Yesterday, as well as this morning, my speckled sussex pullet Linda has been completely going off in the noise department! It sounds as if she's being slaughtered alive! She winds up with a series of "bok-bok-bok-bok-bok-bok", each "bok" getting faster and higher in tone, and then when she hits the final, highest "bok", she lets it trail off like a rooster finishing his crow.
At first I was scared she might be in great pain, maybe with an egg stuck. I hurried to evict the roosters from the coop where she insists on laying her eggs, but she didn't appear to have an egg-laying emergency. Then it dawned on me this morning, as she was doing this routine of hers, she's trying to crow!
I've read about hens sometimes taking over the rooster role when the flock has lost their roo, but Linda is as far removed from being in the pecking order position to do that as she is in resembling an actual rooster!
Chickens never cease to amaze me!
At first I was scared she might be in great pain, maybe with an egg stuck. I hurried to evict the roosters from the coop where she insists on laying her eggs, but she didn't appear to have an egg-laying emergency. Then it dawned on me this morning, as she was doing this routine of hers, she's trying to crow!
I've read about hens sometimes taking over the rooster role when the flock has lost their roo, but Linda is as far removed from being in the pecking order position to do that as she is in resembling an actual rooster!
Chickens never cease to amaze me!
