Chicken with broken leg is being rejected by flock

ChickyMomm

In the Brooder
6 Years
Oct 9, 2013
72
0
41
Massachusetts
A few weeks ago, I came home to one of my hens laying on the ground and not being able to stand. After a vet visit, we found out she had a broken leg. I took her inside and have been nursing her since then, and she is now able to walk (more like limp,,, but she gets around!), and I've been taking her outside to visit her flock so she doesn't get lonely or depressed. The thing is, now that she's limping and can't defend herself, the rest of the flock is refusing to let her in with them, and they've attacked her to the point where a small chunk of her comb is hanging off of where is should be. I feel really bad that she isn't being accepted back into her flock, and I'm starting to think I shouldn't even bother trying to intergrate her in anymore if this is what is going to happen. I don't want to put her down either, since she's perfectly healthy and alert, despite her bummed leg. Is there a way to have her live outside AND not get attacked by the other hens? I don't have an alternate coop, so I really have no idea what to do!
 
Can you put her in a separate pen with a couple of the lower ranking birds to help her make friends with some of them again? Preferably next to the main pen? If she is reintroduced to a couple of birds at a time she may do better and be able to hold her own (as long as the don't peck at her damaged comb again).

She could be considered an "outsider" now and with the limp that could create a lot of hostility, if she was put in with 1 or 2 more docile birds she may be able to re-integrate back into the flock.

Having a lone chicken is not an ideal situation.
 
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I have dealt with rejection issues before. You can do a few things, but I need to know what your set-up is like.

A tiny coop is not going to work for re-integrating a wounded bird. Period.

A moderately sized coop can work if you remove the 2 top birds and segregate them for a few days to mix up the pecking order.

A large coop is ideal for this type of situation.

Tell us about your coop.
 

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