New Tricks

We recently moved the chickens perch, it is a branch which ran at an angle from the ground to the vertical wooden strut on the run. This meant that very little of it was horizontal and the angle was a bit steep for all four chickens to be able to stay on. We decided to put it across, horizontally between the vertical wooden struts. This means I have to limbo underneath it when cleaning up but I thought it would be worth it to give the chickens a better perch. Now we wondered how long it would take them to find it. Within a few days Pepper found it followed by Bluebell and Dotty. Treacle seems to have no interest in the perch, I’m not sure if that’s because she is a bigger bird. Pepper and Dotty like to jump up into the tree which neither Bluebell or Treacle have tried. So far I have only managed to photograph Bluebell on the perch as when I get near Pepper and Dotty jump off.

Bluebell has found the new perch

Bluebell on the perch

I also decided to try giving the girls melon again, last time they looked at it as if it might bite them and at the end of the day it was still untouched. This time, once again Bluebell found it first (she is the smartest of the four), but was quickly followed by Dotty and Treacle and lastly Pepper (she seems to be the dimmest of the four). They have got the hang of the melon now.

Bluebell finds the melon

Dotty and Treacle find the melon

The other trick we are learning is stroking. The evening before last, when Bluebell came and sat on my lap, I tried stroking her underside. She seemed to like it. When Treacle sat on my lap, I tried the same thing but she jumped down. Treacle hasn’t been coming to sit on my lap as long as bluebell, so I know we need to take it slowly. The next morning when I went to the chooks and they all ran to my hands as usual to see if I had anything good for them, I stroked bluebells sides while she was close to me and she didn’t seem to mind at all. I felt really pleased. That evening Treacle twice sat on my lap and I stroked her underside again. This time she didn’t mind at all and stayed put enjoying it. I really felt this was a break through. Thank you Flock Mistress for your advice on this. I now realize that if you go to stroke them on their back they will always move away, but when you stroke them from underneath they don’t seem to feel threatened and seem to enjoy it. I am not sure if Pepper and Dotty will ever come and sit on me and allow me to stroke them as they are much more skittish. I am so glad now that I have a mixed flock because although I really love Pepper and Dotty, I also love the the way Bluebell and Treacle interact with me.