Big, Mr. Meanie - UPDATE

[kodiakchicken]

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone. I'm with all of you about this new mommy stuff being stressful! Even more so since I'm watching my friends babies too! I would feel awful if something happened to them while she's gone.

As for Mr. Meanie (I'm calling him Mister, even tho they're all supposed to be hens - because he/she acts like a big, mean boy!) I took him out and held him for a long time thinking it might calm him down. No such luck. As soon as I put him back in he starting pecking at the other's eyes again. So, I tried putting him in with the ducks. They pecked him back a little, but then he started pecking their feet and I was worried he might hurt their feet. He also tried to peck their eyes, which was a little tougher, since they are bigger.

I wasn't sure what to do but my DH took a small section of wire and made him an "isolation booth" that's still in the same brooder but he can't get to the others. He's ticked, but doing okay. I just can't keep him from spilling the little thing of water I have in there for him.

The biggest problem though, is that he pecked at one of the littlest buff O's so much that she's got blood spots under each eye. I don't think she's openly bleeding, but she won't open her eyes. It looks like she's got two major bruised eyes. I haven't noticed the other others picking on her, but I'm very worried. Right now she's wrapped in a little towel, sitting on my chest. I figured she needed to get out of the chaos of 14 chicks and rest a little.

Any ideas? I can just see myself now with 4 or 5 different brooders. One for ducks, one for good chicks, one for bad chicks and one for injured chicks. Aaaarrrrrggghhh!

I am so mad at Mr. Meanie right now I understand how people can cull mean chickens and roos. un I want to give them all the best chance though.

HELP!!!!

 

[SoccerMomof7]

Keep her seperate, the sight of blood makes them peck on them more. Blood will make mine peck themself even...good luck.

 

[kodiakchicken]

So just the red will make them peck? Like I said, she's not openly bleeding, more terribly bruised. She won't open her eyes. I'm worried about her being able to find food or water too.

 

[SoccerMomof7]

I am really new at this so I am not sure, but they told me the the red color of the blood makes them peck. I had 1 that was pecking the other 2 bald and bloody but I put vasaline on it till it healed and now not a problem.

 

[AK-Bird-brain]

Yep they like to peck at red. That's why you use a red heat lamp it makes good camouflage. If it gets any worse get some blu cote on it (antibiotic and dyes the area blue).

 

[kodiakchicken]

Okay, I'll try the red heat lamp. Will have to adjust the level of the light tho as they've been happy at about 80 degrees and the heat lamp will be a lot hotter.

I still have Mr. Mean separated from the others by a wire divider. I hope he'll chill out after not being able to get to his buds.

This is so FRUSTRATING!!!

 

[kodiakchicken]

Okay, so, I was watching to see if the other chicks were picking on the little buff with the bruised eyes and what do I witness but Mr. Meanie reaching through the wire of his isolation booth and grabbing the same chick, and other, around the eyes and trying to jerk them through the wire. I was so mad I could have taken him/her out of there right then and stomped on him.

I think he's one of the Auraucanas (are they usually this aggressive?) so I put him and the other suspected Auraucana in a tote together and before I could even get the wire top made for it Mr. Meanie was pecking the other one!

So, he's now in solitary confinement with a mirror and a stuffed frog. He's still throwing a fit, so we may not sleep tonight, but at least I know the others are safe. All other 9 chicks are perfectly happy now - not a peck in the group - although we did switch to a red lamp just in case.

How long should I let Mr. Meanie sit in solitary before trying to put him in with the others again? My daughter was having a meltdown b/c she has fallen in love with his target, the little buff O, who we've named Miss Peep (she looks like a tiny marshmallow peep).

Now I just have to figure out how to get some sleep (they're in my bedroom) and keep my golden/shepherd mix from tearing the totes apart. She's taken a decided interest in all of them and I don't like the way she's drooling!

 

[Cetawin]

Solitary confinement for...as long as it takes Mr. Meanie to behave itself.

Dog....on the other side of a locked door and begin immediate training regarding chicks and chickens...

Good Luck...let the little ones heal before putting Mr. Meanie back with them for sure.

 

[Ace_king_brahma]

I had two chicks come in like this! One was my phoenix rooster the other an ameracuana or EE banty (won't be sure till it feathers out). The phoenix started everything! He pecked everyone in the eye. And when the banty had enough he latched onto the ide of the phoenix's throat and kept kicking and tugging until he cried and ran off and leaving a clump of fluff in the banty's mouth. Did he learn his lesson? NO! He started poking everyone again within mintues! And he got the ameracuana banty going too! He would attack anything that bothered him in the same fashion he did with the phoenix. If another chick bumped into him he went on the attack! When I had enough I put both into the shipping box and put a divider between them and put the lid on. They had warmth and food and some water. They could hear one another and the other chicks in the brooder but couldn't peck. The other chicks would poke at their beaks whenever they tried to lash out at them from the box. I left them for a few hours like this. Then I took the divider out and the two huddled up with one another desperate for companionship. I closed the lid again and waited until morning to release them with the others. The eye poking has yet to start up again since. The brooder is peaceful. This is something that worked for me but not sure if it will work for everyone.

 

[jdr250]

I can't help with the aggression issue, I'm new to chicks. But you did bring up a topic that I was going to ask in it's own post. My araucan seems to be very aggressive to, not so much with the other chicks but she does seem to hold her own she's the smallest of all 12 but will push the much bigger 10 day olds out of the food and everything. But I've noticed that out of 12 chicks she is the only one who will try to peck you when you pick her up and she fights you really hard. Should I hold her more often or is this just a more aggressive breed?