When dust bathing they always infere with one another why?

[Carrie Lynn]

When someone is having a nice dust (sand) bath anotheer will come up and kind of "claw" at the bather.
I understand they might be looking for parasites as they peck at the ground around the reclining chicken, but this clawing is kind of rough. What gives?

 

[CMV]

It's called the "live toy phenomenon". Everyone wants the thing that is in use right now. It happens with children and toys, but it also applies to chickens. They always want to use the nesting box/dirt bath/roosting spot that someone else is currently using. When the wanted thing is not given over then the squabbling/grabbing/pushing starts. It's perfectly normal, but annoying for parents and poultry keepers.

 

[Baymule]

Haha, my 2 SLW big girls always want what I put in the chicks cage. It doesn't matter that the big girls just got the treat too, they want it ALL!!!

 

[azygous]

That sure does seem to be the rule! And it applies to lap sitting, too. All I need to do is to be on my knees, raking poop out from under the coop, and one hen will squeeze onto my knees, then another will run over and start to peck at her until she figures out how to also squeeze onto my knees. Then two more will run over and peck at the lap sitters and try to climb aboard, and finally one or two will wander over and peck at all the hens in my lap until they can figure out how to burrow in underneath the pile. I had six hens yesterday for a group cuddle, all their doing.

Jealousy seems to be a common hen trait.

 

[whiteflare]

Quote:
Aww, I can visualise that! That would've been so cute to look at

My hens dustbath together, but in the process they tend to kick at each other and flick dirt into the others' faces. It gets quite violent!!

 

[Carrie Lynn]

Yes, there's lots of kicking and the sand flies when they share a spot. I'm amazed they don't get sand in their eyes all the time!

 

[whiteflare]

Quote:
We don't have sand for ours, they usually manage to squeeze out of a hole in the fence of their section of the garden and invade the vegetable gardens

 

[featherz]

It may not be dustbathing, but same idea..

One of these things is not like the other...

 

[klmclain1]

I'm always amazed at how many chickens can fit into one tiny spot!!! The multiple chickens in the nesting box picture is HILARIOUS!!

 

[Carrie Lynn]

Are they all chickens in that box?