Treats, pecking, the water spray and how smart are these chickens?

Treats seem to be the main cause of pecking, with Bluebell being the one who get’s pecked by everyone else. When I put treats in the two square feeders (usually lettuce and tomato), I have been sitting in front of them with the water spray to try to deter the pecking.

The water spray

I sit and hold this water spray on my lap and give a squirt of water to any chicken pecking Bluebell. Bluebell has never been sprayed because she has never, in all the time we have had her, ever pecked anyone. She therefore has no fear of the spray and will come up to it and peck at it. Treacle hates the spray and as soon as she sees it, she is wary. She seems to think I am trying to keep her from the feeder and doesn’t yet seem to have made the connection between her pecking Bluebell and then being sprayed. Bluebell and Dotty are the brightest. Dotty knows that when she pecks Bluebell she gets sprayed and never pecks her a second time while I am there. She has learned instead, that if she then gives a really intimidating look to Bluebell, it scares Bluebell away without me spraying her. I can’t spray for a look, it’s strictly just for pecking. Poor Bluebell, I wish she would toughen up and don’t know why she never pecks back. Bluebell then comes and stands in front of me and clucks as if to say “sort it out for me”. It tugs at my heart strings but I need them to sort it out themselves. Pepper occasionally pecks Bluebell but one squirt sends her away briefly and then she behaves, she seems the least bothered by being squirted.

The reason I  like to use the treat feeders is because it keeps the treat out of the dirt and gives the chickens something to work at.  If I put treats on the patio area as far away from the dirt as possible the chickens still take them to the dirt, then when completely covered they abandon the treat and I have to clear it up. The one thing that does work well on the ground is apple. I cut an apple in half and then cut a slice off the bottom to stop it being constantly flipped over and to allow access from either side. They peck at the inside of the apple, which stays quite clean and it lasts most of the day, by which time just a circle of skin remains to be thrown away. They always eat the pips first and will chase each other round for them, which is quite amusing as I can’t imagine the pips are very nice.

Apple

They also chase each other round for a piece of tomato if they manage to break a bit off. There is no etiquette when it comes to treats.

I also think they are getting to know their names. Yesterday I went in with some grapes and three came running, but Dotty was so busy scratching that she didn’t notice. I called out her name and she came running over. This is the second time this has happened but my husband said that perhaps she just knows my tone rather than her name. Even if  that is so, she is still bright enough to know she is being called and to respond. Yesterday I was throwing little pieces of tomato to the girls to try to make sure they all got a bit. Bluebell kept missing out as Dotty is so much quicker. Bluebell had her back to me, I called “Bluebell” before throwing a bit near her and she responded by turning towards me, although Dotty still beat her to it anyway!

Another thing I thought quite clever, when poop picking every day, the one spot I couldn’t get to was under the big shrub where they spend  lot of time (I am not crawling under a shrub), so I wondered if there was a lot of poop under there. When we pruned the shrub back a few days ago and could finally see under there, there was no sign of any poop. My husband said that as they sit under there such a lot maybe they know not to poop there. I wouldn’t have believed it but a few days ago, Treacle was sat on my lap, suddenly she jumped off, pooped then jumped back on again. We both said that it seemed she didn’t want to poop on me. So far, much to my surprise they have never pooped on me. Could it be they do have a sense of control about this?

Dotty is the youngest and the smallest but is the one to peck Bluebell the most, she is the greediest and the fastest. Treacle is the biggest and not so smart, but is the most affectionate and likes a cuddle in the evening. Bluebell is the smartest and finds anything new first, she looks to me to protect her and clucks crossly if she can’t get on my lap with Treacle. Pepper is the most talkative, she chatters all day long and if we have too many visitors invading her space she makes her displeasure known with a lot of loud “boc boc”. Pepper and Dotty have always disliked being touched, but are now gaining in confidence and allow a light stroke.  It is fascinating discovering their different personalities and watching them learn new things.