Red Cabbage Nightmare

[Mikey]

My chooks this morning were happily pecking around in their run, when I went out with a red cabbage skewered with a chopstick and hung it in their coop.

They started acting a little strangely hiding, even bluebell the boss. Then pandemonium set off, they all went mad and started climbing the fences desperate to get out.

I opened the door and they all went to hide in the corner of the garden.

So can someone please tell me why my chickens are terrified of red cabbage, you could have sworn I had just made them watch a muurrrrddder.(its quite difficult to make a word sound scottish!!)

It took me two hours to get them to calm down after I had removed the offending cabbage and returned it to the house.

[chris]

Have they ever seen a cabage before?

Mine do that when something new is in the run, they come around eventually (the climbing frame thing I made, they hid in the corner for 30mins before coming out - now they lvoe it, always perched on it)

[Mikey]

No its was worse than fear, they are afraid of me, but this genuinely terrified them, they were all crowing loudly, and went into a frenzy trying to find a way out of the run, up the sides across the roof the works.

I've hung purple sprouting for them previously, and they could take or leave it, but this was pure pandemonium.

[Scarlet]

I've never had this myself but just wondering how high above their heads it was? They will dive for cover if large birds fly over, if theyv'e not seen a cabbage (presuming you left it whole) they could have assumed that it was a threat. Try hanging the leaves as apposed to the head.

[Flummery]

I once went into the run with a garden chair - it had been in there before I cleaned the run out (when they were in the garden) but when they saw me carrying it in, and they were in there too, you'd think I'd offered to strangle them all! Novelty is often a bit scary. They did the crowing thing, flapping and carrying on alarming. Try again - they'll get used to it - but be prepared for nightmare poos - it will look a dreadful colour!

[Mikey]

Cheers flum, the cabbage was suspended at their shoulder height.

I was wondering if because red cabbage is more purple in colour, and you can spray purple on a chicken to stop pecking whether their dislike for the colour fuelled the response?