3 picking on 1 - Help!

[MrJoshPeters]

Hi everyone, I wanted to get some advice from the chicken pros out there. I have 3 1-year old Rhode Island Reds and 1 5-month old Americauna all in the coop together. There were 3 Americaunas originally, but sadly we lost 2 to coyotes. When there were 6 in there at first, the Reds picked on the younger ones but I felt like they were going to eventually work it out. Now that it’s 3 against 1, I feel bad for the lonely Americauna who is still harassed by the Reds. There are brief moments when she’ll perch out in the run with them but for the most part she stays inside the coop. She has her own food and water in the coop and she does hang in the the run when I let the other girls out to run free for a few hours. My question is, will this relationship improve as the Americauna gets older? Is it worth it to get a couple Americauna chicks to raise to hopefully be her buddies? Sorry this is so long winded. I really appreciate any help. - Josh

 

[7Chickencreek]

Getting more chicks will surely cause more stress resulting in more bullying. Usually, Once the older chickens can't tell that the Americana is younger than them, they will warm yp to her. Until then, you should do more research depending on your circumstances.

 

[snow5164]

I disagree , getting a few pullets so she’s not alone is a good idea.

I’d remove her , and get her some friends .

 

[MrJoshPeters]

I disagree , getting a few pullets so she’s not alone is a good idea.

I’d remove her , and get her some friends .

Thank you for the advice. The problem is I don’t really have any where else to put her for the moment. Chicks I could keep in the garage obviously but Mildred (the Americauna) would be miserable. If I did a few more, do you think it would matter to Mildred if they weren’t Americaunas?

 

[Shamo Hybrid]

I agree on adding new chickens to the flock, that way the one that is currently being bullied around will take less of the brunt...... though I would think it's a better idea if you can get pullets the same as her age or older. But who knows, it might work with chicks you have hatched yourself and then taking a few weeks to rear them to an age where they can be introduced to the flock, but that will take a long while.

 

[snow5164]

I don’t think they have to be the same kind but the same age is important , then they’ll be the same size ....


You could put Mildred in a dog kennel in the coop, she needs to be protected they could really hurt her or worse

 

[nminusyplusm]

Hi Josh, welcome to BYC!

Can you post pictures of your coop and run? And what are the dimensions?

Make sure you have perches and hiding spots with no dead ends in the run so Mildred can escape and get out of their line of sight.

I had a similar situation where time outs and jail for the bullies didn't work and neither did protecting the victim in a "look but don't touch" cage. As soon as they were physically together the attacks would restart.

In desperation I put pinless peepers on the 2 bullies and built a plywood hide out that sits in the middle of the run and breaks up the space. Now my loner chicken is still at the bottom of the pecking order but she's gaining weight, happy and part of the flock.

Since you have 3 against 1, I'd suggest starting with adding stuff to the run and see if that changes the dynamics. If the others are still too rough on her, you could try the pinless peepers.

 

[RWise]

Sounds like you need more space,,,
I myself dont keep RIRs as they are aggressive,,,,

 

[canalcolt]

I have several RIR and a RIW and other breeds. I do not have this problem and my RIR rooster is so sweet (he's 2 1/2years). I would try to let them free range daily and get activities for them in the run. For example I have a plastic ball that you put food in and when they peck at it it would release food. I don't know where you're located but I have a TSC store near me that has different items for the chickens.

 

[50-45-1]

I have always kept a mixed variety of birds, and i too have noticed the RIR,s are aggressive, and of the 4 times i have had a feather picker, 3 times it was a RIR. naver had any problems with Newhampshire reds.