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My niece decided our rooster needs a bedtime story

My niece came over last weekend and saw our rooster, Clucky, pacing in the coop before sunset. She got it in her head that he was afraid of the dark and needed a story to settle down. She dragged a little stool right into the run, opened her picture book, and started reading 'Goodnight Moon' out loud. Clucky just stood there, cocking his head, while the hens peeked over from their perch. My brother was watching from the porch and laughed so hard he spilled his drink. Now, my niece asks to visit every evening to read to the chickens, and Clucky actually seems to cluck less at night. I guess we have a new family tradition, even if the neighbors think we're nuts.
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3 Comments
wadereed
wadereed9d ago
Lol @xenawhite is probably right about the routine thing. Chickens are super into patterns. My aunt's hens used to freak out at every little noise until she started playing the same talk radio station softly in the coop for an hour at dusk. Now they just associate that muffled voices sound with settling down. Could try a small solar light on a timer too, gives them a slow dimming effect. Whatever works to cut down the 5am crowing, I say lean into it.
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xenawhite
xenawhite9d ago
Funny tradition... though I bet the rooster is just reacting to the consistent presence, not the bedtime story.
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hunt.ben
hunt.ben9d ago
So you're saying the rooster isn't actually following the plot? (Which, let's be real, he probably isn't.) Maybe he just likes the sound of your voice.
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