- Jul 6, 2010
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[I suppose I could post this under another index but, since it has to do with behaviors, I'm putting it here--feel free to move it.]
I have 26 Black Stars from McMurray that are 8 weeks or so old and have been out of the coop in the chicken yard for about a week now. As I wrote on my BYC Page, the fencing around my yard is the progressive livestock fence where the mesh gets wider the closer to the top. For this reason pullets and young birds can, if they want, get through--usually by flying up far enough to where they can fit through. Fortunately it is a rare occurrence. Tonight when I went down to close up the birds there was one of the Black Star chicks wandering around on the lawn between the house and the coop--all the other birds were already inside the coop. Now my birds are not pets, I feed and water them and, if the truth be told, talk to them when I do it. I do not hand raise them and, except for the roos, can't tell one hen from another so don't expect them to come to me unless I toss treats on the ground through the fence. As I walked toward the coop I talked to this bird who, instead of running away in terror, came walking toward me. Rather than try to catch it, I bypassed it and went to the coop, opened the front door which leads to the brooder area where most of these birds roost. The chick just followed me like I was a mother hen, when I stopped she jump up on the landing and went into the coop as if that were the thing to do. My wife, who watch the whole thing said "Boy that was a cooperative chicken."(She's seen me chase escapees all over the yard in an attempt to get them back where they belong.) I know if it had been one of my EE's it would have run from me but these Black Stars seem to have such a calm trusting nature that makes them easy to have around.
I have 26 Black Stars from McMurray that are 8 weeks or so old and have been out of the coop in the chicken yard for about a week now. As I wrote on my BYC Page, the fencing around my yard is the progressive livestock fence where the mesh gets wider the closer to the top. For this reason pullets and young birds can, if they want, get through--usually by flying up far enough to where they can fit through. Fortunately it is a rare occurrence. Tonight when I went down to close up the birds there was one of the Black Star chicks wandering around on the lawn between the house and the coop--all the other birds were already inside the coop. Now my birds are not pets, I feed and water them and, if the truth be told, talk to them when I do it. I do not hand raise them and, except for the roos, can't tell one hen from another so don't expect them to come to me unless I toss treats on the ground through the fence. As I walked toward the coop I talked to this bird who, instead of running away in terror, came walking toward me. Rather than try to catch it, I bypassed it and went to the coop, opened the front door which leads to the brooder area where most of these birds roost. The chick just followed me like I was a mother hen, when I stopped she jump up on the landing and went into the coop as if that were the thing to do. My wife, who watch the whole thing said "Boy that was a cooperative chicken."(She's seen me chase escapees all over the yard in an attempt to get them back where they belong.) I know if it had been one of my EE's it would have run from me but these Black Stars seem to have such a calm trusting nature that makes them easy to have around.
