Meanie chicks -- how to remedy bullying and picking?

[Chickens R Us]

I have a feather duster but it is pretty big. Well I guess it is about the size of a fluffy chicken. Never thought of that. Hmm, that's interesting.

I just went to check on everyone. The big group of 13 seems calm and happy in the coop.

The jailed girls are in the barn. Queen Meanie is going crazy. She was in a separate box and was screeching her lungs out ... flying against the hardware cloth lid trying to get out. I felt bad for her so I stuck her back in the brooder with the other two mean ones..... she wasn't in there for two minutes before she started bullying them again... right away she started doing a chicken dance like she was telling them she was back and in charge... then she started pecking and pulling out their feathers. I grabbed her back out and stuck her in a cat carrier next to the brooder so she can at least see the other two ... maybe that will help.

ChickensRUs .. thanks for sharing ... it makes me feel better knowing that I'm not the only one having issues. I've ben told that pecking is a poor management problem .... but I am doing all I know to do to stop it... I think sometimes it may just happen... I thought about buying the stop pick or hot pick too .... it's just the feed stores are kinda far from me. I may have to order some online.

Thanks for all the help and ideas!

It's not always a poor management problem my chicks have a lot of room 20'x20' building plus a run some chicks are just bullies and need to be separated from the flock.I believe you are doing the best you can as am I.

 

[10xmama]

Queenie Meanie just might be a cull. 
Tough call. But she may even be in pain to be acting that way.

With her gone you may see more of a natural pecking order. Have you thought of culling her/him?

Does cull mean she becomes chicken soup? Or should I try to find her another home?

 

[10xmama]

My coop is about 6x6 (not including nesting boxes) and my run is about 6x15.

 

[Kilsharion]

Does cull mean she becomes chicken soup? Or should I try to find her another home?

Yes, culling means terminating, not rehoming. If she's just born mean, rehoming her will just pass the problem off to someone else.

 

[10xmama]

Yes, culling means terminating, not rehoming.  If she's just born mean, rehoming her will just pass the problem off to someone else. 

Ok. Well I bet a 3wk old isn't good for chicken soup. It would just be a cull.... And bury?

 

[Kilsharion]

Ok. Well I bet a 3wk old isn't good for chicken soup. It would just be a cull.... And bury?

Some give culled chicks to their dogs. Depends on you and your feelings on the matter. Bury, trash, feed to animals....but - yeah.

 

[10xmama]

Some give culled chicks to their dogs. Depends on you and your feelings on the matter. Bury, trash, feed to animals....but - yeah.

Well we live on 4.5 acres of wooded land... DH says we should just let it out into the woods. A hawk or something would get it pretty quickly. I'm going to see how she is today and if nothing has changed... I'll let her out in the woods at dusk.

 

[tinah]

It's not always a poor management problem my chicks have a lot of room 20'x20' building plus a run some chicks are just bullies and need to be separated from the flock.I believe you are doing the best you can as am I.

If your siggie is correct, I suspect your chickies are over-crowded. the coop is fine, but your run should be close a tenth of an acre, or about a normal suburban lot for that many chickens to be happy.

 

[Chickens R Us]

If your siggie is correct, I suspect your chickies are over-crowded. the coop is fine, but your run should be close a tenth of an acre, or about a normal suburban lot for that many chickens to be happy.

I have two separate coops in the 20'x20' where the pecking is going on I have 30 chicks and the run is 150'x150'. I let the adults free range during the day I have 104 acres.

 

[tinah]

I have two separate coops in the 20'x20' where the pecking is going on I have 30 chicks and the run is 150'x150'. I let the adults free range during the day I have 104 acres.

Oh good. I get so tired of reading about behavior problems in chickens that are due to over crowding. I've got my 5 and would love to have more, but right now it wouldn't be good for my birds to add more. and if I went by the "rule" that keeps getting thrown around of 10 ft/bird in the run I could add like, 6 more or something.