Help please - Chicken bullying!!

[greenshoes]

Hi all,

I am new to owning chickens. I purchased my three pullets (2x RIR and 1 BR) about a month ago, all from the same age and the same breeder. When they arrived I noticed that the darker RIR (I've named her Sue) had some feathers missing from behind her comb, and it became quickly apparent that she is at the bottom of the pecking order, while my smallest bird, Jenny (the BR) is the boss.

However, over the last couple of days I have noticed that Sue has been very stressed indeed. She is very scared and flighty, darting away from me whenever I walk past, and she is constantly making this clucking noise as she walks around. I have repeatedly observed Peggy, the other RIR, picking on her. Peggy will nip at her head when she tries to eat from the feeder or have some water (not all the time though, which is odd), and today when I was outside picking up poop I noticed Peggy actually 'kick' Sue in the chest for no apparent reason, to which Sue ran off clucking. I also noticed that, sometimes, if Sue has to go near Peggy she puffs all her feathers up and makes loud noises at her, I'm assuming as a kind of "don't mess with me" thing? Just to clarify, there doesn't seem to be an issue with the boss-bird, Jenny, and Sue. This is a middle child kind of thing with Peggy.

My birds have free range of the whole section all day, but are locked up in their run overnight just to make sure no animals prey on them while they're sleeping in the coop. They have ad-lib access to their food, which is in one of those feeders they have to stand on to open, and there is more than one water bowl for them to drink from.

What should I do for poor Sue? It makes me really sad to think she is being bullied, and I know it's kind of normal for chooks but things definitely seem to have escalated this week and I want to take it down a notch or two. I am purchasing some wound stuff for Sue's head to help it heal faster - should I be doing something else too? They are all still laying like troopers, and their appetites, etc seem normal. I just want Peggy to leave Sue alone

I look forward to your advice,

Nat.

 

[Fancychooklady]

Hi all,

I am new to owning chickens. I purchased my three pullets (2x RIR and 1 BR) about a month ago, all from the same age and the same breeder. When they arrived I noticed that the darker RIR (I've named her Sue) had some feathers missing from behind her comb, and it became quickly apparent that she is at the bottom of the pecking order, while my smallest bird, Jenny (the BR) is the boss. 

However, over the last couple of days I have noticed that Sue has been very stressed indeed. She is very scared and flighty, darting away from me whenever I walk past, and she is constantly making this clucking noise as she walks around. I have repeatedly observed Peggy, the other RIR, picking on her. Peggy will nip at her head when she tries to eat from the feeder or have some water (not all the time though, which is odd), and today when I was outside picking up poop I noticed Peggy actually 'kick' Sue in the chest for no apparent reason, to which Sue ran off clucking. I also noticed that, sometimes, if Sue has to go near Peggy she puffs all her feathers up and makes loud noises at her, I'm assuming as a kind of "don't mess with me" thing? Just to clarify, there doesn't seem to be an issue with the boss-bird, Jenny, and Sue. This is a middle child kind of thing with Peggy. 

My birds have free range of the whole section all day, but are locked up in their run overnight just to make sure no animals prey on them while they're sleeping in the coop. They have ad-lib access to their food, which is in one of those feeders they have to stand on to open, and there is more than one water bowl for them to drink from. 

What should I do for poor Sue? It makes me really sad to think she is being bullied, and I know it's kind of normal for chooks but things definitely seem to have escalated this week and I want to take it down a notch or two. I am purchasing some wound stuff for Sue's head to help it heal faster - should I be doing something else too? They are all still laying like troopers, and their appetites, etc seem normal. I just want Peggy to leave Sue alone

I look forward to your advice,

Nat.

Hi Nat,
With the clucking noises that your Sue is making it almost sounds as though she is broody. Broody hens will often come out from the nest box all cranky and hunched up and the others will bully them.
If it is just a case of ' pecking order, sometimes it is best to put the aggressor in the ' sin bin ' for a day or two . If sue has any open wounds it is best to remove her as the other flock members can become quite cannibalistic at the sight of blood.

 

[Pork Pie]

You may also wish to set up a number of food / watering stations to reduce stress on your bullied chicken.

 

[greenshoes]

Hi Nat,

With the clucking noises that your Sue is making it almost sounds as though she is broody. Broody hens will often come out from the nest box all cranky and hunched up and the others will bully them.
If it is just a case of ' pecking order, sometimes it is best to put the aggressor in the ' sin bin ' for a day or two . If sue has any open wounds it is best to remove her as the other flock members can become quite cannibalistic at the sight of blood.

I think you might be right about the broodiness. She decided to spend the bulk of the day in the coop sitting on an egg today, after about 7 hours I moved her off and put her outside. She hasn't gone back in yet, so I'm not sure if she is actually full-on broody. Is there anything I can do to get her sorted and stop the others picking on her?
No open wounds on any of the chooks. Just a bald patch on Sue's head

 

[Pork Pie]

I am sure that there are threads on breaking broodiness, but one of the more widely accepted methods is to put the broody hen in a small coop, suspended from the ground (with food and water) for 3-4 days. This will also give your other hen a time-out from her main aggressor.

Good luck

CT