My chicks are crazy scared of me.

[dawgdaydrama]

Hi, I know chickens are prey animals and are, well, chicken.

This is my 3rd time brooding chicks and I don't recall the other two groups behaving like this group.

This group acts like I am a big scary hawk intent on killing them. They completely freak out each day when I check the food and water. They're about 5 1/2 weeks old. I'd stopped picking them up as they freak out so much, I figured that if I just keep calmly talking to them and slowing take care of their food and water that they they'll get used to me. But that hasn't happened. One day last week I did move them, one by one, from the brooder in the garage out to a big dog cage in the back yard as it was a nice day.

When I'd pick one up - after catching it - it'd scream, but when it was alone as I was transporting it through the house, cuddled to my chest, it stopped screaming.

Is that what I should be doing? Taking them out individually and spending time with them without the others?

What are some good chick snacks to give them/bribe them with? I'd just been doing the medicated chick feed.

What can I do to make these crazy chicks like me?

Enjoyed reading this post, funny, it sounds a lot like my chicks. I just came to realization that I am 100 times bigger than them and look a whole lot different and who knows what my hands smell like. I just find peace in knowing that I am caring or them as best I can and truly have their best interest at heart.

 

[0die]

Always be at their level. reach in from the side, not from above. they will not be so afraid then.

 

[chickentrains]

When I had chicks, when I went to go refill their food in the morning, I'd offer some in my hand first. Thats how I tamed them. Soon they started climbing on my hands and hopping onto my shoulders when there wasn't any food

 

[Madhouse Pullet]

I tried to raise friendly and comfortable chicks. Out of 9 total, only 1 is still terrible afraid of me. I've tried various things without luck. My guess is every chicken has their own personality and some are just destined to be skittish and fearful.

 

[Batwell]

M

I think they freak out when your hand is coming in from above which is their instinctive behaviour for escaping predators from the sky. Once your hand is at their level it's easier to calm them down.

mealworms on your hand so they have to get brave to have them. Stroking their chests while they eat starts to get them comfortable with touching. When they are good with this, your other hand can stroke their backs. Dried mealworms are nice ... but they will do almost anything for live ones!

 

[P-family]

When you do try to pick one up, squat and put one hand palm up, low to the ground, as you move toward them slowly. Pick them up from under their breast. My daughter has "wild" ones that she can pick up if she does it this way. Over their heads or backs equals.... predator or, um, rooster activity.

 

[swimmy44]

I have never made friends out of my chicks although some have been friendly to me. I have 14 hens in a coop and yard and they won't run from me. Only one will come up to me and she always did even as a two or three week old "teenager" in the brooder before they graduated to going outside. I have a small egg business and raise them for eggs. I usually sell them as year old or year and a half old hens to anyone who wants layers but doesn't want to bother with chicks. I get my next set of chicks when the "old" ones are about a year old and by the time the newbies are at point of lay, my egg business can start up again. Works for me, and I always have a good supply of laying hens.

 

[Kriscam]

Hi, I know chickens are prey animals and are, well, chicken.

This is my 3rd time brooding chicks and I don't recall the other two groups behaving like this group.

This group acts like I am a big scary hawk intent on killing them. They completely freak out each day when I check the food and water. They're about 5 1/2 weeks old. I'd stopped picking them up as they freak out so much, I figured that if I just keep calmly talking to them and slowing take care of their food and water that they they'll get used to me. But that hasn't happened. One day last week I did move them, one by one, from the brooder in the garage out to a big dog cage in the back yard as it was a nice day.

When I'd pick one up - after catching it - it'd scream, but when it was alone as I was transporting it through the house, cuddled to my chest, it stopped screaming.

Is that what I should be doing? Taking them out individually and spending time with them without the others?

What are some good chick snacks to give them/bribe them with? I'd just been doing the medicated chick feed.

What can I do to make these crazy chicks like me?

My 6 & 7 week old chicks won't eat any treats so bribing that way wouldn't work, but someone here suggested feeding them by hand and that helped build trust with my chicks in a wonderful way. I sing and hum to them while they are eating and they rest on my hands and wrists. It's a sweet time. Don't know if that will work with your skittish chicks, but it helped with mine.

 

[ThatTeowonna]

I had the same, EXACT thing happen around the same age. It bothered me terribly... I also wrote a post on BYC about it. I can tell you emphatically: DON’T WORRY ABOUT IT... THEY WILL COME AROUND! I bought chick treats, tried to talk soothingly to them, etc. The bottom line is whatever the issue was, they got over it. Now, the come running as soon as they hear my back door open. It will be ok. Trust me on this one.

 

[Bigegges]

I don't raise my chickens as pets, so if they run away from me that is just fine. I know they will also run away from true predators if one should come around (like a neighborhood dog). After feeding my chickens every day for 2 years, I still only have one hen, an ISA Brown, that will come up to me to be petted. All other 9 of my hens run away from me - unless I have a bucket of kitchen scraps or other food in hand.

There are plenty of people who raised their chickens as pets. Witness all the pics of some young girl walking around with a chicken on her head! That's not me. But, OK.

If you want to "tame" your chicks and make them more friendly towards you, then I have read where people just start off by sitting in the run with the chickens and letting them get used to you. Maybe throw out a little chicken scratch or snacks. Over a period of time, they will see you as less threatening and maybe as someone with good things for them to eat. Just throw the treats a little closer to you day by day, keeping mostly still so as not to frighten the birds, and over time you will get them sitting in your lap eating treats out of your hand. I suppose you could prop them up on your head for a picture soon after that....

Yeah I’m like you there I don’t care if they let me let them their job is to eat bugs I. The yard and lay eggs. I got 10 leghorns won’t let you get within 20 feet of them not a good breed if you wnat a pet chicken