Ophelia Posted March 21, 2010 Share Posted March 21, 2010 Camilla is the top hen out of my three ex-batts. She is now the most confident around me. She is happy to be picked up (she seems to like it) and be stroked. I can walk around with her under my arm without any complaints from her. In the morning when I let them out she starts shreiking for meal worms or any other treat. She will also start to shreik whenever she spots someone in the house or the graden because she wants to be let out of the run to FR. She does generally pok pok away constantly. Recently, if I pick up one of the other girls and then put them down on the ground Camilla will run between us and peck me. Is she jealous or does she think she needs to protect her girls from me? I have just been out to empty the peely bin in to the compost heap. The girls all came running over looking for treats. I had my back to them emptying the bin and Camilla flew at me and hit me in the back (I didn't even know she coulf flap herself that high - wing trims me thinks). Is this aggressive behaviour? Is it normal? How should I handle it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
legend21 Posted March 21, 2010 Share Posted March 21, 2010 in general I ignore my girl when they peck me, but if I can be bothered I quickly grab the guilty party and hold them down on the ground for a moment to let her know Im the boss (well sort of) Jackie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dancing cloud Posted March 21, 2010 Share Posted March 21, 2010 Sounds like she's a jealous little attention-seeker who's making sure she gets everything she wants - she probably doesn't mean to be aggressive to you, just to make sure she's first! Mine are ex-batts too and my Daisy top-chook will peck my legs quite hard if I sit another hen on my knee (even if she's already had her cuddle) and none of them are above demanding treats as soon as I open the back door. I usually just show them empty hands and they go away complaining ! If they do get over-pecky, either I will push them down gently, like Jackie, or will tickle them and make it a game, or pick them up (if I can catch them - they're not huge fans of being picked up). Your Camilla is probably now getting confident about her freedom and just wants as much of her good fortune as she can get. Her thoughts are probably very much along the lines of "me, me, me"! A wing-clip might be a good plan though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enpekt Posted March 21, 2010 Share Posted March 21, 2010 I normally "reward" bad behaviour by making the bad girl go submissive, then hold her down. If the naughty girl doesn't like being petted, I pick her up and stroke her. Punishment indeed! Funny things, hens... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ophelia Posted March 21, 2010 Author Share Posted March 21, 2010 Thanks for your advice. She has stopped squatting for me so next time she is over cheeky I will make her squat. They do make me laugh with all their antics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom123 Posted March 21, 2010 Share Posted March 21, 2010 Doesn't sound as if she's jealous it sounds exactly like what a cockerel does. Try making her squat or squirting her with a water pistol which will tell her she has done something wrong Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
