She really doesn't know she is a chicken....

[Rooneytune]

so i adopted a single RIR from a friend of a friend (long story) She has been alone with only people since she was about a week old.

She is very sweet and friendly and introducing her to the flock seems to be going ok. She spent her first 2 days in "solitary" (a small pen inside the run) I managed to put her to bed with the big girls last night and they all woke up friendly this morning. At least until I went out to check on everyone. She was very happy to see me,

and everyone got their treats, but when I went to leave she tried to follow me out! When I closed the door to the run she went crazy trying to fly up the door. She managed to stick her head into through an small broken wire about 5 feet up the wall and cut her head a little bit., She seems to be ok, but is back in solitary because of her wound.

How am I going to teacher her that she is a CHICKEN and therefor needs to stay in the run like everybody else????

 

[shakenbake]

I would give it a few days. She probably doesn't realize that chicken company is a lot better than your company yet. The biggest thing I would worry about is that the others don't pick on her. Other than that, it just takes time.

 

[HorseFeatherz NV]

She may never understand that she is a chicken - to her, she is a people with unchanging clothes (feathers).



I have a duck who was raised with chickens - he is afraid of ducks! We have his parents, but he was abandoned at hatch and raised with a group of bantam chicks. He has bonded with one of the roosters - he does not have any interest in making ducklings in the spring with other girly ducks - nothing!




eta: Peepers (the duck) is two years old..............he is not changing his mind

He sees the ducks daily - but will not interact with them.

 

[flgardengirl]

I have a little pullet that thinks she's a turkey. She doesn't want to be around other chickens unless the turkeys are also there. She has lived with chickens longer than turkeys but I guess she is more impressed with the turkeys than the chickens.