15. Pecking order, cliques and Language?

Good morning, I hope you are having a wonderful day.  I am! It's wonderful having Gmom and Poppa here.

So through this blog I am learning so much about chickens.  Now I am wondering about the flock itself.  since they seem to be more intelligent then a cow, which is something I learned, do they have a certain pecking order?  Yes. It's kind of difficult to explain. Basically they all get along because they know each other and some chickens are more dominant, I guess you'd say, than others. All the hens are basically equal, but they all run from James. Pecking order is more when you have more then one rooster. Last year my flock had 3. Chanty was older than the 2 younger ones so he was the boss. So, pecking order is how they all get along. (Sorry that was kind of confusing since I don't know how to explain it.)

I am learning they are social creatures.  Do chickens form "cliques"? that is to say do certain ones hang out with each other?  Sort of. Our 6 older chicks do at least. The Silkies all stay together and the Wyandottes together, but at night they all sleep in one place snuggled up. Sometimes chickens form a pair or couple. I had this last year. Chanty had a girlfriend, Bunny and when she died from an illness he was so upset. Later we got him a new girl and they formed a pair, so when they were with the flock they were always together, the hen followed Chanty everywhere. It was so cute!

So I have been hearing the chickens on the videos you have on this blog.  Do chickens have a highly advanced language that comes into play and affects behavior?  They do talk, that's for sure. Lots of people just think that roosters crow and hens cluck, but it's much more complicated. They have different sounds to say different things. By paying attention, you can tell if a chicken is content or in distress pretty easily. James loves his flock and when he finds some cool food or something he makes a sound to tell everyone and they come running. A mother hen also does this for her chicks. Another example is when James hears a hen clucking loudly(laying an egg) he races to them talking back to see if they're alright. They also have a specific coo when they're curious or content. It's so neat! So,yes, I think they do have an advanced language.

I hope you have the most wonderful day. You too!

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