Problem Behaviors

You can't really 'make' a bird 'be nice'.....SMH.

She may just be a 'mean', aggressive bird, that's why her previous owners got rid of her, right?
I'd consider getting rid of her or at least separating her from the others in an adjacent pen or crate for some time out.
She may calm down ....or not.

Space may be part of the issue...hopefully there is plenty.
Broody or hiding from the mean bird?
 
You have two issues. One, the broody issue is easily remedied by breaking the broody. To do that, you need to confine the broody to a cage with no nesting material until her hormones subside.

The "mean" hen issue is a toss-up whether or not it can be resolved. I've had some degree of success in getting mean hens to dial back their mean behavior by giving them a strong poke on the back when I see them going after a target. This requires diligence on your part, but you have a chance that it can mitigate the behavior.

I vote for using Blu-kote and Vetericyn on injured feet. Feet usually heal up very quickly with proper care.
 
Update:

Henrietta has gone to a new home with a bigger flock that contains older hens who act like roosters. This friend of a friend sent me updates and told me that Henrietta is fitting in nicely and that she got put in her place quickly, and is not having a very nice life and getting along well.

I got the blue kote and some essential oils that were suggested by a few people. I cleaned Agnes's and Blanche's feet and put the blue kote on and kept an eye on them. I noticed that Dottie was still pecking at their feet and making them bleed not long after putting them back on the ground. So, Dottie has been placed in an XL dog crate inside the coop with food, water, roost, and nest box. I'm hoping this will give the girls time to heal up and put Dottie at the bottom of the pecking order when she is released. We are on day 3 in the dog kennel, and when I release her, if she is still pecking and making them bleed I'm afraid she may have to be culled.
Blanche and Agnes spend a lot of time in the nest boxes and the feathers on their underside are getting thin and brittle looking. Is this because they are laying in the boxes for the majority of the time or is there another reason? I've been making sure to put them on the roost at dusk so they don't develop bad habits of sleeping in the boxes. Nobody has been laying during this process which I think is understandable, but would make me think they are not being broody, but maybe just more comfortable?
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom