Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Shadrach]

I’m sure you and Henry are up to tge task.

Don't be. We're not.
I'm to old and he doesn't have hands.

 

[Perris]

were we talking here earlier about whether or not rescues can learn to forage and do other things non-rescue chickens do? (or have I got my threads confused?) If so, this suggests not, or not much at any rate
https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/arv177

 

[RoyalChick]

were we talking here earlier about whether or not rescues can learn to forage and do other things non-rescue chickens do? (or have I got my threads confused?) If so, this suggests not, or not much at any rate
https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/arv177

That is this thread. Thanks for posting this.
First I just have to say that in another life I would be their research assistant. I would specialize in the 'Novel Arena' test which involves taking baby chicks and placing them in a pen and watching them and then giving them food and watching again. What a lovely way to spend a day!
More seriously, I did not take away from the study that it had much to say about rescues learning behavior.
This was a personality study looking at the question of whether personality is fixed from an early age regardless of the various maturation stages a chicken goes through. Answer, not at all in males, to some minor degree in females.
Maybe I read it wrong because I confess I skipped some of the detailed statistics in the findings.

 

[micstrachan]

Here. I'll donate this in your behalf. A video of Sir Fat Mouth ought to be good for every off topic you posted with a good lot left in the bank for future meandering.

Napoleon LOOOOOVES to hang out with the hens in the morning during egg laying, singing along and climbing in the nest boxes cooing his little head off to them.

I actually cringe a little when I read "I was lovin' on my chickens". Uh... what?

Napoleon is adorable!

 

[Perris]

@RoyalChick I'm glad you liked it - I suspect the results may be a bit different with chicks raised by a broody. Lab conditions are not really ideal for exploring natural behaviours. The bit I thought relevant was the tendency to do less exploring as they got older, and become more passive. Doesn't really go with being a late developer in my mind. The relevant bit is "Exploration decreased with age and stabilized after sexual maturation. The decrease in exploration might be due to habituation to the test situation. However, we believe this is unlikely considering the variation in design and alteration of the test arenas, which should elicit explorative behavior."

 

[micstrachan]

Henry is devoting his time and energy to the hens that are laying. How does he know this? Is it by the colour of their combs? Is it their willingness to crouch for him? Something else?
View attachment 2923604

I bet it’s a combination of things, but it’s no surprise after reading your Understanding Your Rooster article.

 

[micstrachan]

Is there some way this is different than getting chicks from a big hatchery? Their eggs are all hatched in an incubator, and their breeding stock is almost certainly raised in single-generation groups, probably culled after a single year of laying.


I don't know about "resetting" anything, but I know that lots of people get chicks from hatcheries, raise them in a brooder, and later post questions about their hen that went broody. So being hatched/raised artificially does NOT prevent a hen going broody when she is an adult.

I have a hen who was a hatchery chick (Boff Orpington) hand raised by me, go broody, and raise more hatchery chicks I tucked under her. I have a friend who had a silkie do the same several times. I also had a hand raised hatchery girl (Speckled Sussex) go broody, but when I tucked chicks under her, she pecked at them like they were intruders disrupting the invisible eggs she was sitting on).

 

[micstrachan]

Can't help but to share Ace's first crow here. He was 18 weeks old yesterday. It's an outstanding first crow if I do say so myself!

Impressive!

 

[BY Bob]

There’s an appalling video (and I won’t share where) from an animal welfare charity officer’s body cam showing the charity’s vet casually breaking the neck of a poor battery hen in appalling conditions. This is why I no longer donate to large charities, only small legitimate ones.

Tax:
View attachment 2915803

I too have seen such things. Breaks the heart. They will not get my money any longer either.

 

[micstrachan]

There is so much interesting reading in here and I’m having trouble keeping up! So many great article links! I’ve spent almost half an hour trying to catch up, but it’s a work day and I have a couple hours of chores to do before leaving the house.