Ribh's D'Coopage

[BY Bob]

Good evening everyone

Good morning everyone.

 

[Grammy60]

Good morning everyone.

Good morning Bob have a wonderful day !

 

[BY Bob]

Good morning Bob have a wonderful day !

Thank you. You as well please.

 

[Grammy60]

Thank you. You as well please.

I'll try, but it's more housework today I'll find time to at least read or write in my journal !

 

[Shadrach]

Can you explain this Shad? Are you saying all baby chicks because they are so fragile? I have handled ALL my chicks. Do you think that I could have unknowingly caused them harm?

I don't know micstrachen. It's something I was told as a kid. Later breeders I had a great deal of respect for told me the same. Here the chicken keepers say this.
If they are handled correctly, with care, then with regard to physical harm, they should be fine.
But, there is more to it than whether or not you damage anything. There is the over riding of their natural reaction and that is to have nothing to do with you.
Lots of people on BYC want pet type chickens and hadling them when young is one way to achieve this. I think it reduces their defense and escape abilities. I've watched quite a few videos where an alram call has been given and the hens just atnd there. This lot here would have dived for cover in most of the instances I saw.

I don't handle chicks here unless absolutely necessary. Those time I have handled them it was easy to see how it could all go badly wrong. People instinct is to do a reactive grab should say a chick try to escape, and that is easily enough to cause damage. You could probably bat them about all day long and as long as you didn't bat them too hard, or against a solid object they would be fine. Mums do this all the time to their chicks until the chick learns to stand in front of mum when she digs rather than behind.

 

[Shadrach]

Desdemona is the easiest little girl to handle.
She has lost her fear of me.

Beatrice, on the other hand, thinks I'm the devil incorporated.

Here they are with some of them thinking about heading to bed.

Titania thinks nothing of taking on the big girls.

Honestly Ribh, how could you let that feather duster bully the pullets?

 

[Ribh]

Oh they are so lovely! We need a daily dose just to counter all the bad things in the world! I think you are heading to have a top hen who is at most half-pint-sized.

I had a blue Australorp bantam with the same sort of attitude. As the saying goes, it's not the size of the chicken, it's the size of the fight in the chicken. Titania is feisty.

 

[Ribh]

That's a good start.

She's really lovely. An absolute sweetie. I put her to bed 1st last night partly because she's got it worked out, knew nothing bad was going to happen & let me handle her without a fuss. And she stays! Which means everyone else is a little easier. Olivia wasn't too bad either.

 

[Ribh]

Honestly Ribh, how could you let that feather duster bully the pullets?

I'm trying to respect the natural way they'll sort out their pecking order...

Actually I'll have to watch her. I caught her going Portia's eyes yesterday & when she chest bumps she gets enough height to be @ face level with the bigger girls. She's got Beatrice cowed & treats Portia like a large fluffy beach towel. Olivia is safe enough, being her sister & all, but the others all give her space ~ except Ceres. Ceres is the only one really prepared to take her on & win.

 

[Shadrach]

I'm trying to respect the natural way they'll sort out their pecking order...

Actually I'll have to watch her. I caught her going Portia's eyes yesterday & when she chest bumps she gets enough height to be @ face level with the bigger girls. She's got Beatrice cowed & treats Portia like a large fluffy beach towel. Olivia is safe enough, being her sister & all, but the others all give her space ~ except Ceres. Ceres is the only one really prepared to take her on & win.

She sounds a bit like Mel. Mel is the smallest hen apart from Tap here and she's second in command.