Solitary chicken - need advice

[Margalot]

Just wondered if anyone could help with this?

 

We got our girls in January so the days were really short, they got up, ate pellets, laid an egg, scratched around all day, had treats went to bed.

 

Now I have noticed that my chckens are spending some of their day especially in the afternoons sitting down? Sometimes they preeen whislt sitting and if one sits they all tend to sit with her. They are not sunbathing or dustbathing, this is done at other times. I was wondering if this is normal and they are just resting because the days are so much longer??

 

Mine get themselves up (god knows what time , but its always before me!)

and put themselves to bed at around 8.30ish at the moment.

 

Its just that they never used to sit and since losing Bonbon I am overly concerned about their behaviour.

 

There is nothing else wrong they are all eating/ escaping/ drinking/ laying. So is this just a chicken taking a break??

 

Thank you

[Patricia W]

Mine have always had an afternoon rest - sitting down, dustbathing, preening etc. They did this before I let them free range all day so I think it's normal chook behaviour. They will have eaten all morning and so, with a full crop, they are just taking it easy. Then they start feeding again as the afternoon draws into evening - that's my theory!

 

Tricia

[Ain't Nobody Here]

I wouldn't worry if they look healthy and happy . Mine often have a sit down at various times throughout the day (well, it must be hard work being a chicken ).

Edited April 23, 2009 by Guest

[chelsea]

sounds normal to me. Like you say - especially with these longer days my lot sit quietly in the afternoon for a spell all in a little circle, some just sit and look around, some sit and preen. They then have a sudden burst of energy after with a bit of scratching or a dustbath.

 

unusual signs of anything worrying would be a hen who sleeps all day, sits all day. You will know when you see it.

[madchickenlady]

Sounds normal to me, too My girls like to have a lazy hour or so after lunch, and usually lay under the rhododendron in the border. They have a bit of a preen, and sometimes a snooze

[PurpleTree]

Sounds like my three. I've had them since October, and like you I'm put it down to the days getting longer. It also coincided with them getting longer free-range time - they get from about midday to about 8pm, whenever I'm home, which is most days. They seem to have a sit down in there run at about the same time every morning, obviously conserving their energy for some proper garden destruction later on.

 

As I write though I think all three of them are trying to sit in the nest box to lay