Pecking Order?

[BlueBetween]

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an hour!?!!! LOL The last week they were living in the brooder, they seemed to be spending an awful lot of time and making an awful lot of noise figuring out sleeping arrangements... but now, they seem to have their system down good. No fighting and squirming

 

[7L Farm]

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My roo likes to roost right in the middle of the hens. They do like the windows. I don't blame them its so hot here.

 

[gritsar]

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My roo likes to roost right in the middle of the hens. They do like the windows. I don't blame them its so hot here.

My Thor (LF brahma) used to sit at the last spot on the roost, closest to the door. Impy paces in the evenings and won't settle down to a roost until everyone else is in and settled.

It is miserably hot, isn't it?

 

[DanEP]

My top girl is pretty laid back and moves around quite often as to where she sleeps.the only time I ever so her go past the old stink eye or a quick peck is when she opened a large can of whoop butt on a pushy young roo. So the one you think is the top of the pecking order may not be or she may be sleeping any where she wants. Its good to be the king /queen.

 

[nuchickontheblock]

Our chickens have settled into their new coop and roosting positions with our boss chick going in and roosting first -- anywhere she wants - she fluffs out and takes up lots of room LOL. The next one in prefers the window seat and the lowest on the pecking order likes to run around outside by herself for a while, is the last one in, and then gets whatever space is left.

don't you sometimes wonder what they're thinking??

 

[BlueBetween]

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yeah, I do

They are not like my dog, who's mind I can pretty much read at any given moment... these chickens have an aura of mystery about them! They do seem happy to see me though, even if they are just hoping I have food.

 

[ten girls]

Hi. I am new to BYC and have a couple of questions for the experienced chicken people out there. I have 10 girls (2 buff orpingtons, 4 black australorps and 4 americunas) who started laying this past Oct. The egg production is great (currently 8-10 a day despite the cold) but we have one hen who drops her egg outside. We know it is one of the americunas as it is a blue egg. I do think I know which hen as she is clearly on the bottom of the pecking order. Is it possible to have a retarded chicken? When the girls are fee ranging, everybody but her stay fairly close to each other. They all come when we whistle to bring them in for the night....but her. It is almost like she doesn't hear. Has anyone else had a similar problem?

Also, we are thinking about enlarging the flock in the spring. Since I do not have a rooster i have to but either fertile eggs or new babies. My local feed store says they don't think I can just introduce new babies and have them accepted by the flock. How does everybody else go about enlarging?

I love my girls. They make me laugh and since I started using chicken manure on my garden I have had incredible harvests of vegetables. Friends heard that I had chickens and started to buy the eggs. We sell out before we get any ourselves. Hence the enlarging the flock.

One new thing we did find. When my husband moews the lawn...we put the mowed grass in their henyard. Not only do they love the fresh grass but there was no smell over the hot summer.