10-11-13 Social Networking Chicken Style
news summary
2:13 pm
The last few times the girls gathered around my feet when I open the coop. They peck at the hard packed ground by the door briefly, then move on. I do get the impression that they do want to interact with me. I’ve tried reaching out and gently touching them. Some tolerate at best.
Of course, chickens are social beings, and grazing is a social activity for them. What if they were inviting me to go grazing with them? So I gave it a try.
I joined them at the mound where most of them were. I squatted and began scratching at the mulch. Lizbeth and Lefty immediately ran over to see what I was doing. Lisa, LowRedda and Lucy formed a half circle behind them. Lizbeth then began pecking in the hole I had made – she is the alpha after all. She found nothing interesting and trotted away. The others returned to their scratching and pecking.
When I stood up, Lefty moved right in front of me and began scratching slowly. She removed all the mulch, got down to the loamy, black soil. Then she began to dig in earnest. Soon she found a small earthworm. She picked it up, then put it down. She repeated this two more times then ate it. I got the impression that she was making an effort to teach me how to graze properly. Who knows?
I was concerned about Lourdes. She was grazing alone about 40 feet from all the others. She was in the trench that marks the property line near the coop.
Lourdes wouldn’t let me get closer than 10 feet. I bent down and began scratching at the ground in the trench in the way Lefty showed me. After about five minutes of this, I returned to the group at the mound. Soon after, Lourdes joined the rest of us at the mound.
When it was time to get them back in the coop, I tried something new. I moved much slower and gave them time to graze while they were moving toward the coop. They were pretty good about staying together. When we got to the coop, they went right in. I walked in with them, went to the can with the mealworm treats. Tossed them a few. Made sure they all got some. This was so much easier and faster than chasing them.
This seems to be a big turning point in my learning how to do social networking with the girls.
Got 5 eggs today.
~ David
