Loners

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Maximus
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Loners

Post by Maximus » Wed Aug 03, 2016 7:55 am

Does anyone have any loners that don't really belong??

I have two that don't follow a group. They are on their own most of the day. One is my silkie, which is understandable. She disappears all too often to sit on dud eggs her human mom gives her.

The other is a chick she hatched out in the spring. Just wanders around all day on her own. She is never too far from any one group but is never a part of a group.

She's also very sweet ( Easter egger X barred rock). I tried putting silkie and her in a big pen for a few days to see if they would bond. Nope. Stayed at opposite ends of the pen.

Anything I should be aware of? I don't see any obvious weaknesses in the Easter egger X.
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Killerbunny
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Loners

Post by Killerbunny » Wed Aug 03, 2016 11:01 am

I have had a couple like this. My black australorp hen just wanders off on her own, happy as you like. Normal for her. I also had her Mum who was the only female in the hatch. She was also on her own all the time. Not the nicest girl but a great broody who now lives with WWW!
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windwalkingwolf
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Loners

Post by windwalkingwolf » Wed Aug 03, 2016 11:48 pm

Yep, Little Mama is an island unto herself, except when she's brooding chicks. When she's done with them, she will never socialize with them ever again, and very rarely does she hang out with a group...she's prickly and doesn't like other birds touching her on the roost, or anywhere else for that matter, but she is not vicious, just...unsociable lol. She's near the top of the pecking order near as I can tell, but will share food with any bird as long as they don't enter her "bubble" lol. She's also the only hen who has ever raised chicks in with my gnarly old layers without them getting eaten by the grumpy old birds. She is a wickedly good mother hen, but as hens go, she's just weird lol
I also have a JG boy that keeps to himself, wandering freely about the yard. But in his case, I'm pretty sure he is a one-hen rooster, and I'm that one hen. He has taken to camping out on my step waiting for a glimpse of me, and when he gets one, he enthusiastically tries to woo me with whatever bit of schmutz is closest to hand, er, beak. He will follow a passerby hen for a short distance, but then wander away, back to my doorstep.
Some of my bantams have loner tendencies, what I've noticed with them is that if they are hand-raised, they tend to be loners, but hen-raised usually stay with a group.
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Maximus
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Loners

Post by Maximus » Thu Aug 04, 2016 7:52 am

Well this is all good. I was a bit concerned but seems to be somewhat normal/acceptable.

Thank you
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