Where do you get a net from?

[Davaroo]

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Have to agree less stress on chickens and you. Less stress more eggs. Or just turn a light on somewhere in the coop and wait for them to return. Follow the light.

Yeah, the all time best way to catch a chicken is at night.

 

[KellyHM]

Fishing net works wonders. I have to net my turkey on occasion b/c she flies onto the neighbor's property on accident and then runs back and forth along the fence trying to figure out how to get back...stupid turkey.

 

[giasmom]

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I totally AGREE !

 

[Davaroo]

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We have one of those. Never had to use it so far, but we do have one. It was handmade by DH's late father some 40 years ago.
ETA: I could see where it would alot less distressing to a chicken to be caught with it instead of a net.

I've tried nets. They are actually pretty good at the catching part, but there's no chicken around that'll simply stand there and let you approach with one. They see that thing, and run in stark terror from it.

Once they are caught up in it they go nuts. They squawk and flap scrabble and do everything they can to get loose. Then, once they realize they can't move anymore (providing the net hasn't yet torn), they get deceptively quiet.
They just kinda lay there, lulling you into a false sense of security. (Isn't it interesting how a simple, dumb bird has that ability?)

"Ha! See, I AM smarter than a chicken," you say.
Then you reach in to get the bird.

And the fool thing goes nuts again! But, this time you have it half out, and so, it either gets away or tangles even more in the net. Isn't this fun?

But the hook is far more subtle. It is nearly sublime.
It is just a small hook of wire. So you hold it in one hand, a broom in the other. You steer the birds calmly with the broom, until they are in a tight corner or against a wall.
NOTE: Never do anything in a rush or hurry around chickens. Lead them - don't chase them.

Then, once you have them in a group, you stand back so as not to alarm them and just hook the leg of the one you want with the wire.
Lift and whoosh! - - is off the ground and hanging upside down.
Sweet!

Now, anyone who has spent time around chickens knows that when they are hung upside down, they go into a sort of stupor and simply "knock out." Makes em much easier to handle that way.

Dont net 'em folks - hook 'em. Grandpa knew what he was doing when he came up with this gadget!

 

[KellyHM]

As long as you grab their wings and hold them once they're netted it's really not all that dramatic...very simple really.

 

[Davaroo]

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A net will do in a pinch. But any craftsman will tell you, there is no substitute for the right tool. A hook is so much more subtle.

Besides, what you gonna do when fishing season comes around and your net is full of chicken holes?

 

[KellyHM]

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But why bother, when you have a hook? Besides, what you gonna do when fishing season comes around and your net is shredded by the chickens?

I have a fishing net for fishing and a fishing net for catching chickens...the old one DH didn't need any more when he got the new "special" one for fishing. I can't imagine getting close enough to my turkey to snag her leg with a hook when she's running up and down the fence like a lunatic. She would never let me corner her either.

 

[Davaroo]

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But why bother, when you have a hook? Besides, what you gonna do when fishing season comes around and your net is shredded by the chickens?

I have a fishing net for fishing and a fishing net for catching chickens...the old one DH didn't need any more when he got the new "special" one for fishing. I can't imagine getting close enough to my turkey to snag her leg with a hook when she's running up and down the fence like a lunatic. She would never let me corner her either.

Ahhh c'mon, you know you wanna try it....

 

[gritsar]

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A net will do in a pinch. But any craftsman will tell you, there is no substitute for the right tool. A hook is so much more subtle.

Besides, what you gonna do when fishing season comes around and your net is full of chicken holes?

They use the hooks in the commercial houses around here. Nothing like catching 30,000 chickens for an afternoon's work. When you get paid by the # of chickens caught, you learn to be quick about it.
My DH swears he can still catch chickens faster than I can, having done it his whole life. His techique doesn't work with my chooks. I just hold out my hand, ala treat time, when I want to catch one. Mine are such suckers. They fall for it every time.

 

[briana1975]

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Or slipping in chicken poop and falling.