Poultry Behavior - reading suggestions needed

I am looking for any websites, books etc that you can recommend re: Behaviour in poultry. Both general behavior type stuff (what is normal to see in your birds) and specific behavioral problem solving ie. what to do when you run into problems - or better yet - what to do/not do to head off problems before they develop!

Is anyone aware of any studies done, results found (published) etc for Chickens, ducks, etc? I've just read article on use of LED lights for chickens (what colors elicit what behaviors) very brief article but gets main points across.

I'm new to hobby and want to learn. In dogs there are all kinds of studies done, articles published, behavior modification methods to learn etc - what is available for poultry?

Any help/suggestions are appreciated! Thanks in advance

Good post...


I am interested as well to see what literature is out there that other perhaps have dug up already or will soon find to share here.

Cheers!

I know you can teach them card tricks....they do see in color and you can teach them to pick out the different suits by putting treats on them...
Then there was a lady near Calgary that was featured in the Western Producer this year with her clicker trained chickens, she could get them to play the piano!!!
Not sure if this is what you meant but...

I do a lot of general training & behavior modification on the dogs & horses with a clicker. Clickers (ie. a behavioral marker) works for training for pretty much any animal (elephants are taught to put trunks out thru bars for treatment), horses/dogs bad with ears or feet are desensitized, dolphins are trained to jump (whistle is marker) etc.

What I'm looking for is more regarding normal behavior... roo to roo agression, feather plucking etc, and also not normal behavior - roo to human agression, cannibalism etc...ie 'normal' behaviors taken to an extreme that is unhealthy.
What to watch for as signs there are problems coming, how to head problems off at the pass, or if problem is already there - how to critique it and problem solve to fix the issue (ie. find true cause of behavior problem and resolve that).

For example - A dog bites... what 'level' of bite is it (they are generally catagorized from 1-5), what motivates the bite - fear, play, anger, defence, pain, pack stupidity etc? And history - has dog bitten before and if so - what were the circumstances and level etc. All these facts are needed to try to successfully resolve a 'biting dog' issue in a manner that's humane and long lasting.

Needing to learn poultry behavior (& it's modification)... There are dozens (hundreds?) of books/studies done on dogs - wondering what's been published for poultry?!?!

Check out anything that is written by Gail Damerow, she has many books written with great wisdom. Amazon.ca is a great place to look.
http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/chooks/chooks.html is interesting, great as a bookmark.
I am sure there are many many more out there, great topic.

I am not sure there is a book or literature strictly about what you want to know. I think you will find sections in books that do talk about it a bit but I am not sure how thoroughly it has been documented. I may be wrong, I look forward to hearing about it if I am. I love to read stuff!

Why don`t we all put up some personal observations from our own experiences that could help someone wanting to know stuff?

Here is what I have observed with young cockerel behaviour. Starting young they will spare with other young cockerels as well as with pullets. They are establishing a pecking order. Usually this 'sparing' is when they stare at each other, face to face, often lowering their heads often moving in a circular motion, not wanting to give up any ground. If they have feathers, they will raise and fluff the ones on their necks to look more imposing.

As they get older they look more imposing. They will push their neck hackles out and also raise other feathers on their bodies to look bigger. When one is victorious you will notice the other will actually `smooth` his feathers against his body to look smaller and less threatening. The cockerel on the bottom of the pecking order will often have this ‘smooth’ and smaller look when the dominant cockerel is around so he doesn’t draw attention to himself as a threat.

After I handle my cockerels or roosters I will often see them to the same ‘smoothing’ of feathers, and this to me shows their submission and acceptance of what I was wanting to do with them (usually just checking on them). A bird making himself look ‘big’ around me is the first warning sign I look for.

Body posture is something I also look for then I enter the pen. Head up and staring is not a good thing, just like a dog. I prefer a relaxed or submissive bird when I enter the pen. It is best not to be confrontational when you enter the pen as they may start to see you as a threat. Think about confident, comfortable posture. I will confront a young cockerel if I think I need to, but I mainly encourage them to keep their distance unless I allow them to come close.

These are just some of my observations and experiences. I would love others to speak up too, about what I said, or their own observations. There is so much to learn and just watching your birds soon teaches you what is ‘normal’ and what is not. There is lots to say about the girls too, don’t worry!

If you think this should be moved to a new thread, feel free. I think with all our experiences we can probably help new people more with a post like this than any book can because it will have many experiences and opinions in it. People can then sort through and decide what sounds like it will work for them , or go out into their pen and look for behaviours that others have mentioned.

