The Terrible Twos (two month old chicks and their unwilling behavior)
Whether born into the family or adopted, chicks come to you in cotton ball size, their innocence making them loveable and you protective. You have just become the parent of a small brood. The fussing over temperature, food, water, bedding, and housing becomes all consuming. The amazing creativity of the adoptive parent changes the bathtub, ice chest, hamper, plastic storage container, closet or garage into a brooder. A corner of the household has just been turned into a nursery.
Even if you set the standard of right away putting your babies out in the coop, you find yourself checking on them every half hour. You keep looking to see if they are huddled or spread out and you adjust the heat lamp accordingly. Unbelievably, you check on them in the middle of the night. Yep, babies are adorable. You cuddle them in your hand and they fall asleep, trusting in your care and warmth.
By 3 weeks, all have names and youve caved into the idea that they need more space (or your family gave you an ultimatum), so out they go into the coop where the boogy man lives. They are more vulnerable now and they huddle under that momma heat lamp for protection and against the darkness and quiet. You run out there in the morning for a head count and boy, are they so happy to hear and see you.
Another week goes by and they are settled into their new home. They have just become toddlers. Youve removed the borders and allowed access to the whole coop. Exploring their new playground, testing out those great new wing feathers, jumping up on the roosts and flying down, running, chasing and crashing into each other.
Suddenly you arent number one with them anymore. They kind of ignore you now, to them food and water magically appear every day, they have kewl playmates for entertainment, and momma heat lamp is there every night. You are crushed because they wont let you pick them up or even come near them. Quickly, you post on BYC, Help, my chicks ignore me, how can I make them friendly?
You learn the trick is treats and your family rolls their eyes when one of the grocery bags you bring home from the market is full of snacks just for the chicks. Tuna, oatmeal, bananas, grapes, peanut butter, yogurt, and geez, even store bought chicken eggs if you dont have layers yet so you can crumble hard boiled eggs, and a quick stop at the feed supply for tiny crickets and you just know youll be making friends with the chicks today for sure! Back to BYC forums, Can chicks be allergic to peanuts like people too?
You let them out in the yard at 6 weeks. Its a whole new world and off they go; find first bug, scale new heights, discover grass and interesting barnyard residents. You are still lugging snacks out to the chicks like some new schoolyard kid trying to fit in and make friends by giving out the best parts of your lunch. You consider therapy but realize there are others like you. Many others. You run back in to post to your new BYC group for solace and hover in front of the monitor. You get all dizzy inside and shout out to your family that you just went from New Egg to Just Hatched! It is then that you realize you may now have an addiction problem. But that is another story.
Your chicks are two months old today. You find that your sack lunch forays into the school yard have created a following. OMG! Are they expecting me now?! Are they crowding around ME?! But they are being picky and demanding. Youd better bring goodies and they had better be the right ones or you are left sitting in the dust. Yes, you are now officially the vending machine. This realization makes you slump.
If you have ever had children, these moments only take you back to the time when your kids were at the age of two. Toddlers are negative about most things, having tantrums, saying no, becoming independent as they learn new things. Wanting down to run wild and free .of you.
You watch your brood climb on everything, find hiding places, squeeze into spots you thought were child proof I mean chick proof and you are busy sealing up cracks that lead into the pig pen. No matter, the chicks will just use your chair as a launching pad to fly to and from and get into places you dont want them to be. Or worse, flying over the chicken run where you must chase them down when they escape (no small feat) and your cat is happily watching; far enough away from your throwing zone but close enough to give you goose bumps. At night, the chicks refuse to be herded back into the coop and wont return on their own. They run around peeping louder and louder because they are cold and sleepy, and they have your whole family running in circles to get them back in.
So. you think out loud (your family is getting used to this), My chicks are in their Terrible Twos. What should I do?
Like all good parents, I net searched parenting skills and toddlers and was amazed at the similarities. So here it is:
Have a regular routine for meals, naps, and bedtime and stick to them each day.
i.e. herd them into the coop at dusk, no sooner, no later.
Offer limited choices like would you like strawberries or bananasfor your snack? and not just what do you want for your snack?
i.e. We had strawberries for breakfast and that is what you will have too.
Learn to set limits about things and dont be surprised when your toddler tries to test those limits to see what he can get away with.
i.e. No, you cannot bother the neighbors and steal Mr Ducks cheerios or tease grumpy old Mr and Mrs Banty.
i.e. but if you try, I will let you experience the natural consequences thereof so count your tail feathers right now young ladies.
Dont give in to tantrums.
i.e. You can scream all you want to but I am going to pick you up and hold you anyway and I know you secretly like it cuz you fall asleep in my lap when I do.
Provide your toddler with a safe environment that is well child-proofed to explore and play in. (For those of us who go by the what came first, the chicken or the coop? and the answer is the chicken, then you may have a little bit of a struggle with this one.)
In essence, we want our chickens to love us, climb all over us, and be excited to see us. If you are new to the game, chicks go through a Terrible Twos stage where they ignore you or run from you. That will pass with a lot of love, snacks and patience. When they get to the teen stage, say like around 12 weeks old, most will be sitting in your lap, riding your shoulder, and be happy you are in the coop with them.
If you spend some of every day with them, holding them, encouraging them, sometimes letting them come to you on their terms (some terrible twos have an awkward shyness that takes them a little more time to warm up to you), then you will finally reap the reward of a friendly chicken coop that greets you for you and not just for your treats.
