Non-exploring hens.

[Tyaloria]

Hi all!

I've had my Sussex and Wyandotte for 36 weeks. I got them when they were 21 weeks from a poultry farm (lots and lots of big pens full of chickens)

at first I could understand their nervousness. But over time I have gone through countless food bowls, water feeders, brand of food, even calcium supplements as the eggs shell was so thin.
I have taught then basically how to eat from a dog food bowl and drink from a bright orange Halloween bucket.

I let them free range, they hide behind their coop all day.

wont take a treat but will let you pick them up.

I've set up a little perch so maybe they might get the idea of how to perch but they haven't even looked at it.

that's the problem, they have all this space and things to play with and they just don't.

I wondered if it was because they had none of these things at the farm?

any ideas?

 

[BigRedRoo]

Hard to teach old dog new tricks. They need to learn how to be chickens again by the sounds of things. keep giving them out time but maybe set up a shelter outside so they can hang under that and try to forrage. Rember they are flight animals, if they see somthing over head my girls all run for the hills! even a turkey buzard in the distance can set off an alarm causing them all to run under the bushes.

Do they have any friends to teach them where the goods are at? My girls are allways happyer in numbers and the rooster protects them so they can focus on foraging. He even finds somme good treats and feeds the treats to his girls. When I intruoduced three new ones in the spring they were the outcast but as time goes on they are getting better and two out of three go out with the rest where as one just doesnt trust the big bad world yet.

 

[lazy gardener]

My suggestion is that you get 1 or 2 young pullets who know how to act like chickens to show these girls the ropes.

 

[Tyaloria]

Thanks both for your replies, I do have a selection of un-hatched chickies which will be born soon, so I'm hoping when they are big enough and are running about the grass the older 2 will follow suit. fingers crossed!