What if there was a magic potion to get our chickens to love us?

[Insnesnakos]

i never handled my chickens when i got them. They were so tiny and fragile, i didnt want to hurt them. Also, they didnt want to be picked up and i respected that. Soooo, i know my chickens gravitate towards me in general, but give me a hard time when wanting to pick them up. So i chase them. I chase them in a small circle round and round. Chased chicken will chat while running round and round the flock with me chasing arms outstretched saying come here chicken, come come come. This makes me laugh as they dodge in and out of the small flock trying to get mixed up in the mix of chickens. Its a very small circle they run around. Almost like they enjoy this little activity. Its ring around the rosie is really what it is. i have a couple hens that will run a couple feet and then give me and let me pick them up. Thats when i snuggle them and get all up in the fluff! Its been cold and these gals are warm!!

Same here, I thought they'd be scared of me
Now when they see I have food for them, they get excited and talk

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

I like how chickens make me really happy when i go to see them. And I like more that they are unlike dogs and cats who can be pushy and super needy. Chickens come to me for a treat, if I dont have one, they walk away and search for bugs. Its nice.

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

Same here, I thought they'd be scared of me
Now when they see I have food for them, they get excited and talk

Yea! And its wonderful watching my hens mature. They will be 3 this spring and they are developing into mature ladies that know whats what. They know the lay of the land, where the best treats are, best places for any and all activities. My 2 new gals just turned 2 and to watch their antics in relation to the mature hens is a sight. They are silly and waste more energy doing things. They are still learning all the spots and how to behave, but generally behave like young adults. Taking chances and moving really fast and super curious. The older girls always have a clear mission. They travel in a flock of 5 harmoniously and with intention. Oh how far they have come......

 

[Insnesnakos]

I like how chickens make me really happy when i go to see them. And I like more that they are unlike dogs and cats who can be pushy and super needy. Chickens come to me for a treat, if I dont have one, they walk away and search for bugs. Its nice.

When I don't have a treat, they complain

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

When I don't have a treat, they complain

Lmao!! They do yell at me but the talk back i get is not distressing like an annoying cat waiting to be fed, or a dog just literally sitting and staring at you. (And thats a well behaved dog), lol. When the chooks hound me, i can walk away and walk away and walk away. Eventually they dont follow and its all good. Even when they do hound me its good cause I know their whereabouts. They get their 10% fill of treats throughout the day thats for sure, lol.
TBH tho, if they hound me, i give them something who am i kidding??

 

[Shadrach]

but it will be independent of any rooster, present or not.

This hasn't been my experience.

 

[Allsfairinloveandbugs]

I believe there is some serious oxytocin/mesotocin production happening here!

 

[Lillith37]

I think chickens are incredibly emotional beings and they often aren’t seen for that. Thanks for writing this article and introducing mesotocin to me. I didn’t know about it before but it makes sense.

I think some of the reasons I enjoy keeping chickens so much is the amount of eye contact and the way they talk when they are calm and happy. One of my favourite things is to greet each of my hens when I happen to pass them in the yard or when they come up behind me. I can recognise each individual by their greeting without needing to see them. I think they enjoy it when I greet them back and we have a little conversation. I think it helps us bond, so makes sense that the vocalisations are one of the triggers for mesotocin.

My hens are all varying levels of affectionate. My most affectionate hen pecks my leg to be picked up and held and then she will peck my shoulder to get me to draw my arm more tightly around her, like she’s tucking herself into bed. She will be held indefinitely if she had her way and she falls asleep with her chin resting in my hand and her face smooshed up against my cheek or neck. It’s delightful. She’s the top of the pecking order but shows the most vulnerability with me.

All my chickens and baby chicks have become gentler, tamer and friendlier from weekly handling for health checks. I do think it’s important to let them go when they are calm and not stressed and flapping for the positive reinforcement. I tell my flightier ones “We go with grace” and then squat down and rest their feet on my thigh, and then open my arms and they hop off in their own time. I had one hen who was terrified and wild when she first came to me. She’s not a cuddly chicken by any stretch but we have built a lot of trust and I do believe she gets something relational out of our weekly health check interactions.

I wonder about the levels of mesotocin or mesotocin receptors in broody hens who are more likely to accept new chicks. When I had to help a chick hatch and make some corrective sandals for foot deformities, I introduced it back to mama later in the day and whilst it took her some time to bond with the chick, she did show a level of care right from the start. It was very sweet actually, she looked at the chick like “Oh! Who are you?” and then gently plucked a piece of straw off its head.