Australorp still going at it

[HollyKMS]

After 3 days in isolation, I reintroduced the Australorp pullet. The first hour seemed OK but then she was at it again, trying constantly to rip the Wyandotte apart. She's unrelenting and it's only for that one bird.

The Wyandotte tried to stand her ground a little at first, but she's no match for the aggression in the Australorp. There are feathers EVERYWHERE. The Wyandotte is darting around a nervous wreck locked in a coop with Austra dive-bombing her.

I put the Australorp back in the dog crate. Had to. Not sure what else to do at this point. Any ideas?

I think the Australorp maybe needs to be with standard-sized chickens. The Welsummer is slightly bigger than the others and Austra never bats at eye at her... ?

 

[chookchick]

How big is their coop and run? I take it these chickens have only been together a few days? Make sure the "isolation" cage is next door to their run, or even inside, so they can see each other. I don't think the Austrolorp is being a meanie, I think she is scared, and sees the Wyandotte as a threat for some reason.

 

[biddyboo]

We solved a similar problem between hens using a method that is not especially kind, but proved to be effective. I read about this on this forum, giving me the idea. We have a Buff Orpington hen who was repeatedly aggressive toward one of out Barred Rocks in particular, and any of the younger hens in general. Basically, if any hen caught her eye other than one of her original BO sisters, she was after them, pecking to bring blood, and striking fear in the flock. I tried shooing, shaming, you name it, but she was a mean spirited lady. One day I caught her, carefully turned her upside down in my arms, held her by her feet, and carried her around all the hens, for ten-fifteen minutes. The others all came up to investigate, not missing her diminished situation. She squawked and protested, but there was nothing she could do. When I set her down again, she fluffed her feathers, and retreated to the margins of their usual free range area and stayed very quiet. Later that day, she was last to enter the chicken yard after ranging, still no aggression, just quiet and staying on the fringes of the flock. Now she interacts well with all the hens, is no longer a meanie, and peace reigns once more in chickenland here at Quiet Pond. Ahhhh I'd only do this in an extreme situation, but we were considering the stew pot for her. This at least gave her a second chance, one that worked well for the whole flock. ~G