Odd Behavior - Shouting at Coop

Lorielus

Songster
5 Years
Jul 9, 2017
82
91
128
Hi all,

I'm looking for a little advice on potential causes of some odd behavior. Apologies in advance, this is a bit of a strange one.

One of our chickens, Furiosa (a cream legbar) is exhibiting some odd behaviour. She's absolutely fine in the mornings, runs out the coup to get her breakfast, etc. and have a wander and explore around the garden and returns to the coup to lay, usually late morning/early afternoon.

However, for the last few weeks she then seems to hang about outside the coop door shouting at the coop for a long while, not the usual celebration of an egg, but an angrier kind of sound. When it comes to bedtime, instead of going in of her own accord as usual, she plants herself (standing but clearly planted, elbows out kind of body language) right outside the door and has to be nudged gradually inside.

It's a small coup (about 1.25m x 1m x 1m) for just her and one other chicken (Ripley) and I've checked it a dozen time for any sign of bugs or invaders etc (it's the dead of winter in Scotland, so there's not much alive anyway at the moment), and she shows no other signs of distress (laying daily, eating/drinking/bathroom all fine, good crown colour, etc.).

If it's of any relevance, she's coming up on 5 years old now and is a cream legbar with no history of any health problems of any kind, and lives with one other chicken and shares about an acre of garden (but separate coop) with four ducks during the day.

Does anyone have any guesses as to what her problem might be?

Many thanks in advance as always!
 
Is there a ramp or step she has to navigate?
Hard to say what her deal is, just keep putting her in there.
 
I have a behavior question. I bought a hen about a month ago. I was told she was an Ameraucana already laying, about a year old and did not lay blue or green eggs. She appeared to be terrified of me. She wouldn't come out of the coop in the mornings until I moved away...acted like she thought I might kill her when I tossed feed or seeds or anything in to them. it was 2 weeks before She laid n egg. She lays 3-5 white eggs a week. Her first week of laying was in the coop. Then she began flying out of the run and laying eggs in a nearby box. I was having to run her in at feeding time and at night. Yesterday she flew in to the other run with the silkies . She slept with them last night and the last time I checked she was still with the three silkies. There were three regular size chickens in the first run. Do you think she may have been bullied in the first run? (Egg color makes no difference to me, I just threw that in) I don't know where else to post this, sorry if this is not the right place.
 
There were three regular size chickens in the first run. Do you think she may have been bullied in the first run?
How did you add her?
Any introductory period, where they could see but not touch?
How big is the other coop/run?
Dimensions and pics would help here.
 
The first coop is 20'x20'. So I think it's plenty of room for4 chickens. But I never see them bully her. She really only seems afraid of me and I don't know why. I have watched her mingle with them. Maybe she is just one who likes to fly...I can get her wings trimmed. It's very curious to me. Thanks so much for your response!
 
The first coop is 20'x20'. So I think it's plenty of room for4 chickens. But I never see them bully her. She really only seems afraid of me and I don't know why. I have watched her mingle with them. Maybe she is just one who likes to fly...I can get her wings trimmed. It's very curious to me. Thanks so much for your response!
If she wasn't handled as a chick and barely saw a human that would make her scared of you. If she was raised by a hen who wasn't tame then her mother would have taught her to be scared of humans. Some birds are naturally more flighty too but your girl sounds like she never got the opportunity to learn to trust people.
 
Not the best pics and only two chickens in them. Starting compost.
20210227_142217.jpg
20210227_142411.jpg
 
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