Look but don’t touch

[Hetken1]

I think I did not handle my little chicks enough. Now they are 4 months old and follow me close, everywhere but don’t want to be touched or picked up. Would like to be able to pet them when we hang out together. Any suggestions ?

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Treats.

 

[Lydia Huizenga]

I read that if you feed them treats, they will come up to you, then after a while, swap the treats to pets. They like their chest rubbed.

 

[SueT]

Chickens don't have a natural inclination to like being touched. They aren't like your cat or dog. Notice that they don't show affection to each other by touching. Touching usually means the opposite. If they hang around by you, it means they like you. They can get used to being handled. And you may be able to encourage them to jump up on your lap for treats, like this one. She still doesn't like to be touched, but she will tolerate it.

 

[Sahraschweiss]

I am curious what others say. Several of my girls don't like to be handled. I will sit out in chair every evening for about an hour. I will give out some treats for only a sort time 5 minutes, but rest is me just there. I have two short sawhorses on either side of my chair, and are the same height as as the armrests. I let the girls decide how close they want to be. They've gone from dine and dash, to hanging on the sawhorses, to the armrest, to my lap. Most will leave if I pet them. I'm still working on it.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I use one hand to hold treats for them to eat out of and use my other to just lightly touch their backs. Eventually some of them let me pet their backs. My four youngest ones think I'm their mama now and let me pick them up and hold them since I save them food and protect them from the older, meaner birds they live with