Chickens are great pets, however, not greater than dogs or cats. Why? Because chickens are much more hostile compared to dogs and cats. Chickens don’t like to be touched, held, or pet. Also, chickens can more easily be startled compared to dogs and cats.
However, even though that is the case, it does not mean your chicken will be impossible to trust you. There are lots of ways you can execute to gain the trust of your chicken. But during the first week of your chicken in your house, your chicken will most likely run away from you. And to gain their trust, you must know the reason why chickens run away from people.
Why do chickens run away from me? The main reason why your chickens run away from you is that your chickens are scared of you. Chickens are naturally prey animals, their only way to escape predators is by running. Chickens will run away from you and strangers that they don’t trust yet.
However, that is the concise answer. There is a broader answer that I have prepared for all of you reading this article. I will also answer various questions related to our subject. Lastly, I will tell you how you can prevent your chickens from getting scared of you.
Reasons Why Your Chickens Run Away From You
There are lots of reasons why your chickens run away from you. If you want to change the way your chickens treat you, you must first know the reason behind this attitude. Once you know the reasons, you can start changing your chickens’ behavior and gain their trust.
You Are Chasing Your Chicken
Like I have mentioned above, chickens are prey animals that have only one solution to escape their predators and that is running. If you chase your chickens, your chickens will think that you are a predator. Chickens will remember people and remember every bad experience that happened to them.
Never chase your chickens! Also, prevent your friends and family members from chasing your chickens. If your chickens become traumatized because of this, it will give you a hard time gaining the trust of your chickens. It can take time for your chickens to overcome this anxiety.
You Make Sudden Movements
The other reason why your chickens run away from you is that you always make sudden movements. Chickens can be easily startled. That is why when you do sudden movements, your chicken will feel threatened, and their first instinct when they feel threatened is to run.
When you are around your flock, you should do your best not to make sudden movements that can startle your pet chickens. If your chickens are extremely anxious and defensive, a sudden move can be as simple as standing up or turning your head. However, your chickens can become less anxious and get used to sudden movements. You just have to gain their trust.
You Are Too Loud
The other reason why chickens run away from you is that you are playing loud sounds that annoy and scares them. It can be your voice, your music, or your movements. If you are too loud, your chickens will feel threatened and will run away from you.
However, your chickens might also be annoyed and scared of natural loud sounds like thunder. Chickens are naturally skittish birds and loud noises can easily startle them. You have to make sure not to make loud noises. Of course, you can’t control thunder. However, you can prevent what you can control.
Your Chickens Don’t Know You
Baby chicks are very cute. That is why many people, including you, are interested in spending time with baby chicks. Everybody loves baby chicks and wants to hold and kiss them. However, once they grow up, they look dirty and big. That is why some people lose interest in baby chicks once they grow up.
There are lots of chicken owners that stop interacting with their chickens once their chickens grow up. This is the reason why your chickens do not know you enough. That is why your chickens run away from you when you try to approach them. Your chickens will trust you enough that you feed them. However, once you try to approach your chickens, they will run away.
You must always interact with your chickens even though they grow up already. This will make your chickens trust and know you more. Once your chickens know you and trust you fully, your chickens will often follow you wherever you go.
Why Are Your Chickens Scared Of You?
Now that you know the reasons why your chickens run away from you. And the main reason why is because your chickens are scared of you. However, what is the reason behind this? Why are your chickens scared of you? Here, let me tell you why.
The reason why your chickens are scared of you is that your chickens do not trust you enough yet. Or maybe your chickens lose their trust in you because you abuse or hurt them. To prevent your chickens from getting scared of you, you must get the trust of your chickens.
Why Baby Chicks Run Away From You?
The reason why baby chicks run away from you is that they are scared of you. Yes, this is the same reason why grown-up chickens run away from you. Like I have said, chickens, including chicks, are prey animals. That is why when they feel threatened, their only way to escape the threat is to run.
If you have new hatchlings and you notice that they are afraid of you, don’t panic or get disappointed. This is natural and normal! I know that it is hard to resist picking or holding up baby chicks. However, when you try to approach them, they will most likely run away from you. But, what is the reason why chicks are scared of you?
