Wild Fowl- more agile?

[CabritaChicks]

I have a mixed-breed chick with some distinctive features—based on her markings, size, and build, chicken people here assume she is British game fowl with a little mix of something special, which tend to be smaller than the Red Junglefowl we see around here. BVI is only a 10 minute boat ride from us, and we share many of the same species. She came from a random clutch of eggs someone left outside our gate.

Although only a couple of days younger than the rest, she’s taken on the role of the 'baby' in the group—always nestling underneath the other chicks and rubbing up against them- not a feisty bone in her body. They’ve all formed a very strong bond. We’ve nicknamed her the “Gypsy chick,” and she does seem noticeably more agile than the others- even climbing on top of one of the parrot stands.

Is that a real trait, or just something we’re imagining?

 

[No Coop No Problem]

Different breeds of chickens have different levels of agility, just like in dog breeds. I gave someone a game hen a year ago and the first thing he commented about her was that she's extremely agile in comparison to his production hens

If one picks up a three year old RIR the poor things feel frumpy, old and burned out. A game chicken of the same age will feel muscular, strong and sleek. There's really no comparison

Being "wild" doesn't make a chicken more agile, but the types of chickens that can handle being wild are definitely far more agile

 

[CabritaChicks]

Thanks for the response.

It’ll be interesting to watch how they all develop. My three Rhode Island Reds—and now these new ones too—tend to start running, jumping, and flapping early on since I don’t use a traditional brooder setup.

I’m especially curious to see what Gypsy grows into. With even the so-called “wild” silkies around here, you never really know what you’re going to get (not that I think she’s a silkie). I wonder if she’ll start picking up more behaviors from the other chicks or if she’ll stay a scrappy little whirlwind. As long as she stays this cute—and keeps coming when I call—I won’t have to worry too much about her vanishing into the bush. Ha!

All of my chickens are raised to be lap chickens, even though they live outdoors. I spend a ton of time with them inside the house when they’re young, then out in the yard as they get older. Today, my RIRs were off exploring a new part of the property—total “Where’s Waldo?” moment. As sure enough they were in a tree- camouflaged- but when I call, they come. I hope they will be nice to tiny Gypsy chick- so far so good, but we will see!

 

[ChaosMom]

I have a mixed-breed chick with some distinctive features—based on her markings, size, and build, chicken people here assume she is British game fowl with a little mix of something special, which tend to be smaller than the Red Junglefowl we see around here. BVI is only a 10 minute boat ride from us, and we share many of the same species. She came from a random clutch of eggs someone left outside our gate.

Although only a couple of days younger than the rest, she’s taken on the role of the 'baby' in the group—always nestling underneath the other chicks and rubbing up against them- not a feisty bone in her body. They’ve all formed a very strong bond. We’ve nicknamed her the “Gypsy chick,” and she does seem noticeably more agile than the others- even climbing on top of one of the parrot stands.

Is that a real trait, or just something we’re imagining?

Don’t know how she got up there, but I can imagine why - what a view!

 

[CabritaChicks]

Don’t know how she got up there, but I can imagine why - what a view!

Thanks! Yeah, Gypsy is still very much the “little one” of the bunch—she’s lost a bit of her bounce but is definitely becoming more independent. The rest of the flock absolutely adores her; it took no time at all for her to settle in.

Now that the flock feels complete, we’re just playing the waiting game to see if two of them turn out to be roos. I’ve realized that five is probably my ideal number of chickens… and we’re sitting at seven. But Suki is just so ridiculously sweet and one of a kind (Ill post some images of what they look like now- they grow so fast compared to parrots- remarkable). Even though all the signs are pointing in one roo direction, I’m still hanging on to a bit of denial.