Aggressive Amercauna

[MadieWestbrook]

I was gifted three chickens for my birthday. One struggled to fit in, as he was pushed to the bottom of the pecking order, while the other morphed into the flock. However, I have one that is extremely aggressive. She goes out of her way to bother chickens from my existing flock and even the chickens that came with her. She has put a hole in my chicken's neck, almost killing her. I'm not sure what I can do to stop this aggressive behavior. For now, I'm letting her out with the others and isolating her at night. I would love some advice! Should I just get rid of her?

 

[ChickAsThieves]

Cull her. If you pass her along to someone else without making them aware of how aggressive she is, she may kill their birds. It doesn't sound worth it to keep her in the flock. I'm sorry.

 

[keesmom]

How many chickens do you have? How large is their coop and run? Are they allowed to free range at all? I'd give up on the nighttime isolation. Chickens can't see in the dark so she can't do anything to the others at night.

 

[MadieWestbrook]

We have 12 chickens, but only 5 are in a coop that's about 3 times the size of a small coop that holds 4 hens. I have 7 chicks in a coop fit to hold 4 hens, but they all snuggle down together and don't struggle with sleeping together. They all free range all day, except the sick chicken and a small chick that's two weeks old.

We only have the large coop with 12 nesting boxes, tires for dirt baths, and logs for roosting. They actually don't have a run, I don't think. That is, if my idea of a run is correct, with it just being a ramp?

 

[azygous]

Does this aggressive hen do her violence when out free-ranging or when in close quarters with her victims?

A run is an enclosed daytime recreation space that is secure against chickens getting out or predators getting to the chickens. If too confining, it can lead to aggression and casualties. If your chickens free range during the day and are not cooped up, there should be little likelihood of the sort of aggression you describe.

There are all sorts of different temperaments and personalities in chickens. There are occasionally chickens that are simply mean to the point of compulsiveness. When you get one that inflicts serious injuries on others, it's time to do something before it leads to death and cannibalism. You can look at it as illness, mental illness, and euthanasia is the kindest thing you can do for a chicken that is ill with no prospect of getting better.

 

[MadieWestbrook]

I believe it was done while free ranging, as I remember holding what I thought was a sleepy gen until she started losing weight and got to the brink of death...

I'll look into other options. If I'm honest, I don't have the heart to cull her... But I don't want to lose the chickens I've had for almost a year

 

[MadieWestbrook]

And, yes, there is a fenced off area with bird netting that is completely enclosed. We leave both hen houses open, so the chickens have coverage in case of rain. We also have two outdoor dog houses they can use.