Buff Orpington with arrested development? She's not growing up!

[CountryChic63]

I've also got a Buff Orpington, "Blonde", that isn't growing; no comb and is at the bottom of the ladder. She stays inside the coop, sitting on her spot on the roost. She only comes out to the enclosed yard when she hears my voice, and gets chased back inside fairly quick. I have to sneak her treats and really push to get her to eat. She's so scared of the other hens. They really bully her pretty harshly, but no bleeding so far.
We bought the flock of 16 chicks at one time, with 4 chicks in each brooder, only 1 other hen is still in the flock she grew up with now (another BO), as we gave our daughter the other two. We introduced them to their coop 4 at a time.
Our grand-daughter accidently stepped on Blondie's back toe 2 months ago, so I kept her in a pen in our garage for 5 days to give the toe rest & to make sure she healed & was able to get around.
She is the sweetest thing but just isn't developing. When she's hiding inside the coop, occasionally I feed her meal worms, she eats a little but not a lot, that's the same no matter what I feed her. She just doesn't seem to have an appetite. (By the time I walk out of the coop the other hens are aware Blonde was inside the coop with me, as I close the exit door to keep them out for a few minutes. Is this magnifying the bullying problem? I also close the door when I'm turning the straw or adding DE to the poop pans below the roost.)
I've read about segregation pens for the bully, which I can try with the hen I see attacking her the most, which is one of the Golden Comets. But that isn't addressing her slow development issue.
These hens were born August 20th, so they're a little more than 4 months old.
Thanks for any advise.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

She stays inside the coop, sitting on her spot on the roost. She only comes out to the enclosed yard when she hears my voice, and gets chased back inside fairly quick. I have to sneak her treats and really push to get her to eat. She's so scared of the other hens. They really bully her pretty harshly, but no bleeding so far.

She is the sweetest thing but just isn't developing. When she's hiding inside the coop, occasionally I feed her meal worms, she eats a little but not a lot, that's the same no matter what I feed her.

Photos of your sweet girl?
Time to separate her out. Can you cage her within the coop with her own food and water?
Her being bullied to the point she is not coming out of the coop - she is probably not eating very well at all. This could very well be the reason she is not developing.

I would provide her with chick starter, some poultry vitamins (Poultry Nutri-Drench or Poultry Cell) 2X a week. Limit treats to no more than 5% of her daily intake. Egg or a few mealworms would be a good treat. Make sure she also has a source of grit and check her crop a few times each week to see if it's full at night and empty in the morning.

Since she is not getting "outside" and staying in, I would also look her over very carefully for external parasites. I assume she is not dust bathing.

Just my 2¢

 

[CountryChic63]

Oh @CountryChic63 - I'm so sorry to hear you have the same, heart breaking situation with your Goldie... Sadly, since I posed this to our friends at BYC... our sweet little Goldie has passed away. She was, at 9 months, barely 16 ounces, and she had no comb or waddles and never laid an egg. The vet thought she was more like an 8 week old chick. I think she put all her energy into just trying to survive.

When Goldie's leg started to get weird, it went downhill from there. Her 1 foot seemed weak, and I noticed her favoring it. Then her toes began turning under when she stood or walked. I too - put her in the 'hospital cage' inside with us... and fed her tuna, warm mash with vitamin E, B complex, oats, sunflower seeds, fresh herbs and Probios. (I put it in the NutriBullet and made a warm mash, she LOVED it!) When she returned to the coop, she seemed like she was learning to accommodate the weak foot... but over a few weeks it just got worse... then the 2nd foot started getting weak. She began stumbling around, and I had to lift her up and down from the roost at night, and in & out of the coop.

A fecal float of her and all the girls proved negative for worms, there were no mites, and the vet just shrugged. He gave me meds to 'make her more comfortable'... my husband was very understanding... but the $100 vet bill was daunting... so I won't do that again, as it's only use was to ease MY mind... It gave me no answers, but I was doing everything I could do for her...

So, My Goldie - like yours - was terribly bullied, but in retrospect - I think it's because it's a 'survival' thing of the flock... to drive off the weaker members so a predator would choose THAT one... not the strong. Sad but I think it's a fact of life.