Copyright 2009 Debbie Foster
Whether born into the family or adopted, chicks come to you in cotton ball size, their innocence making them loveable and you protective. You have just become the parent of a small brood. The fussing over temperature, food, water, bedding, and housing becomes all consuming. The amazing creativity of the adoptive parent changes the bathtub, ice chest, hamper, plastic storage container, closet or garage into a brooder. A corner of the household has just been turned into a nursery.
Even if you set the standard of right away putting your babies out in the coop, you find yourself checking on them every half hour. You keep looking to see if they are huddled or spread out and you adjust the heat lamp accordingly. Unbelievably, you check on them in the middle of the night. Yep, babies are adorable. You cuddle them in your hand and they fall asleep, trusting in your care and warmth.
By 3 weeks, all have names and youve caved into the idea that they need more space (or your family gave you an ultimatum), so out they go into the coop where the boogy man lives. They are more vulnerable now and they huddle under that momma heat lamp for protection and against the darkness and quiet. You run out there in the morning for a head count and boy, are they so happy to hear and see you.
Another week goes by and they are settled into their new home. They have just become toddlers. Youve removed the borders and allowed access to the whole coop. Exploring their new playground, testing out those great new wing feathers, jumping up on the roosts and flying down, running, chasing and crashing into each other.
Suddenly you arent number one with them anymore. They kind of ignore you now, to them food and water magically appear every day, they have kewl playmates for entertainment, and momma heat lamp is there every night. You are crushed because they wont let you pick them up or even come near them. Quickly, you post on BYC, Help, my chicks ignore me, how can I make them friendly?
You learn the trick is treats and your family rolls their eyes when one of the grocery bags you bring home from the market is full of snacks just for the chicks. Tuna, oatmeal, bananas, grapes, peanut butter, yogurt, and geez, even store bought chicken eggs if you dont have layers yet so you can crumble hard boiled eggs, and a quick stop at the feed supply for tiny crickets and you just know youll be making friends with the chicks today for sure! Back to BYC forums, Can chicks be allergic to peanuts like people too?
You let them out in the yard at 6 weeks. Its a whole new world and off they go; find first bug, scale new heights, discover grass and interesting barnyard residents. You are still lugging snacks out to the chicks like some new schoolyard kid trying to fit in and make friends by giving out the best parts of your lunch. You consider therapy but realize there are others like you. Many others. You run back in to post to your new BYC group for solace and hover in front of the monitor. You get all dizzy inside and shout out to your family that you just went from New Egg to Just Hatched! It is then that you realize you may now have an addiction problem. But that is another story.
Your chicks are two months old today. You find that your sack lunch forays into the school yard have created a following. OMG! Are they expecting me now?! Are they crowding around ME?! But they are being picky and demanding. Youd better bring goodies and they had better be the right ones or you are left sitting in the dust. Yes, you are now officially the vending machine. This realization makes you slump.
If you have ever had children, these moments only take you back to the time when your kids were at the age of two. Toddlers are negative about most things, having tantrums, saying no, becoming independent as they learn new things. Wanting down to run wild and free .of you.
You watch your brood climb on everything, find hiding places, squeeze into spots you thought were child proof I mean chick proof and you are busy sealing up cracks that lead into the pig pen. No matter, the chicks will just use your chair as a launching pad to fly to and from and get into places you dont want them to be. Or worse, flying over the chicken run where you must chase them down when they escape (no small feat) and your cat is happily watching; far enough away from your throwing zone but close enough to give you goose bumps. At night, the chicks refuse to be herded back into the coop and wont return on their own. They run around peeping louder and louder because they are cold and sleepy, and they have your whole family running in circles to get them back in.
So. you think out loud (your family is getting used to this), My chicks are in their Terrible Twos. What should I do?
Like all good parents, I net searched parenting skills and toddlers and was amazed at the similarities. So here it is:
Have a regular routine for meals, naps, and bedtime and stick to them each day.
i.e. herd them into the coop at dusk, no sooner, no later.
Offer limited choices like would you like strawberries or bananasfor your snack? and not just what do you want for your snack?
i.e. We had strawberries for breakfast and that is what you will have too.
Learn to set limits about things and dont be surprised when your toddler tries to test those limits to see what he can get away with.
i.e. No, you cannot bother the neighbors and steal Mr Ducks cheerios or tease grumpy old Mr and Mrs Banty.
i.e. but if you try, I will let you experience the natural consequences thereof so count your tail feathers right now young ladies.
Dont give in to tantrums.
i.e. You can scream all you want to but I am going to pick you up and hold you anyway and I know you secretly like it cuz you fall asleep in my lap when I do.
Provide your toddler with a safe environment that is well child-proofed to explore and play in. (For those of us who go by the what came first, the chicken or the coop? and the answer is the chicken, then you may have a little bit of a struggle with this one.)
In essence, we want our chickens to love us, climb all over us, and be excited to see us. If you are new to the game, chicks go through a Terrible Twos stage where they ignore you or run from you. That will pass with a lot of love, snacks and patience. When they get to the teen stage, say like around 12 weeks old, most will be sitting in your lap, riding your shoulder, and be happy you are in the coop with them.
If you spend some of every day with them, holding them, encouraging them, sometimes letting them come to you on their terms (some terrible twos have an awkward shyness that takes them a little more time to warm up to you), then you will finally reap the reward of a friendly chicken coop that greets you for you and not just for your treats.
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