vicenza
In the Brooder
- Mar 17, 2023
- 5
- 46
- 39
Hi all
First post in the community. Thanks for having me.
I have quite a few chickens. The flock has grown a fair bit over the year, always from eggs I've incubated, or from local purchases from amateurs around here. Never bought a chicken sight unseen... until now.
Since the flock is a joy socially but pretty poor laying-wise, I decided to buy five Leghorns from a local hatchery which, to the best of my knowledge, had a pretty good rep. What I received in the mail is anything but good, or Leghorn-y personality wise.
The poor five Leghorns are cosmetically fine, without signs of disease, and I put them in a Chickshaw far from the others as they quarantine. Their mental state, though, is absolutely pitiful - it makes me want to buy the hatchery just to shut it down. The girls' beaks had been cut. They have evidently never been in a non-battery social setting as they are unable to roost, won't leave their coop unless beckoned to, have zero interest in scratching, are apathetic and lethargic. I had to teach them to drink from a gravity drinker. They display no interest in their surroundings or any feed except layer - that includes mealworms! They don't know how to dust bathe... I could go on. When they go to "roost", they lie on the floor practically on top of each other, with no interaction except the occasional comatose pecking at each other's feathers. They are practically mute, and the only good thing is that they're super tame.
The situation is so bad that I "sacrificed" one of my bantam roosters (I have too many anyway, and the Amrock alpha was giving him hell) to go and live with the five Leghorn hens. (The introduction was hysterical besides - the little guy had never gotten any because Amrock made sure he wouldn't. First thought he'd gotten into his own harem, then found out the five belles had the personality of a wooden log. He was super disappointed). Anyway, the otherwise worldly and experienced bantam rooster doesn't seem to be achieving my goal to teach the Leghorns how to live in this world.
What am I to do with these poor hens? Physically they'll do just fine, I'm sure, through life in the open etc. They are just so... ignorant of the ways of the world. I had this issue at the very beginning of my hobby and borrowed an old hen from my aunt who set everything straight. In this case, the five students seem beyond repair.
Any help or recommendations are welcome.
First post in the community. Thanks for having me.
I have quite a few chickens. The flock has grown a fair bit over the year, always from eggs I've incubated, or from local purchases from amateurs around here. Never bought a chicken sight unseen... until now.
Since the flock is a joy socially but pretty poor laying-wise, I decided to buy five Leghorns from a local hatchery which, to the best of my knowledge, had a pretty good rep. What I received in the mail is anything but good, or Leghorn-y personality wise.
The poor five Leghorns are cosmetically fine, without signs of disease, and I put them in a Chickshaw far from the others as they quarantine. Their mental state, though, is absolutely pitiful - it makes me want to buy the hatchery just to shut it down. The girls' beaks had been cut. They have evidently never been in a non-battery social setting as they are unable to roost, won't leave their coop unless beckoned to, have zero interest in scratching, are apathetic and lethargic. I had to teach them to drink from a gravity drinker. They display no interest in their surroundings or any feed except layer - that includes mealworms! They don't know how to dust bathe... I could go on. When they go to "roost", they lie on the floor practically on top of each other, with no interaction except the occasional comatose pecking at each other's feathers. They are practically mute, and the only good thing is that they're super tame.
The situation is so bad that I "sacrificed" one of my bantam roosters (I have too many anyway, and the Amrock alpha was giving him hell) to go and live with the five Leghorn hens. (The introduction was hysterical besides - the little guy had never gotten any because Amrock made sure he wouldn't. First thought he'd gotten into his own harem, then found out the five belles had the personality of a wooden log. He was super disappointed). Anyway, the otherwise worldly and experienced bantam rooster doesn't seem to be achieving my goal to teach the Leghorns how to live in this world.
What am I to do with these poor hens? Physically they'll do just fine, I'm sure, through life in the open etc. They are just so... ignorant of the ways of the world. I had this issue at the very beginning of my hobby and borrowed an old hen from my aunt who set everything straight. In this case, the five students seem beyond repair.
Any help or recommendations are welcome.
Give them time - they will blossom, but it will take time for them to learn how to be 'real' chickens.
