Rebellious pullet!

[Studio2770]

We have a stubborn leghorn who has gotten out of the yard a couple times. We clipped her wing yesterday, today she is determined to find a way out. The lowest fence we have is just under 6 ft. She can only reach 3ft. She has tried and failed. I'm wondering if I should clip her other wing to reduce her flying power even more so that she discontinues trying quicker. Should I?

 

[Studio2770]

Well, we found out why she was so determined... she laid her second egg on the work bench in the garage.

 

[BlackRock13]

My White Star Hybrid jumped up the fence and sat there..

 

[BlackRock13]

I would keep an eye out and give a few weeks and clip her wings again.She will probably learn that it doesn`t work.

 

[Michael Apple]

This is why I, and others, choose to cover the tops of their yards with chicken wire. If you're going to possess flighty breeds, you must have a covered yard. It is also a good prevention for annoying wild birds pilfering feed/crapping in the feeders/waterers, and hawks stealing birds.

 

[Studio2770]

I would keep an eye out and give a few weeks and clip her wings again.She will probably learn that it doesn`t work.

Even with a clipped wing, she got out and laid that second egg in the garage. She was fine the rest of the day. I may confine her in the coop so she gets the idea.

This is why I, and others, choose to cover the tops of their yards with chicken wire. If you're going to possess flighty breeds, you must have a covered yard. It is also a good prevention for annoying wild birds pilfering feed/crapping in the feeders/waterers, and hawks stealing birds.

Our yard is rather large, so clipping wings is much quicker than covering our entire yard just to keep 1 chicken from getting out. We also didn't know what kind of chicks we were getting. The only info we got is that they were pullets and assorted breeds or something like that, they were the last ones left so we decided to get them.

 

[Michael Apple]

Even with a clipped wing, she got out and laid that second egg in the garage. She was fine the rest of the day. I may confine her in the coop so she gets the idea.
Our yard is rather large, so clipping wings is much quicker than covering our entire yard just to keep 1 chicken from getting out. We also didn't know what kind of chicks we were getting. The only info we got is that they were pullets and assorted breeds or something like that, they were the last ones left so we decided to get them.

If you clip wings, you need to clip both of them. I suspected you had a yard for your chickens, not your entire back yard. I sometimes forget how many people have chickens in the suburbs.

 

[Studio2770]

Someone told me that clipping both defeats the purpose but I doubt it because that doesn't make sense. So both wings clipped is better than one clipped wing?

 

[cackleberrycam]

When you only clip one wing, they cannot fly in a strait line.

 

[Michael Apple]

Someone told me that clipping both defeats the purpose but I doubt it because that doesn't make sense. So both wings clipped is better than one clipped wing?

There are differences in opinion. I've even seen the one wing clip being recommended on reputable sites. The way I was raised around birds, and I agree with the sense of it, is that both wings should be clipped symmetrically so the bird can land softly without hitting the ground hard. Hitting the ground card can fracture or damage the keel bone, among other parts of the body.