My girls don't like me!

[Nyna]

Hi everyone, I am so jealous of seeing these pictures of people hold their birds! I got 7 a month ago, they are last years hatch, and they won't let me come near them! They are getting better, they will let me sprinkle scratch next to them with out totally flipping out. But I try and talk to them so they know my voice, and I move really slowly. Do you think they will always be like this or will they get better with time. I am only worried because I can't get close enough to inspect them for bugs or anything and if one ever got hurt it would be hard to fix her with out them flapping and boking and making things worst.

 

[rosyposyosy]

welcome to the club! i only had one chicken who liked me and that was my adorable banty roo. i had to give him up though because we are in the city. i tried treats - but that didnt work. now what has been working is preening them - pickin at the pin feathers that they have and stroking and stroking their neck - although that is ---- AFTER i finally catch one of 'em

 

[Iamaqte]

Mine do the same thing.. I dont get it! i feed and water them.. give them treats..but i cant touch them.. Unless they are roosting.. that is it.

The one time I had them all near me was when i was cleaning some of the rocks and stuff out of the big pen and there were yummy worms.. so they would watch me (staying far enough back untill they saw me with the worm.. then they would come running at take it out of my hands.. that is about as close as i can get.

I am going to get some baby baby soon and I am going to interact with them as much as I can.

 

[Nyna]

Do you really think I should try and catch one and pet it? I don't know if that would help or make it worst!

 

[silkiechicken]

It's just some birds. I have some that wont let me touch them and if they got hurt I would not be able to treat without totally binding them down. I have to catch them at night if I want to inspect them. I even raised mine from chicks. Generally, if you want them to be hand friendly, you have to raise them from chicks and handle them like crazy. My silkies come to me, and are too slow to get away before I pick them up. I also have a red sexlink... that I wish was a golden sexlink... that was raised with cornish x's... and hasn't quite learned that I can catch her if she is in arms reach.

 

[silkiechicken]

Quote:
If you hold them and pet them, they will learn you are not hurting them. You can't let them go if they are struggling though as they will learn that struggling equals freedom. Set them down only if they are calm. It's kind of hard to hand tame birds if you got them as adults.

 

[Chirpy]

Ours are only about four months old but my children have held them everyday since we got them as chicks. (Australorps, RIR and Red Sexlink.)

We can pick up any of them except the Hamburg and two white ones (we don't know for sure what they are). They are lighter breeds and I've been told that lighter breeds are often times more skittish.

It will be interesting for me to see if we can continue to pick them up as they get older. Right now they practically step on our feet when we are in the run with them. They often follow me around like puppies when we free range them.

 

[suburbanchick]

I have 3 SLW's and an Amer. They don't want anything to do with me either. I have to put them in their coop each night and they don't like that at all! The only way I can do it is wait till it's dark and pick them up while they're roosting. They are sometimes pretty calm at that time and will let me pet them.

I've had mine since they were 2 weeks old and handled them every day. I'm always giving them treats and talking to them.

I know what you mean... it is frustrating.

I do feel like one is finally coming around a little bit, as she stood still yesterday while I pet her. But after a minute, she freaked out again!

 

[Wolfpacker]

Well, my girls seem to be OK with me, but, like most "wimmin," it's got to be on their terms. When I try to catch one, it's very difficult. But when I go into the coop and squat down, within a couple of minutes, I'm surrounded, and soon one or two have jumped up on my legs. Chicken Matthews, with whom I spent HOURS a week or so ago, is the most skittish of all and will NOT let me touch her. And this is the chick who lived inside with us and on my office desk for two weeks. Go figure.

I think we probably ascribe a little too much intelligence to them. In fact, they're the first animal I've ever been around who just can't seem to learn to go AROUND an obstacle. They try to get THROUGH a fence to the others, when an opening is only inches away. Do they run to the end of the fence and go around? No! They keep sticking their head through and pulling it out and sticking it through and pulling it out.

Right now I have three outside the run and two inside and they're all trying to figure out how to get to one another. The door is standing wide open about five feet away.

Yep. They're probably not too bright - but I like 'em!

 

[hollyclyff]

I've only got one that really likes me. She loves petting and goes to sleep in my lap. She was 1 1/2 weeks old when we got her and she had the same treatment two others that we got at the same time had. We have two others that were tiny babies when we got them. They love my daughter, but generally pay no attention to me and I held and played with them more when they were babies while my daughter was at school. I don't know what the difference is except just individual personalities.

We have an EE that was a total basket case for a long time. Just in the last week she has started approaching us more and even getting on our laps. No petting though. She won't tolerate that. But it's still a huge step for a chicken that wouldn't even let me move toward her a few weeks ago without freaking out. I think lots of treats and watching the others helped.

In fact, they're the first animal I've ever been around who just can't seem to learn to go AROUND an obstacle. They try to get THROUGH a fence to the others, when an opening is only inches away. Do they run to the end of the fence and go around? No!

My brother had a Great Dane that was like that. Throw a ball off the deck and if it went over the rail instead of the stairs, she couldn't figure out how to get to it. Dumbest dog I've ever seen.​