Imagine dinosaurs still existed today and one dinosaur tries to grab you even though it will not eat you. You will be scared, right? This is the same with baby chicks. The reason why baby chicks are scared of you is that you are very big! The whole world is a scary place for baby chicks!
However, there are some ways you can do to make your young chicks less scared of you. It is best when you start to bond with your baby chicks while they are still babies. This will build up trust for the long term.
How To Build Trust With Your Baby Chicks?
To build trust with your baby chicks, you must start spending time with your baby chicks early on. This will help your chicks know and trust you more, which will make them more docile as they grow.
Talk To Them
The first thing you can do to build trust with your chicks is by talking to them. The earlier chicks start knowing your voice, the friendlier and less scared of you they will be. You can talk to your chicks every morning while feeding them. However, make sure that you use your natural soft voice and never shout at them.
Also, you can start using their names, if you plan to give each of your chicks a name. If your chicks hear their name often, it will help your chicks recognize and understand their name. Yes! Chickens are smart too! That is why they can remember their names like dogs do.
Hand Feed Your Baby Chick
The second thing you can do to build trust with your baby chicks is to hand feed them. It is not enough to fill up their feeder and give them fresh water. Try giving your chicks some fresh treats like dried worms, chick starter food, or other healthy snacks and use your hand to give it to them.
Your chicks will trust you more if you hand-feed them. Why? Because they know that if they become friends and trust you, they will get more yummy treats from your pocket.
Don’t Startle Them
Like I have mentioned above, chickens can be easily startled. To gain the trust of your chicks, never startle your chicks. If you often startle your chicks, your chicks will become more hostile, defensive, and anxious as they grow up. Your chicks might lose interest in people when you always scare them.
How To Prevent My Chickens From Being Scared Of Me?
It is much easier to bond with baby chicks than grown-up chickens. However, is there anything you can do to gain the trust of your chicken if you got your chicken when they were older? Yes! There are things you can do to gain the trust of your chicken and prevent them from being scared of you! Let’s check them out!
Give Your Chickens More Treats
The first thing you must do to prevent your chickens from getting scared of you and gain their trust is to give your chickens more treats. It is one of the easiest ways to bond with older chickens. Choose some favorite foods that will make your chickens go crazy.
At first, your chickens will not eat on your hands. But sooner or later they will if you do this constantly. Once your chickens come to you, never grab or hold them, which will startle them and run away from you. Being held is not the norm for chickens. You need to train them and gain their trust to like it.
Sit With Your Chickens
If you sit on the couch every morning and drink coffee, it is better to sit near your chickens. If your chickens only see you once a day, it is not enough. You have to spend more time with your chicken if you want your chicken to be friendly to you.
You can read your book and read it softly to your chickens. By doing this, your chickens will remember your voice. By spending more time with your chickens, your chickens will trust you more and will not be scared of you.
Talk To Your Chickens
The next thing you can do is to talk to your chickens. While sitting with your chickens, softly talk to them. Never shout or play some loud sounds that will scare your chickens. Talk to them as you would talk to a one-year-old human baby.
Avoid Loud Noises
Like I have mentioned above, chickens can be easily startled. Usually, they startle because of sudden loud noises. Avoid this kind of noise! Your chickens might get anxious if you play loud sounds often.
Don’t Approach Suddenly
To prevent your chickens from getting scared of you, you have to avoid approaching them suddenly. If you approach your chickens, make sure that your chickens know it. Never approach your chickens abruptly as it will scare them more and run away from you.
Once your chickens are comfortable with you already, sometimes they will take a nap beside you. If a chicken feels comfortable closing its eyes around you, it just means that your chicken already trusts you. They know that there will be no harm that will happen while their eyes are closed.
However, it takes time for your chickens to trust you. You need patience and perseverance if you want to get the trust of your pet chickens. The more often you spend time with your chickens and respect their boundaries, the more your chickens will like and trust you.
Final Verdict
The main reason why your chickens run away from you is that your chickens are scared of you. If you don’t like this to happen, you must gain the trust of your chickens. Gaining their trust is not easy. It requires time, patience, and perseverance. You can do it, the chicken owner!
