Why is my chicken pecking me?

[Athenaeum]

I'm so sorry to hear about Duckie. It's tough to lose them so young. You obviously spoiled her and loved her while you had her, and no chicken could ask for more.

Yeah. I'll admit, I feel guilty I couldn't really help her? The most either I or my husband could do was be with her until she was fully gone, honestly. We've decided we're definitely gonna take a break from hatching for ourselves for a while, or just let a hen hatch if she wants to hatch so we don't get as attached as we did.

 

[KurtRyanGrehlinger]

Hi, me again! This time, I'm here asking for advice or possible reasons for why my 13 week old Easter Egger mix chicken is pecking me? Like, straight up, Duckie (full name is Duck-Duck-Goose) will either bite down on my pant legs and pull with all her might or sometimes add in some kicks too. Mind you, she also is one of my chickens that will also demand "uppies" based on how she calms down when held and given attention.

Are we sure she's female? No. Kinda. After all, her brother Luke (formerly Leia) is already showing rooster signs and looks almost exactly like his dad yet has his mom's temperament, however, he did grow faster than any of his siblings have been.

So.... yeah. Any ideas why Duckie is being like this?

Check the wings, females usually have rounded feathers while males have pointed ones.

 

[Athenaeum]

Check the wings, females usually have rounded feathers while males have pointed ones.

Fair. They looked pretty rounded; Seven's seem to be rounded, for sure.

 

[Pukkits]

Yeah. I'll admit, I feel guilty I couldn't really help her? The most either I or my husband could do was be with her until she was fully gone, honestly. We've decided we're definitely gonna take a break from hatching for ourselves for a while, or just let a hen hatch if she wants to hatch so we don't get as attached as we did.

It's the struggle with loving fragile beings. Sometimes we can swoop in and help them heal, but all too often there's nothing we can do. We lost our barred rock a few weeks ago, and I miss her vocal self. In early summer I was able to treat her successfully for egg yolk perenitis, but EYP tends to be a secondary issue and whatever else was going on caught up to her with only one day of her looking unwell. We do the best we can while we have them.

While we don't hatch and just buy day old pullets, I'm not sure we could not not get attached. When we first got chickens together (I grew up with them, and my husband only had a small amount of experience from a relatives farm), my husband assumed when the hens laying decreased that we would butcher the older birds. While there's nothing wrong with that, I informed him I'm an egg rancher, not a farmer and I wanted to let our older birds just be birds until they passed of age. He harumphed and said we will see. Things worked out with our first batch of chicks that he was their primary carer. Around the time he had to clean a stuck vent and give nourishment with a dropper, he informed me our chicken meat was only coming from the store and our retired layers had residency for life. Something about those silly birds makes it hard to not get attached.

 

[Athenaeum]

It's the struggle with loving fragile beings. Sometimes we can swoop in and help them heal, but all too often there's nothing we can do. We lost our barred rock a few weeks ago, and I miss her vocal self. In early summer I was able to treat her successfully for egg yolk perenitis, but EYP tends to be a secondary issue and whatever else was going on caught up to her with only one day of her looking unwell. We do the best we can while we have them.

While we don't hatch and just buy day old pullets, I'm not sure we could not not get attached. When we first got chickens together (I grew up with them, and my husband only had a small amount of experience from a relatives farm), my husband assumed when the hens laying decreased that we would butcher the older birds. While there's nothing wrong with that, I informed him I'm an egg rancher, not a farmer and I wanted to let our older birds just be birds until they passed of age. He harumphed and said we will see. Things worked out with our first batch of chicks that he was their primary carer. Around the time he had to clean a stuck vent and give nourishment with a dropper, he informed me our chicken meat was only coming from the store and our retired layers had residency for life. Something about those silly birds makes it hard to not get attached.

The flock(s) we have right now are actually my first experience with chickens at all, but my husband has had a lot of experience from having chickens himself and his aunt's chickens.

I'm an egg rancher myself, honestly. We can't eat our chickens; they're all my pets, and I love them. I dealt with Duckie's pasty-butt and her leg issue, helped Latias with her frostbitten leg and foot (left her with a toe-less foot and a lack of a lower leg), and I've been working with Scooter and her many, many problems. I'm embarrassed, but I grieve over each one I've lost.

They're sweet, silly, and I'll be giving them the best lives I can. Hopefully, they'll get to have a retirement, too. I think Missy, our oldest hen, might actually be close to retirement; she's pretty old, honestly.

 

[Pukkits]

There's no reason to be embarrassed for grieving a loved pet, including a chicken. We keep chickens for eggs, but for us they become pets too. All of ours have names, personalities and little quirks. I'm currently in a battle of wills with Theo, who is broody at just six months old and we don't even own a rooster. When she's not broody, she does exuberant runflaps every morning when let into the outer pen, often convincing others to join in the joy of running and flapping like some kind of chicken morning Tai chi session.

They are unique, and there's nothing wrong with grieving the loss of them.

 

[Athenaeum]

There's no reason to be embarrassed for grieving a loved pet, including a chicken. We keep chickens for eggs, but for us they become pets too. All of ours have names, personalities and little quirks. I'm currently in a battle of wills with Theo, who is broody at just six months old and we don't even own a rooster. When she's not broody, she does exuberant runflaps every morning when let into the outer pen, often convincing others to join in the joy of running and flapping like some kind of chicken morning Tai chi session.

They are unique, and there's nothing wrong with grieving the loss of them.

Theo sound amazing! I'm currently in a losing fight with Seven and River, becoming their human perch anytime they have me in the run. Some of our older hens, like Buffy and Selena and Artemis, keep tricking us that they'll be broody, then go, "Nah, no thanks." Because we have two roosters, Luke (Scooter's brother) and Mr. Snowflake (the dad of a few), and so we do have chick chances. lol

They are. Honestly, when a chicken passes, we tend to either return to nature (set far into the field from the run) or give them a "funeral".

 

[Amber Ella]

For a bonus, my husband is also wondering if anyone wants to judge if Seven of Nine is a hen or a roo too. She's 13 weeks too, and she's got the same mom as Duckie, Luke, River, and Scooter.

Looks like a girl to me.