Suspicious of this Amberlink (Cockerel?)

[Redhead Rae]

I never knew I wanted other egg colors or chicken types until I seen the variety on here. Never liked the fluffy foot ones but I have 9 now lol

I know! I never wanted feathered footed chickens until I got Molasses (my avatar, Standard Black Cochin) as a "free rare chick" with my Buffs in February. Now I have him and 10 of his BC/Dominique babies running around. I definitely want more Standard Cochins. I doubt I'll get silkies though. I need my birds to be cold hardy.

I like brooding my chicks. They get handled more. But Hawk is my first broody sooo maybe she’ll teach her babies to be calm and nice like her.

I've found that chicks raised with the flock are better mannered with other chickens and integrate SOOO much better. Plus, my chickens are more for meat/eggs and chicken tv than pets. Lord help me the day I get a chicken that wants to be held and loved, then all bets are off.

 

[AlleysChicks]

I know! I never wanted feathered footed chickens until I got Molasses (my avatar, Standard Black Cochin) as a "free rare chick" with my Buffs in February. Now I have him and 10 of his BC/Dominique babies running around. I definitely want more Standard Cochins. I doubt I'll get silkies though. I need my birds to be cold hardy.


I've found that chicks raised with the flock are better mannered with other chickens and integrate SOOO much better. Plus, my chickens are more for meat/eggs and chicken tv than pets. Lord help me the day I get a chicken that wants to be held and loved, then all bets are off.

I had a mini version of him named Mr. Fluffy Foot! He was very sweet and gentle. He went to a new home with a older man who wanted some chicken Tv!

Mine want to be held and loved on all the time! The one BSL is always jealous when her BR sisters try to get attention. And the silkies are worse!

 

[MinervaELS]

You guys are too funny! All of my chicks were total jerks until a few days ago. Now they will (mostly) let me pick them up to put them away for the night and will even come over to the fence to say hi when I check on them. Definitely no affectionate ones though!

When I bought them the lady at Tractor Supply said, "Oh, and make sure you handle them as much as possible."
This threw me for a loop and I was like, "Handle the what? Handle...the-the chickens?"
Then she gave me a very severe look and said that the more I handled them, the friendlier they would be.
They have never liked that idea one bit, but I sometimes hold one up awkwardly clasped in both hands and say "Er... hi, chicken" before putting it in the run. That will have to do.

 

[Mylied]

You guys are too funny! All of my chicks were total jerks until a few days ago. Now they will (mostly) let me pick them up to put them away for the night and will even come over to the fence to say hi when I check on them. Definitely no affectionate ones though!

When I bought them the lady at Tractor Supply said, "Oh, and make sure you handle them as much as possible."
This threw me for a loop and I was like, "Handle the what? Handle...the-the chickens?"
Then she gave me a very severe look and said that the more I handled them, the friendlier they would be.
They have never liked that idea one bit, but I sometimes hold one up awkwardly clasped in both hands and say "Er... hi, chicken" before putting it in the run. That will have to do.

Lol. It's more like spend time with them and bribe them with treats. My first 6 chickens were the friendliest ever because I didn't have much else to do besides sit with them and let them pirch on me. They would follow me all over the yard and let me pet them. It is a rare chicken that actually likes being held and carted around, though you can get them to tolerate it.

 

[Redhead Rae]

When I bought them the lady at Tractor Supply said, "Oh, and make sure you handle them as much as possible."
This threw me for a loop and I was like, "Handle the what? Handle...the-the chickens?"
Then she gave me a very severe look and said that the more I handled them, the friendlier they would be.
They have never liked that idea one bit, but I sometimes hold one up awkwardly clasped in both hands and say "Er... hi, chicken" before putting it in the run. That will have to do.

"Er... hi, chicken"

I handled my buffs as much as I could, but my son was 8 months old when I got them so, he gets first dibs on my time. All my chickens come running when I step outside and say "Chick, chick, chick, chicky" because that usually means treats. It's funny to watch 35-40 birds come barreling in your direction. My son (now 15 months) says "chick, chick" when he sees chickens or pictures of chickens. It's really cute. For a while, he was calling my parents' dogs "Git" because that is what we would say to the one dog when she wouldn't leave him alone.

 

[Frazzemrat1]

Chicken math is horrible and wonderful! LOL
I bought 3 brahmas and 1 BJG at my local feed store this spring. Two days later I SWORE I had three males, so I went back and got two more brahmas...
A few weeks after that, I still swore I had 3 boys, and maybe another... So I ordered 5 chicks off Meyers. I ended up with a total of 12 pullets. I then got the two hamburgs from somebody who was giving them away near me... so I had 14 chickens. LOL I've since given away two of my brahmas and I'm back down to 12. My husband still can't wrap his head around how we ended up with so many chickens.

But I love them all! LOL

 

[BantyChooks]

I doubt I'll get silkies though. I need my birds to be cold hardy.

I live way north of you and own a silkie. They're not the fragile wusses some make them out to be---mine was fine in -30*F weather.

He did get frostbitten wattles but so does every other bird not cushion or pea combed.

They have never liked that idea one bit, but I sometimes hold one up awkwardly clasped in both hands and say "Er... hi, chicken" before putting it in the run. That will have to do.

Hilarious!

 

[BantyChooks]

Lord help me the day I get a chicken that wants to be held and loved, then all bets are off.

Bet you'll get one like my Jace. She turns into a clingy needy little sourpuss in winter and will follow me around and crawl onto my lap at every opportunity until I warm her toes.
She's totally spoiled. I even bring her inside when it goes too much below -20*F.

I agree with what everyone else said about chicken math. I firmly believe I am the only person on this website with fewer birds right now than when I started.

 

[Redhead Rae]

I live way north of you and own a silkie. They're not the fragile wusses some make them out to be---mine was fine in -30*F weather.

He did get frostbitten wattles but so does every other bird not cushion or pea combed.


Hilarious!

Part of the problem is I have mobile coops and in the winter we get a LOT of mud. I'm talking mid-calf deep mud. My standard black cochin has done well keeping his foot feathers looking pretty so far, but he's only 8.5 months old and hasn't gone through a winter yet. I'm thinking I might build my birds a cattle panel greenhouse so they have a dry place to hang out that isn't their coops. My leghorns and Dominiques HATE snow. Last time I tried to force them out in snow, I had one fly (quite effectively) to me and land on my arm to keep her feet out of the snow. These are hens that really never want anything but food from me. I don't know how my buffs, new hamps, and delawares will handle it. They are all less than a year old.

Bet you'll get one like my Jace. She turns into a clingy needy little sourpuss in winter and will follow me around and crawl onto my lap at every opportunity until I warm her toes.
She's totally spoiled. I even bring her inside when it goes too much below -20*F.

I agree with what everyone else said about chicken math. I firmly believe I am the only person on this website with fewer birds right now than when I started.

Haha, she knows the getting is good

 

[BantyChooks]

. I'm talking mid-calf deep mud.

That's crazy!