Socializing my chicks

[lemurchaser]

I have 5, 4 week old chicks. 3 partridge rocks and 2 barred rocks. I've been handling them since I got them, but they are terrified of me. Is this normal or do I need to spend more time with them. They will hang out with me, but as soon as I try to touch them or worse, pick them up, they scream their heads off. When they are on the ground, I can walk right up to them and sit down amongst them, and they don't even seem to notice. But catching them is a traumatic event.

Ideas? Suggestions? I'd really love to have very friendly and social chickens.

Thanks

 

[airmom1c05]

Treats and roost time loving! The first step is getting them to eat out of your hand. Eventually, if they are really crazy about the treat, they will get up on you to get it. This works best when sitting down. Don't try to pick them up if they don't like it. Instead, wait until they are sleeping and gently massage their crop with one hand while gently laying the other hand on their back. It takes a lot of patience to really gain the bird's trust. It takes more treats than patience in my humble opinion!

Chickens don't like to be approached from above instinctively; it's too much like a predator attack. That's just something else I learned on BYC!

 

[Cetawin]

eating out of your hand, treats and patience. Daughter and I would sit down on the bathroom floor with the girls and just let them walk around. We talked to them but let them come to us. That is where the patience pays off...every now and again they freak when I reach in the brooder but most often they fly up to the edge of the brooder, sit and watch what I am doing. 2 of them just fly onto my arm, hand or shoulder. LOL

Don't give up...