Sight Problems

[Sofarabbit]

I have two porcelain d'uccles. They are about 7 months old now and are laying occasionally. I feed them treats from my hand regularly. They would NEVER peck me to attack me or be aggressive. They fall asleep in my hands and enjoy sitting near me. Recently, one of the two has been acting strange. When I give her treats, she often knows I have them but might have problems finding them. She sometimes misses the treat dish and bites my hand hard. This will happen a couple of times before she finds the treats again and eats them. If I move the dish, she swings at me and will peck me. I don't think she's doing it to be aggressive because she never does this otherwise. It's only when I have food that she will peck me. Do you think it's a vision problem? Or is she just excited? She is very vocal and does make a lot of noises when we're giving them food.

I've attached some photos of them for cuteness purposes

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

If a chicken pecks me I place a hand over its back and hold it down for a few seconds (carefully so as not to harm the hen) to show her that I am the top hen. Don't let them peck you.

She knows what she is doing IMO - I think she is wanting to be top hen. They are very cute!! I used to have d'Uccles and they are dears.

 

[Sofarabbit]

Ok, I'm glad that you think it's not a sight problem. I was a little worried that she had problems seeing. It surprises me that she wants to be top hen because she is the less dominant of the two. And the top hen, Luna, never pecks me. Chickens are weird sometimes haha. Thanks for your advice!

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Ok, I'm glad that you think it's not a sight problem. I was a little worried that she had problems seeing. It surprises me that she wants to be top hen because she is the less dominant of the two. And the top hen, Luna, never pecks me. Chickens are weird sometimes haha. Thanks for your advice!

You are welcome!

 

[Sofarabbit]

I tried this out and it has worked wonders! She calms down and waits her turn instead of lashing out at me. It's almost like when you have a dog that's got food aggression. I will continue doing this and hopefully there will come a point where I won't have to do it anymore. Thanks again!

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

I tried this out and it has worked wonders! She calms down and waits her turn instead of lashing out at me. It's almost like when you have a dog that's got food aggression. I will continue doing this and hopefully there will come a point where I won't have to do it anymore. Thanks again!

You are welcome!

D'Uccles are sooooo much fun!! I love them. Enjoy!

 

[Serenity Sav]

They're so adorable. D'uccles are my favorite.
For what it's worth, my d'uccle hen "misses" her treats too, and gets my hand instead. I've had some chickens that will intentionally bite my hand before eating treats, but I can tell it's an accident with my d'uccle. She misses when treats are on the ground too; I've always assumed its because she has bad aim with her beak.

 

[Sofarabbit]

Haha too funny! I used to have a red sexlink who would do that occasionally when my Cochin rooster wanted treats. She would try to get as many treats as possible until he came around and in the process would accidentally miss once or twice and get my hand instead of the treats. And I will enjoy them! They are a blast.