Natalie turned out to be Nathan, better known as Handsome (and he was!). She/He developed a bad crooked beak so I provided deep dish feed for him. At about a year, he turned mean so I tried cuddling, dominance, everything that chicken psychiatry suggests - and it just kept getting worse. After two years, it got so bad that I quit letting him free range with the hens for my own safety. Apparently that really pissed him off because one evening I opened the coop to let the girls in and he attacked me from the roost. Six stitches to reattach my left ear and 10 for the upside down V flap he made on my right cheek. I set him free.
Feeling relieved that I could be around the hens without fear of Handsome, I pulled up a chair and glass of wine to observe my peaceful girls. Holy Moly, my dominant hen was mounting my little leghorn! More chicken psychiatry. In a couple of weeks, the poor little leghorn was bald on the top of her wings and her head was being pecked bald! I isolated her and applied antiseptic. She pecked it off. I got the "no peck" to add to the antiseptic. She pecked it off.
But the reason I post, is that then... I wrapped her wings with that stretchy medical wrap and viola! It worked. Keeping blue stuff on her head so the other hens layed off her head, the medical tape is protecting her wings so they can heal. Multiply wrap techniques failed until I tried wrapping each wing separately.
Tah-dah!
Libby
Feeling relieved that I could be around the hens without fear of Handsome, I pulled up a chair and glass of wine to observe my peaceful girls. Holy Moly, my dominant hen was mounting my little leghorn! More chicken psychiatry. In a couple of weeks, the poor little leghorn was bald on the top of her wings and her head was being pecked bald! I isolated her and applied antiseptic. She pecked it off. I got the "no peck" to add to the antiseptic. She pecked it off.
But the reason I post, is that then... I wrapped her wings with that stretchy medical wrap and viola! It worked. Keeping blue stuff on her head so the other hens layed off her head, the medical tape is protecting her wings so they can heal. Multiply wrap techniques failed until I tried wrapping each wing separately.
Tah-dah!
Libby
