as chicks I got to hear the cute peeping, trilling, clucking, and then all the funny sounds the girls make now that I'm still trying to decipher. LOVE IT! (Except when they won't shut up all day and I know my neighbor is getting mad)

 

[TwoCrows]

The thing that amazes me the most, being a new chicken mom this year is how affectionate they really are. I brought home 4 Black Australorp girls back in early March of this year. I had done my homework on wanting a friendly chicken, but I had no idea how super sweet they really are! They beg to sit in my lap, all clambering for the best spot up close to my chest as I sit down in the run. They will fight over who gets to sit closer to me and a couple of them really love to be petted. They stare into your eyes, (maybe eyeing them up as a snack LOL) but it seems like they are showing some affection toward me.

They follow me around, talking in their amusing chortle, while I clean up the yard. They come running toward me when they see me coming, knowing that goodies and a nice lap will be available. They are such sweet hearts. And had I known they could be such sweet pets, I would have gotten into chickens years ago.

 

[SarniaTricia]

I never would have thought.....
That chickens can be so mean.
I had 6 older girls. The lowest on that pecking order jointed the little girls when I got them.
The older girls could get ahold of one of the litte girls and pull out a mouth full of feathers. Just for getting too close or being in a spot the older girls wanted to be in!
I created `safe`areas were the little girls could hide or run through quickly that the big girls just wouldn`t fit.
(The 5 Big girls have since graduated to freezer camp. The 6th acts like a coop mother to the little girls, so she stayed to keep them in line. She`s the little grey easter egger. Too old to lay, but good with chicken kids.)

 

[Kassaundra]

I was suprised at the variety of colors, feather patterning, sizes, shapes, feather placement etc.... I thought all chickens were basically alike some red some black and some white.

 

[johnsons-r-us]

I've only had chickens for about 8 months. I'm amazed at how easy they are to keep

And that they stay close around the property and put themselves to bed at night. I had heard they did this but I didn't realized they really did it

They are so much easier to keep than dogs, cats and other animals, which I've had all my life.

 

[chicmom]

Gosh, so many things have surprised me.....I guess it's the individual personalities of the chickens....I've had some that I raised from chicks that wanted nothing to do with me, and then a handful that would look me right in the eye and sort of chitter-chatter at me and really listen when I talk back to them. I've got a Cochin Bantam, I call her Little Blackie, who is always the first to run up to me and say howdy when I come to the coop.

So I guess it's the friendliness that some of my hens have shared with me.

 

[RedDrgn]

I never would have thought chickens had such personalities. I grew up with cats, but never had any real contact/time with chickens until we got our five in July. Chickens are like feathered cats! Crazy, wiley, funny, and too smart for their own good sometimes. Just never a dull moment or a limit to what they'll get into/up to. XD