I have a mean (ahem, EVIL) hen!

Early this spring, we got four baby chicks about two weeks old. Now they are all pretty much grown up, at around 20 weeks. Two of them are laying. The second one to start laying, Marie, is a barred rock who started out quite a mellow chicken, turned into an awful monster around the time she started laying. You would walk in, and she would peck roughly at your shoes. Then, if you bent down, she would peck at your arm and shake the skin and hold on, like she was trying to rip off a piece of flesh! Nearly a two weeks later she has not improved. If anything she has gotten worse! If you open the nesting box while she was laying, she would squawk so loudly that you would leap back and slam the top down! It's kind of scary! Now, most of you would probably be thinking right about now, "Oh, 'she' is actually a rooster! No biggie!" But the thing is, she is nesting and laying eggs! If this helps, a lot of her eggs have had no shells, just a membrane. She seems to get along fine with other chickens and I do not think she is the alpha hen. Please help, we are all terrified of her!

Welcome to BYC! Please make yourself at home and we are here to help.

Sometimes hens become roosters and although they lay eggs they crow, act aggressively and sometimes even mount. But, she may also be broody. Is she constantly sitting in the nest? Has she plucked feathers from her breast?

Hope you can fix her!

Hello there and welcome to BYC!

I have one of those!!! And let me tell you, they don't improve much over the years. My girl is now 3 years old and she is bit better. I haven't been bitten this year..yet. LOL But this is the only thing I could do to protect myself AND my hens...



Pinless peepers. They can see up, down and to the sides. But not in front of them to point, aim, and fire off the beak! These don't really alter attitude, but they can stop the aggression for a while. The bird will need to wear them for about one month. Then you can take them off. But a month or so later, they can return to being a monster. So back on they go. However, this gal, having worn them on and off for 3 years, has learned compensate her sight and they don't work on her anymore. Thankfully she is piped down with age. It takes them about 1 or 2 days to really get the hang of eating and drinking with these Pinless Peepers on. But once they have worn them for a few weeks, they will always remember how to see with them on even years later.

Good luck. I know what you are going thru!!!!

Thank you! is there any chance that the Peepers could hurt them or starve/dehydrate them? I don't want to hurt my baby, even if she IS evil!!

Caitlin02 said:

Thank you! is there any chance that the Peepers could hurt them or starve/dehydrate them? I don't want to hurt my baby, even if she IS evil!!

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Welcome to BYC! Glad you decided to join our flock. I don't think you have to worry about your hen starving or dehydrating. I've known several people who used the peepers and have read several articles on them and have never heard of a chicken starving to death or dying of dehydration from wearing them. If you purchase the pinless peepers, don't forget to buy the pliers you will need to put them on with. Good luck with your aggressive hen.

Caitlin02 said:

Early this spring, we got four baby chicks about two weeks old. Now they are all pretty much grown up, at around 20 weeks. Two of them are laying. The second one to start laying, Marie, is a barred rock who started out quite a mellow chicken, turned into an awful monster around the time she started laying. You would walk in, and she would peck roughly at your shoes. Then, if you bent down, she would peck at your arm and shake the skin and hold on, like she was trying to rip off a piece of flesh! Nearly a two weeks later she has not improved. If anything she has gotten worse! If you open the nesting box while she was laying, she would squawk so loudly that you would leap back and slam the top down! It's kind of scary! Now, most of you would probably be thinking right about now, "Oh, 'she' is actually a rooster! No biggie!" But the thing is, she is nesting and laying eggs! If this helps, a lot of her eggs have had no shells, just a membrane. She seems to get along fine with other chickens and I do not think she is the alpha hen. Please help, we are all terrified of her!

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When I get a rooster or hen acting like that I get out the fishing net to catch it up.

Then I pen it to the ground (be carful you are not trying to hurt her). I dig her out of the net you may need gloves this.
Then take one hand and hold her back and wings down (pin her to the ground). Take your other hand and push her head to the ground.
Be firm hold her until she stops fighting make her submit.(be careful not to squash her)

You may need to go through this a few times. But I have had good luck with this.
Let her only when she has settled down.

It is better the dinner table.

As to the soft eggs some times they take a week or 2 too get the egg factory going right.

I have found that no amount of holding them down, pushing their heads down or any types of treatments work on hens like this. Certainly not my gal. She is brutal and always will be.

No, they will quickly learn how to drink and eat. Takes only a few hours and after even one day, they don't even act like they have the peepers on. I would never hurt any of my babies, but I had no choice with this hen. She bites hard enough to make me bleed. She is also a comb ripper and I was finding blood all over the place in the coop from her tearing combs. So this was my only choice other than to eat her.

You really don't have to use the pliers. What I do is towel up the bird tightly with the towel over the back of their heads as the bird lays on your lap on her back, head at your belly. You can soften the peepers in boiling or very hot water. Shake them off and then apply them. Have someone hold the beak as you pull them apart and slip into the nostrils. Make sure you don't grab any skin and keep them centered. Not too high, not too low. Check them before you put the bird down to make sure they are seated correctly. They will try to scratch them off for the first 10 mins, but eventually they do except them. 24 hours later, the bird will act as if she has always worn them. Watch her to make sure she is drinking and eating properly.

And yes, these may be a bit extreme. But if you have no other avenues, this is always an option.

Here she is today, 3 years later and still looks good...

She has been good this year and has not needed to wear peepers in a very long time.

Good luck with your vicious hen!

TwoCrows said:

I have found that no amount of holding them down, pushing their heads down or any types of treatments work on hens like this.

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X2 on trying to break an aggressive hen. I've never been able to do it. That's some new, good information about the pliers for the peepers. I've never seen it done that way.

Hello and Welcome To BYC!