They're funny critters aren't they?

[dinosaw]

Chickens that is. The Count is two years old, and up to last week he had never perched a day in his life. He would always just bed down on the floor of the coop in the corner, hopefully as far away from his hens bums as possible. He had spraddle leg as a chick and whenever he gets a shift on you can hear his hip clicking so we had always put it down to that. Anyway, when looking in just before locking up last week, there he is, on the perch as happy as Larry and he has been every day since. It has coincided exactly with when our Sussex decided to bring her (and his) chicks into the main coop to sleep, whether it has anything to do with that who knows but I can't come up with any better explanation.

 

[Hen-Gen]

They are, though sometimes irritating rather than funny. Personally if I breed any bird with a defect then it has only one option no matter how good it is in other respects but then I am a krypto fascist when it comes to genetics.
Last year I gave a cock (a Russian Orloff) to a neighbour who already had a Maran cock. We hypothesised that being on unfamiliar territory would lower his status/self confidence. He was barely 30 seconds out of his box before he spotted the Maran and rushed over to kill it. For those who don't know Orloffs they have a gamey look about them and are accomplished fighters.
Another cock I had, a Hamburg X Minorca was the bird from Hell. No attacking ones legs! Only flying up to head height and trying to take my eyes out was good enough for him. He was, without doubt, downright dangerous and he never experienced free range for this reason. The day his offspring hatched I despatched him.
About three weeks ago I was looking after a neighbours croft while they were on holiday. They had some crossbred bantams. Their cockerel, who was about the size of a pigeon, took an instant dislike to me and attacked on sight. Not really big enough to worry about!
By contrast all my other cocks have been real gentleman. In fact I fertility tested one of my current one year olds (I only breed from two/three year olds) because he is so recessive that I thought he might have taken after his owner in the sexuality stakes!

 

[LadyA]

I saw an ad on FB the other day, HenGen, from someone offering a cockerel ftgh. It was described as an ***hole, and the current owner was just sick of him attacking anything that moved! Several people, quite sensibly, suggested he put it in the pot, and that opened quite a can of worms in the comments! Some of the comments were just priceless! Along the lines of "Oh, someone rescue that poor bird and give it a GOOD home!" and several saying that the only reason the bird was showing aggression was that it had "obviously" been treated badly by cruel owners, and if someone rescued it, and showed it proper love, it would "learn to trust" again, and turn into a pet! This is the reason I avoid poultry pages on FB like the plague!

 

[Hen-Gen]

As bigyetiman said, 'they walk amongst us'.

 

[valeriebutterley]

The problem I have currently, despite huge new house, and the run about to be extended is b....y hens roosting in the the nest boxes. They think they are now in a deserted ballroom and just do not like it, they want the squashed in close proximity of their mates. As I said previously the addition of 6 small but gigantic to be Croad Langshans, went too smoothly by far, I should have known they had something planned. But they had no intention of telling me.

I am going to add my lone star Gloria tonight by herself, she is the only barred Plymouth rock to hatch and is growing very rapidly, she is an incredibly beautiful girl. Hope it goes well.

 

[bigyetiman]

Funny critters applies to some people. Like when you say you have culled a sick hen, in spite of you with extensive knowledge of hens and illness, people are quick to offer all sorts of advice ranging from the weird to expensive (repeated trips to vet). You then become cruel and evil when you say no.
We have 3 girls that all have to lay in the same box at the same time, it's like a layers support group, not sure if they mutter clucks of encouragement to each other or not, but it must be pretty cramped.

 

[dinosaw]

The Count is normally very placid, especially with his hens and us but when a Peacock invaded last year, boy did you see a different side of him. Beak full of blue feathers, kicking 7 shades out of it despite the size difference. No problems with his legs that day. There is a lot of interbreeding going on with Orloffs mind you. I find Bantam cocks are far more aggresive than large fowl, first time they attack I tend to give them a kicking to see if that settles them down, if not they go after their third try. Hens I am finding it increasing difficult to kill, especially if I like them, have two utterly useless Araucanas at the moment that ought to go, and will eventually, but I pick them up and just feel really sorry for them so put it off for another week, they will have to go soon though or we will be overstocked in winter.
The issue I have with people and their comments on you killing your chickens is that most of the buggers eat meat so are total hypocrites.