Why has my chicken got so clingy?

[Tatootles]

I have what I believe is a rooster, one of the hens in my flock had just one egg hatch and she pretty much abandoned her poor baby after a week, so I had to take care of him, I had him inside for a little bit, feeding him and letting him sleep in a basket with a heated lamp for a bit. But after a couple of days, maybe a week he would jump out of his basket snuggle up by my neck and in my robe I thought oh that’s cute and when I try to put him back in the basket, he would jump out to come to me. EVERY SINGLE TIME I didn’t have a pen out in the yard to put him outside so I can keep him separated from the rest of the flock till he got a little bigger. So I kept him in the house for a while, he’s almost 3 months old now and I finally have a pen. He’s been sleeping outside for a week, but has suddenly started getting super clingy every time I let him out to go play. He keeps getting on my back, shoulder, and at the very top of my head and will not leave!! Every time I try and get him down he jumps right back up! He will even follow me inside the house when the time comes to roost for the night, and sometimes when I have my door open, I will find him sitting at the top of my couch when I let him out to play for the day! Other than that, he just sits by my door if it’s closed and will not play outside! I don’t understand why, I always took him outside to play, take dirt baths in the garden, and just spend all day with him out in the yard! He loves to play outside, but only when I’m around and out there with him. He’s still too tiny to be outside on his own all day but he’s also big enough to run away from the other birds if they happened to pick on him, which they hardly ever do! Someone please help me and advise me what to do! I love him with all my heart, but sometimes a girl just needs time for herself without a monkey on her back… Or a chicken on her head/shoulders!

 

[thecatumbrella]

Well, you're Mom! Not to worry though, he'll outgrow his need for you in a few more weeks. I say soak up the love.

 

[azygous]

Well, you asked "why" so I'm going to tell you. The short answer is that some chickens have more neural receptors for mesotocin then others. Mesotocin is the chicken form of oxytocin, the hormone that bonds humans. Here's an article I wrote about this. https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...ding-agent-between-us-and-our-chickens.78307/

When you take in a baby chick as you did, the chick will imprint on you as their broody hen. Then, as time goes by, a strong bond can develop. Half my flock has bonded with me in this fashion. They will all converge on me the minute I sit down in the run, all crowding onto my lap, under my arms, intertwined with one another. Imagine up to five hens all clinging to me.

What to do about it? When he jumps onto your shoulder or head, immediately knock him off. Do it quickly, firmly and consistently. In a short time, he will find this routine unpleasant and should quit. This may be the best plan since a cockerel can suddenly turn into a tyrant when he gets his hormones around age four or five months. Discipline now is a smart way to get ahead of this.

 

[Tatootles]

Well, you asked "why" so I'm going to tell you. The short answer is that some chickens have more neural receptors for mesotocin then others. Mesotocin is the chicken form of oxytocin, the hormone that bonds humans. Here's an article I wrote about this. https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...ding-agent-between-us-and-our-chickens.78307/

When you take in a baby chick as you did, the chick will imprint on you as their broody hen. Then, as time goes by, a strong bond can develop. Half my flock has bonded with me in this fashion. They will all converge on me the minute I sit down in the run, all crowding onto my lap, under my arms, intertwined with one another. Imagine up to five hens all clinging to me.

What to do about it? When he jumps onto your shoulder or head, immediately knock him off. Do it quickly, firmly and consistently. In a short time, he will find this routine unpleasant and should quit. This may be the best plan since a cockerel can suddenly turn into a tyrant when he gets his hormones around age four or five months. Discipline now is a smart way to get ahead of this.

What a well thought out article! I’ve always wondered what the equivalent of oxytocin was to chickens! I also enjoy getting me and my babies high off of our snuggles sessions as far as him, jumping on my shoulders. I don’t mind it, but it’s all the time! I would just feel so bad doing that! I did that once to my bird, she wouldn’t get off of me and I knocked her off and as soon as I did, I saw the betrayal in her eyes

 

[azygous]

Oh, boy, you are so hopelessly addicted to chickens. I wonder if there is such a thing as Chickens Anonymous. Oh, wait. There is. It's called www.backyardchickens.com ! But instead of trying to get rid of the addiction, we egg each other on. I guess we're a hopeless crowd.