The Moonshiner's Leghorns

[The Moonshiner]

Got to pick up the boy but after I get back home I'll almost be ready to move a pack of cockerels to their new pen. Both pens are in the barn and the doors are about 12' apart. There's quite a few so thinking run some 48" plastic fence from one to the other making an aisle way.
Surely I'll just be able to herd them straight across without incident right?

 

[BlueBaby]

Got to pick up the boy but after I get back home I'll almost be ready to move a pack of cockerels to their new pen. Both pens are in the barn and the doors are about 12' apart. There's quite a few so thinking run some 48" plastic fence from one to the other making an aisle way.
Surely I'll just be able to herd them straight across without incident right?

Good luck with the herding.

 

[The Moonshiner]

Well that went about as good as expected. I figured there would be pandemonium as chickens went over the fence in all directions.
Got it all set up both doors opened. Went in the pen and started pushing them that direction. They didn't do too bad and the majority of them went out the door and straight across the aisle. A few scragglers got confused and I had to straighten them out and get them on their way. About time I got the last ones out the door I saw many of them already going into the other pen. No flyers at all.
Guess they got a little nervous at the new pen and going through the door. They started to bottle neck. Probably a third of them were in but by the time probably the second third or more made it in the ones in the back panicked and turned around to run back to their original pen.
I was coming through the doorway so I met them in the aisle and tried to turn them. They dashed to one side to get by and I threw a leg out to block them. That sent them wide to the other side to squeeze through there. I tried to block them with that foot and was successful has about half turned and headed for the new pen.
In the process I may have lost my balance and I may have slightly stepped on one which may have sent me crashing into the corner of the pen. My head might have bounced off the corner as I crashed in the ground.
None got by so I quickly started grabbing them and tossing them down the aisle to the other doorway. Luckily most hit the ground and ran right in and the ones that turned back I quickly caught and repeated the process. Got them all in and the door shut. Got blood on my shirt so decided to go have the boy check my injuries. After a thorough examination and a round or two of do you want the bad news or the good news I believe I just slightly cut my ear in a few places and one small scratch on my jaw from the edge of the chicken wire on the pen.
I'll call that a success and sfter a quick break go evaluate the chickens.
I sure hope no one's guts are hanging out so I don't have to poke them back in and see a chicken back up.

 

[The Moonshiner]

No injured cockerel that I found. Will check again tomorrow. I know what pattern it was. Thinking I more tripped over it then stepped on it thankfully.
Seems I did have one escapee. Same pattern so maybe it was him.
Getting dark by the time I got the temp fence all down so when I saw him pick a roosting spot I snuck over and snatched him up.
Done chickening for the day.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Mebbe I won't go into the chickening bizness after all. I'm right partial to my ears and chin.

 

[NagemTX]

I've done a number on my toes because I ware flip-flops to do chickening things. Last time I slipped in the mude and sliced my big toe on hardware cloth.

 

[BlueBaby]

I've done a number on my toes because I ware flip-flops to do chickening things. Last time I slipped in the mude and sliced my big toe on hardware cloth.

Ouch! I wear shoes out there, because I don't want the chickens to mistake my toes for worms or something.

 

[NagemTX]

Ouch! I wear shoes out there, because I don't want the chickens to mistake my toes for worms or something.

If its wet I do closed toe shoes. The Phoenix rooster I have doesn't like them and prefers me in the flip-flops. He tries to eat my toes through the shoes.

 

[WallyG74]

That sucks. I mostly like groundhogs and often wished I had one living here.
There was that one time I hit one on my motorcycle and thought I was going to die. I was flying down a back road and one suddenly tried to cross the road. I thought I was going to be in the clear when he suddenly stopped and laid flat in the road. I went right over him but when my front wheel hit him my handlebars almost jerked out of my hands. That will pucker you up.
Luckily we both survived unscathed.

I ran right over the middle of a big rabbit once on my motorcycle. I was fine… the rabbit, not so much. You’re right, serious pucker factor when you see that coming!

 

[McChooky]

No injured cockerel that I found. Will check again tomorrow. I know what pattern it was. Thinking I more tripped over it then stepped on it thankfully.
Seems I did have one escapee. Same pattern so maybe it was him.
Getting dark by the time I got the temp fence all down so when I saw him pick a roosting spot I snuck over and snatched him up.
Done chickening for the day.

Locking up chickens that don't want to go in is a better workout than going to any gym! Thank God I have less than 20 of them!