I'm no experet, just started with chickens myself this last year. I had a hatchery order of 12 Wyandottes, only 4 of which were hens. I let the cocks get a little too big (very bussy summer) and they were beginning to fight eachother. There were two dominant Roos, the biggest of the bunch, and if one started chasing a smaller Roo, often the other would join in. Interestingly, if the chase-ee could jump into the roost in the trees, the chasing/fighting seemed to end.

None of them ever went after me personally, I had broken up a few fights by chasing everyone off, not sure if thats why. However, my mother was out working on the chicken house one day (bless her) and Ugly (uglyest and loudest of the Roos) took after her multiple times. Not sure if it was because she was a stranger, or what. Ugly promptly went into the freezer and none of the other Roos ever went after anyone.

I have three remaining Roos to ten hens which is not a great ratio. The only reason I'm keeping the two extras is as insurance. We have a fox that travels through every now and again, and I'd really like to hatch some eggs this spring. My luck, I'd be Roo-less if I only kept the one. They are a bit hard on the hens, but dont seem to scrap with eachother. The largest Roo is the dominant one, and the sleekest/shineyest. The girls are still laying fine though, so they cant be tooo stressed.

My chickens as a general rule, love to peck any food source that is red. Peppers, apples, the dog's hamb bone that she dropped in the chicken house ect. I read a warning somewhere when I was reading up on leg bands. Some people use coloured zip ties, but you should avoid red ones for that reason. Also, if you have an injured bird that is bleeding, the others tend to peck it, possibly to the point of death.

Three of my hens are some accidentally rescued battery cage Leghorns. When they first got home they were terrified of me and everything else. They still dont really know what "outside" means, and prefer to stay in the house. They have since gotten used to me, and will run over top of me if I sit down in their way, but still startle very easily. The Wyandottes are about "normal" in terms of flighty-ness, they dont like to be handled, but dont go flying around the coop unless you make a lunge for them. I also aquired three black sex links (hatchery mutts, they kind of look like some kind of orp cross). When I went to pick them up from the farm I was a little leery, they were so docile I thought there was something wrong with them. They dont especially enjoy attention, but have nowhere near the reaction of the Leghorns, who are like little speed boats.

Chickens also cant see worth a crap in the dark. Their usual reaction is to freeze, wheather it results from you turning out the light, or the sun going down. I have used this trick several times in the fall when they decide they would rather roost outside, thank you very much, then come into the nice safe house at night. You can walk right up behind them and grab 'em without any trouble (till they feel you grab them that is!)

Aaand finally, if you carry a chicken upside down, all the blood is supposed to rush to their heads and calm them. I only use this position if I intend to butcher the thing, as I've seen them get mucous bubbles coming out their nostrels (I assume not a healthy thing for any bird you wish to keep). It does work however, so perhapse if you have to handle something particularily agressive?

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I think this is a beautiful thread, and I know why you started it. It was because of the confrontation of the nasty freakin`rooster that attacked you, over and over. It is indeed time to more understand, all of us, through others` experiences, in particular, the roles and behaviours of the fowl. You are speaking to chickens is my main impression.

I would suggest, before this thread gets too big, that a new one be made, to speak of chicken behaviours, or perhaps a change to the topic title, to reflect that it not only has to do with reading suggestions, but tales of others and their experience in the fowl.

I will add to this a little bit. I think it wonder for us to listen to what others`say about what they observe in their chickenyards, be they big in numbers, or just a few little birds hangin` `round. There are so many cool behaviours.

I liked it when I was reading about how the rooster will check out a new nest box. Witnessed that time and time again, and the specific sound that the rooster makes as he is inspecting that box. There must be a good reason that he does this, but most times when I have introduced a new nest box, the first one in is the rooster. He makes sounds, he moves around in that box, almost like he is flattening down the straw for comfort levels, sometimes I have even seen them spend a long time in the box, perhaps he is feeling how comfortable it is for one of his gals. I often wondered too, if he was putting his rooster scent in that box, to encourage the girls to go in it, not that they need any encouragement with this, they seem to all wanna be part of the new nesting box.

Chicken behaviours, think this is gonna be a long post, did not intend it to be so, but have some lovely things to say (must be careful that this does not get out into cyberspace, lost, must copy and paste now, before I forget and have lost all my information I type ).

There, safe, now I can save every minute or so and if I lose information, only a sentence or so, so many lessons learned with lost text, sigh.

