Well...for some reason Chupa and Manny suddenly decided to fight a lot. Normally, they get along pretty well and will spar occasionally but yesterday it was relentless. Apparently they had been going at it for while in the morning before I let them out of the pen. Both of them were a little bloody. Throughout the day they went at it a couple more times until Manny hid in the Airstream. Last night when I was ready to put them back in the pen, I thought Chupa had killed Manny. He was lying frozen on his back. I put Chupa in the pen and decided to wait a little while to try to figure out what was going on...Manny didn't appear to have any visible injuries and his eyes were open.
About a half hour later (after doing some digging online) I went out to check him and he was not moving but his eyes were still open. I turned him back over on his feet and he hopped right up as if nothing had happened. Seems a fight had induced a state of
"tonic immobility" ...a natural state of semi-paralysis that some animals enter when presented with a threat - a defensive mechanism intended to feign death. It can be induced by humans in various ways and is known as chicken hypnosis - a barnyard parlor thick of sorts.
It was getting dark by this time so I took a chance and put Manny in the pen with Chupa. They both went calmly into the coop. This morning I came to let them out and Manny was immobilized on his back again, so I righted him but kept him in the pen for the day. I let Chupa out but he spent the whole day right next to the pen. Decided it might be a good idea to provide separate sleeping quarters so I slapped together a makeshift second coop to keep them apart overnight to avoid any early morning conflicts. For the next week or so they will take turns during the day - one in the pen while the other gets to run around. The question is...do I try to get video of Chupa "hypnotizing" Manny? 77,84,64,0,B
17 comments:
Nope. Don't put Manny in any excess danger for a video. Chupa's turned into a real bully.
I have 8 roosters and 40 hens. I think the ladies keep them too busy for them to worry about fighting eachother. Do you have hens? I can't remember.
Chupa isn't necessarily the bully....he is just the winner. And no...I don't have any hens.
O.K., I have two dogs like that which have been driving me nuts since last summer - the barking at each other. Today and yesterday, no barking to speak of, because I finally started getting tough with them and re-arranging things, cages and so forth. One is my Wire Haired Pointer and the other is a rescue half German Shepherd (the aggressive barker).When they are together alone they are o.k. Hopefully someday it will work out. The Shepherd wants the Pointer to run and play with him but the fat, foot-sore Pointer mostly limps around. The Pointer has a life-long condition. He even went to a S. TX specialist. He gets ingrown hairs and then sores between middle toes or an allergy. I think you have to keep those males separated from now on.
Chupa is obviously stronger and more dominant. I have a small large dog and she is being bullied by 3 larger dogs (my older Weim. girl starts it and the two younger Lab sisters chime in. I think the girl Weim. still wants to be recognized as dominant but the giant male Weim. has become dominant (the vet thought he might have Great Dane). He is a big scary but gentle border ranch dog from Laredo. Until the last time it was just barking. But last time I did not honor the barking right away and the Big male Weim. came to get me. And I was shocked to see they had cornered the Entlebucher, Spaniel, Retriever in the open behind my lawn chair. She was on her back and had pooped but o.k. but very upset and a few days later she showed me 3 bite marks on her underside. Things could get much worse with the roosters even with the male playing dead. I have to pay attention to any barking when my dogs are in the yard and I am normally outside with them but it happened when I went in the house for a few minutes.
My father would hypnotize a chicken on the back screened porch and leave it until he was to butcher it. It could come out of it if someone slammed the screen door or made some other noise. He taught me how to do it when I was a little girl.
We have two roosters and the same problem. They used to fight every once and a while, and one or the other would be the boss chicken for a few months. They eventually got to where they were fighting nonstop. Bloody nonstop. We now have to keep them separate at all times. Even though they seem to want to be near each other, they will fight without a fence between them. My guess is eventually this will be a permanent thing for you. I'd rather not see a fight video though, if that is what you were thinking.
Does Amazon ship hens? If not, I know the US Post office does. Every few weeks we hear the cluck clucks and occasional rooster on the dock. Maybe you could ask Manny. The human. (Hahaha)
It may be possible USPS has the corner on chicken shipments. Gosh so much to say here, is it wrong this Field Lab post has many entertaining elements? Anyway, I understood the question of "To video the fainting or to not video.." the prospect made me laugh, but I have no idea of the "humanity" of that, if that's possible. I understand the intent and would be curious to watch, it doesn't seem much different than watching a snake that's still wriggling even after being chilled, skinned.
Do you think it's part of the maturation of roosters, ie, part of a hormonal change that can't be avoided?
Ouch JW! One somehow can't help not to feel sorry for Manny. It must be that 'Stand your ground' slogan of Chupa's that has gone to his head. I hope my Chupa mug arrives soon. I'd like to put some people around me in a ketotonic state...😊
I'm glad the little fella is ok.
I guess I missed it but how did you get in that predicament with no hens? Predators?
Oh poor Manny :( Well, if there are no hens present, roosters will pick the rooster in the lowest pecking order of the flock and try to mate with them. Older roosters will do this with younger roosters, too if no hens. I would definitely keep them separated at this point for the happiness and safety of poor Manny because if Chupa is attacking Manny to the point of catonic state....it's very bad. Having hens would stop this but unless you get approx. 7 or more hens PER rooster you might still have a problem of Chupa trying to run Manny off or kill him unless he has enough hens to keep him busy. Same thing happens when you have more roosters than hens...too much competition causes lots of fighting and over mating females to literally death.
You know years ago I had a 2/3 wolf shepherd. I visited San Antonio from Alaska and rented downtown where a Mexican neighbor had chickens in his yard. I was walking my dog on a leach and a rooster was out and laying there dead? and in a blink walking past it without missing a stride my dog choked the neck and killed him. I told the man.
… my 2¢ worth - it may go back to "The Bucket" video - they seemed to sip water like
true hermanos de pollo, but Chupa may have felt like Manny stole a little of his star luster
with his fancy comb and first-in-the-water cameo…??? so Chupa felt like he needed to throw
some shade Manny's way and deliver a message about top billing with a world-class a**whoopin'.
Chupa hasn't been sportin' a bandana lately, cholo style, has he? I don't believe Carl would have stood for
any of this monkey business… Chupa & Manny would have made nice or they would have assumed the roles
of tfl faux-hens… video stars or not.
from your Wiki link:
•the A. Gore method
•a non-violent example
•not just chickens or even all fowl… Gatorland
…anyway, hope it works out & Ben doesn't have to don zebra stripes and referee. How are the goats
and the commercial cactus farm coming along? The burro-ites are cute — the spirit of Floppy abides.
Its time for a hen John, bite the bullet��. Or give Manny to someone who doesn't have an Alpha rooster, Chupa is a star now and his ego is out of control
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