Hello! I’m in a bit of a conundrum! I had a broody, Mary, I bought fertile eggs for. We have one chick who made it. The chick, Stella, is now just under 4 weeks old. At first I was letting Mary raise Stella with the flock, but at about 1 1/2 weeks Stella got pecked pretty badly. I was able to determine which hen did it- Hazel. So, I brought Mary and Stella inside while Stella healed (we saw a vet). Then, I let them out during the day with the flock in a fenced off area. After a few days, Mary started flying in with the other hens and Stella went through the fence to be with her. I definitely saw some normal pecking order stuff, but nothing too bad so I reintegrated them together. Mary was sleeping in a nesting box with Stella at night. Well, 2 nights ago, Mary decided she wanted to roost and brought Stella up on the bars with her. Stella was sleeping underneath her for warmth. That make Hazel crazy mad. She brutally attacked Stella and Mary- luckily I was out there. I brought Stella and Mary inside for the night. Yesterday, after watching Hazel bully Stella and Mary for no apparent reasons I decided to put her in chicken jail. I fenced off part of my coop with a nesting box for Hazel. My thought was if Hazel is forced to sleep lower than Mary and Stella, that would drop her on the pecking order. Last night Mary decided to roost again with Stella under her. The other hens had a little normal pecking order stuff to work out with this, but then all settled. I was worried Stella would fall off the roost in the night so I was watching her on my coop camera. Of course, about 1 hour in she fell off. Mary didn’t come down to sleep with her and it was too cold for her without heat, so I went out again and brought them both inside. So, after that long winded back story, here are my questions:
1. Should I keep bringing Mary and Stella inside at night until Stella is fully feathered OR should I set up my brooder heat plate in the nesting box so Stella can sleep in there with heat and Mary can roost?
2. How long should Hazel be in jail for?
1. Should I keep bringing Mary and Stella inside at night until Stella is fully feathered OR should I set up my brooder heat plate in the nesting box so Stella can sleep in there with heat and Mary can roost?
2. How long should Hazel be in jail for?