Anyways, back to behaviours. I spend a great deal of time in my coops, on a sitting apparatus, whether it is outside on a chair, inside on a milk crate, sitting on a roost (which would have a towel that I sit on) to see the whole inside coop nicely, outside on a thing, whatever, I spend a lot of time. Many of us do, well imagine that. I know that people probably think I am odd, to sit, especially on a beautiful warm spring day, for hours, watching the birds.....this brings me pleasure. Should talk about the human behaviour too, but that is not the topic.

I watch the little ones in the cochin coop, they are nigh onto 18 weeks old now. They have been roosting for a long time. I watch these little ones, they will fly up onto the coop after the big ones have found their spot. They have very adept ability to fly right between two big, fluffy, cochin gals. Usually the little ones are side by side. They have a certain sound that they make, that influences the older hens to move over, inch by inch, until they are all safely tucked inbetween great masses of cochin mamma feathers. What a beautiful place to be resting for a night. If it can’t be below their great and wonderful belly, well, it is beside that great and wonderful fluff belly. They are tucked into bed.
In the morning, when I open this particular coop, the adults let the babies (well, they are adolescents now for surely) come tumbling out first. That is what it looks like, like a can of beans that all tumble out when the door is opened up. It has always been this way, the babies come out first. In a big hurry.

A behaviour I notice with the buckeye rooster in particular, no other of the two breeds do this, (there are two roosters in that particular coop, one alpha, absolutely), the alpha rooster will come down off the roost to see what I am up to. He doesn’t do much other than just mosey around, (the light would be turned on if I go in there after roosting time), pretending to peck things on the ground. Sometimes a hen will come off the roost to see what he is showing her. I don’t understand this action, but the buckeye seem to do this. He then will wait until I leave, he will still be on the ground. After he jumps back on the roost. This was the same with the previous buckeye rooster too, which is no longer. Something about that particular breed.

This is an interesting thread and there will be many more behaviour tales you will hear. Lots to listen to, and enjoy. Have a wonderful day, CynthiaM.

I am enjoying this thread as well, especially as I contemplate the possibility of letting go of my rooster house idea and putting my chosen roosters in with the hens permanently. I enjoy giving attention and stroking my hens that show interest in it, almost asking for it. Some of them are so sweet and soft, however I also completely agree with Higgins about letting them be animals and respecting the rooster and his role by not giving him any reason to feel threatened by me. I guess my question is, when one does have to handle the hens which should be quite regularly in order to "know well the condition of your flocks, And pay attention to your herds", what is the best way to go about it with a rooster always around? Is this another thread? One of my flocks of 32 birds crowd around me every time I come near near them - yes looking for food but also some of them LOVE to be given some attention. Some of them are incredibly sweet. Perhaps they would not do this if they had their rooster.

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Tara, sigh, yep, where do you get the energy for the posts you bring for us to read, keep thinking about that, it is enjoyable and I love to listen, as I am sure this is shared thoughts by others.

Within the coop that has the buff orpingtons, there are 8 hens and two roosters. The roosters are nest mates that have grown together, right from the egg beginning, they are distantly related, one is clearly dominant, he is the smaller of the two. But come the time to roost, these two boys ALWAYS roost side by side, the gals on each side of them, it is interesting to watch this behaviour and it is identical each time I happen to be there when the roosting time has come. There is no squabble of any sort between these two boys, they keep on their merry way, night and day. The hens actually squabble more than the dudes, funny thing.

I remember a long time ago, probably I would say about 3 years ago, back on the coast, in our old life, (is that long, I dunno, to me it is). I had raised a whack of light brahma chicks from of course, my light brahma group. I had grown the chicks out in a very large pen, all on their own, there was probably close to 20 of the chicks, most were cockerels, I think that there were about 5 pullets, if that, a strong year for the hatching of this gender.

