Broody Hen trying to bite chick's feet off.

[SarahGfa]

Broody hen hatched one chick. On day 2, I noticed it had bloody toes and the mom kept trying to peck them. I sprayed the toes with Alushield (aerosol bandage) and put tape over them like chick shoes so she couldn't get at them.

Now it's day 4 and the chick shoes have fallen off. Toes are sprayed with Alushield so they are colored gray (originally he had pink toes). Hen still pecking at chick's toes but they are out of the nest so he can run away.

Will a hen pecking at a chick's toes cause long term damage like broken bones or dislocated toes?

She has hatched and raised other clutches before and this never happened. Maybe the heat is stressing her out.

 

[centrarchid]

Is hen still incubating eggs?

 

[SarahGfa]

Is hen still incubating eggs?

She's not supposed to, but she keeps bringing the chick into nestboxes that have eggs. I remove the eggs whenever I see them.

 

[centrarchid]

Do you have lots of mice in your coop at night?

 

[SarahGfa]

Do you have lots of mice in your coop at night?

no, they are in a totally new coop that was just built last month.

 

[centrarchid]

I would setup a mouse trap anyway. Or move hen and hatched brood to an indoor location tonight for observation. Mice may not be coming from your coop initially. If the mouse world is having problems, they can move in mass.

 

[SarahGfa]

I would setup a mouse trap anyway. Or move hen and hatched brood to an indoor location tonight for observation. Mice may not be coming from your coop initially. If the mouse world is having problems, they can move in mass.

i can set a mouse trap, but I already moved them indoors for a day (to treat the injured chick) and she was still biting at the chick's feet the whole time.

 

[centrarchid]

i can set a mouse trap, but I already moved them indoors for a day (to treat the injured chick) and she was still biting at the chick's feet the whole time.

How long has she been incubating / broody before chick hatched?

 

[SarahGfa]

How long has she been incubating / broody before chick hatched?

About 6 weeks, maybe longer. These were shipped eggs. There were two other eggs that fully developed under her but died without hatching all the way.

 

[One Lucky Momma]

Please pardon the intrusion, but what’s the connection between the hen nibbling the chick’s toes and a possible mice infestation?