Meet the Flock

I decided it was time to update my “Meet the Flock” page as we have had new girls now for three weeks.

They have settled in really well but I am observing the behaviour of the flock and have realised that it takes time for them to actually form friendships. Chickens have so much character and personality which is why chicken owners love their girls so much.

The new girls have established their place in the pecking order and there are no squabbles but they keep themselves to themselves and haven’t yet formed friendships with the other girls or any attachment to me. This all takes time.

I could very much see this behaviour this morning when I put two dishes of mash in the run. Pepper, Dotty, Honey and Amber ate the mash while the new girls stayed away. Topaz wandered off into the garden part of the run with no interest in it at all. Sparkle would come towards it but then lose courage and not get any closer.

What was interesting to me though was how comfortable the old four are together. Amber would be eating mash next to Pepper and Pepper would give her the quick peck that doesn’t actually connect but just reminds Amber that Pepper is above her. Amber would take no notice of it at all and continue to eat the mash next to her completely at ease with her.

It is as if Amber is saying that she knows her place and is quite happy with it. Whereas when Bluebell was here she would move the little girls constantly from dish to dish. Now the four old girls eat from either dish regardless of which girl is next to them and the little girls accept the warning “almost peck” and carry on.

Two dishes of mash

This is as close as Sparkle gets

Honey and Dotty are sharing a dish in the foreground and Pepper and Amber are sharing a dish in the background. Behind them is Sparkle and that is the closest she came to the dish and yet she is not in awe of Amber or Honey and will peck them away if they get too close to her. But even when Amber and Honey were sharing one dish Sparkle still didn’t come any closer.

Sparkle can’t pluck up the courage to come any closer than this

The two little girls now share a dish but still Sparkle doesn’t join in.

When I went back a little later Pepper was sitting on the wooden block and Honey was tucked in by her side. Seeing them so close made me realise again how comfortable they are with each other.

Topaz and Sparkle don’t yet seek out the company of the other girls. They keep themselves to themselves and just wander about doing their own thing.

The same thing applies to their relationship with me. They haven’t yet formed any bond with me. I know all the girls come running when treats are on offer but Pepper and Dotty will jump on my back or shoulder frequently. Honey and Amber will follow me and if I crouch down they will run to me. If I am cleaning the coop they go inside to watch me and chatter to me.

The new girls are not bothered by me being close to them but they don’t come to me either. It has made me realise how the whole thing of building the relationship between the girls and also between the girls and me takes time.

My husband said the other day that the new girls didn’t have the lovely character of the other little girls and I know that what he really means is that you don’t see it when they are not at all attached to you. It is much easier to feel a fondness for them when that affection is returned but it has to be earned first.

I find this all very interesting. A year ago when we got Honey and Amber they were very skittish and wouldn’t let me get any where near them. I remember saying that they may never be as attached to me as the older girls and yet now they are every bit as attached to me. My husband doesn’t spend as much time with them as me but they are used to him and comfortable with being close to him.

It is something that can’t be rushed and takes time to develop. I am sure in a years time the new girls will be as comfortable with their flock mates and with us as the older girls are. It is lovely seeing the bonding gradually take place.

To read the updates to the meet the flock page click here: Meet the Flock.