The little fellows were fighters, guess there were so many trying to attain the top dog position. Of course not being out there all the time, I could not work with them as much as surely would have been needed. Tara spoke of cockerels fighting to the death. There was one day in particular, where I was out there sitting on my bucket, nice weather, so a nice sit, finding a bit of a higher spot in the pen so I wasn't deep in mud , yes, a whole lotta mud down on the west southern coast. I watched several of these little fellows and they were totally getting into it, I venture they would have been about 12 weeks old, still young, very young, but oh yes, there was a couple that were just out and out bullies and bullied the younger dudes around. I remember one day watching two really going at it. Heads lowered, hackles all fluffed out, trying to look big, they just wouldn't stop. After watching this for a bit, I thought I had best intervene, as there was a little redness showing on one of the necks. I stopped the fight and they moved off and were just. Well, for gracious sake. Not more than about 10 minutes later, these two were at it again. The same two, I know, I was watching them closely. The blood must have been a very insignificant amount, as there was not any red that I could see. Finally, after only a mere half a minute or so, the one that wanted to be kingmaster, obviously relented. He became so subservient to the other fellow that also caused me to worry intensely. I tend to worry about things that do not warrant it, but nevertheless, I worried. The one that became the lesser of the two that day had actually kept on trying to squeeze underneath the wing of the other fellow. It looked strange, as that fellow kept avoiding the punches of the tougher dude and kept going close to his body and pushing his head between the wing and the body. I watched this antic too, I thought most interesting. I hung around for a while to see if these two would be going at it again. Nope, they were done with the dominant thing. Stuck around for at least an hour, and it was done. That was the only time that I had seen this kind of dominating role being taken on amongst ALL those cockerels. I am sure there were other events, but I didn't see them. It was just those two, they did figure it out. But still I wonder, if I had not intervened, would there have been death? Not sure, but they were very awful to each other, and just too much for me to bear to see this action. Seems this topic is really swaying towards rooster behaviour, smiling. Have a wonderful day, CynthiaM.

Wow, thanks for all the info guys! I've got a couple more books on order (would love to get them all - but not the funds for that now!) and will be trying hard to read thru all as soon as I can so that I do some 'problem solving'(& more importantly - problem prevention!).
THANKS! Sue

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Information overload....


Ok I need to sit down with a Fruit Smoothie and read all of this... lol

Thanks for all the insightful and informative info everyone!!!

What a great thread. I am fascinated by their behaviour and do watch and interact with my birds a lot. I see some breeds will do one thing but not another, or make certain sounds others won't. My Sumatra hens make a companionable bu-bu-bu when I talk to them, kind of a greeting/content noise if they are foraging, an acknowledgement type I guess. Other time there's an almost raucous begging noise for food or attention. My partridge chanties do that one too. I can hear them and the D'Uccles peevish high tones before I go in the coop.

I don't mind tripping over them in the coop and have selected my breeds to be that friendly! They will do that with the right roo in there and I absolutely love to have a snoozing big roo with legs hanging, all relaxed in my arms.

I am amazed the array of noises the roos make and degree of thresholds for warning between breeds, for different predators too. For big overhead possible predator-low grade, that brrr (or currrrr) noise. We get a low growl when a small not particularly threatening little bird goes over too. Then the different volumes and lengths of buck-ark-ing then they think there is real danger imminently closing in. They buck-arked for about 5 minutes when I clipped one of our pullets with the lawnmower this summer. She ran 100+feet screaming back her coop and where the batchelor coop was in about 1/2 a second. The chorus went on for ages. Other times with less of a threat they stop much faster.

It is a Penelope Pitstop screaming "haylp" I get from my less tame partridge chanties pullets sometimes when I pick them up they are very peristently wanting to roost near where they grew up outside. But the Euskal Oiloas, raised on the same spot know where their new (warmer maybe?) home is. I have no problem warning the birds in their own language if I see a threat and there is no roo out with them. Good thing the neighbours can't hear!

I haven't had many broodies but got a crash course in 2011 year. I definitely hear the broodies make a lot of the sounds to the chicks that I hear the roos make to the hens. The wet buck-buck-food noise. If I want my chickens to try something they don't seem to fancy, I make that noise and tap the food with my beak (fingernail) and they come for it.

I have a you-tube video I took of a partridge chanty showing her 14 chicks how to eat bread, and she even breaks tiny pieces off a bun for them once they have figured it is food and those chicks, they watch her beak, the adults watch my fingers.


Cynthia, I would guess those buckeyes were probably trying to tempt you with food (as a hen), My Sumatra Billy does that too when I call him by name. I always call him the same way a low slow Bi-leeeeee and does that, picks around for something for me. Kind of half throw, half dropped thing. I think he's the only one of mine and he as always done it.

Even if they don't recognize names they know sounds, my sumatra hen look up when I call "sum-aaaa-tra", and the others ignore, Dolly, Violet and Specky, all come when I call them by name while others ignore or look on.

We have ours voice trained to "bed-time" (go up any gangplank if they are still out), "Who wants some?", and "come on little chickens" in a silly high pitch brings them round my feet for attention. I always do the same phrase in the same tone, at the same time/event and they soon learn. Can you imagine what the neigbours think??

They certainly have hard-wired responses to things, like know when hatchery chicks know what the food-buck noise is, other behaviours are certainly learned. The more you watch, the more you learn too!

I will be getting some of the these books they sounds fascinating.