I snuck food to her like you do... BUT... I always put a big bowl of the yogurt or mash (or what ever the treat was) down for the 'big girls' first - in a farther away, separate place... then, held a smaller bowl back - JUST for Goldie. While she ate, I held the bowl for her, and guarded her from the others. That did seem to work well. I did the same with scratch at the end of the day, Goldie got her own portion (I put it in a 1 lb Folgers -Red, plastic coffee can) and I held it low, so she could put her whole head in - and I guarded her as she ate that, as well. (she had trouble scratching with her feet - which is why I let her eat out of her own plastic can).

But to answer your question about the run - YES!!! I thought much like you are and convinced my husband that we should build an additional, attached - enclosed run - 22'x30' with stumps, and roosting bars & a swing and things to keep them busy. That most definitely seemed to give the 'big girls' something else to do... and little Goldie hung out mostly in the safe, smaller base run that's attached to the coop (6'x14') and she would eat non-stop, when the other girls were out in the big run exploring. The big extension we built, is at the 2nd half of this article on my coop... It shows the process of building and all: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/creating-my-own-little-cluckingham-palace.74115/ If that helps give you ideas?

In our Goldie's final week... I brought her inside. She got to live in warmth, love & peace, and I held her by the fire at night and she adored being pet and cuddled... which I loved doing.
View attachment 1627939
But I knew it was her time... she couldn't stand any longer, and supported herself with her wings. I held her a lot, and constantly changed her bedding so she stayed clean... but on the last night, she kept closing her eyes and leaning against me... She was one of the sweetest little souls... and when I think of her, and her determination to survive, and what seemed like hope for her future... I think of the quote by Emily Dickenson... "Hope is the thing with feathers... that perches in the soul." I loved her and cared for her to the best of my ability - for the duration of her short time with me, here on earth... It makes me happy to see you doing the same... <3

PS... I hate to end on what may seem as a discouraging note, and hope you don't find this as such... I"m just sharing where my mind went in all this... So I feel I must mention that the possibility of Mareks was brought up to me by more than a few friends.

This made things a whole new ball of wax, and believe me, I freaked out. I had all my chicks since 1 day old, and I keep a closed flock. NO new chickens. I also hold VERY stringent & careful bio-hazard safety rules, and keep things as clean as possible. (I've had 3 friends ask me if they can live in my coop! haha)

My chicks were vaccinated for Mareks (not a cure) and I alternate ACV, mashed garlic & on 1 day of the week, of a drop of local, organic honey in their water; ProBios in their yogurt snack 2x a week, and do everything I can - using healthy herbs, natural wormers, and immune boosting, natural resources. IF it were Mareks... my other chicks would have probably been ill too... but I keep their immune systems strong, and the coop as spotless as I can. So these things are the only defense I've got against Mareks... as there is no cure.

I know Goldie was a runt from the get-go. But runt, or Mareks or what EVER... there's really nothing to be done other than continue keeping a clean coop, feeding the hens the best quality, healthy food, good supplements and so forth -possible... and keep everyone's immune system as healthy. I also do a bi-yearly fecal float to make sure there's no worms; dust the runs each month with lime, and when it's a good, windless day... sprinkle DE around - & on the roosting bars - making sure the girls are out in the run... and can't inhale it.

I hope this helps... Best wishes for you and your little Goldie... <3

Thanks for sharing your story about Goldie. She was obviously very lucky to have had you as her caring owner.
Blondie is a little more than 4 mos., and doesn't show any signs of feet problems or balance issues, yet. However, she barely eats enough to survive. Our 2 feeders and waterer are inside the coop with her, as she hides, so I'm guessing that's how she's able to eat without being attacked.
I'm going to separate the meanest bully to see if that helps first.
Question, for the segregation to be effective, does the caged bully need to be out of the sight of the others, or is it still effective to keep the cage inside the coop where they chicken eat & roost at night?

 

[CountryChic63]

Photos of your sweet girl?
Time to separate her out. Can you cage her within the coop with her own food and water?
Her being bullied to the point she is not coming out of the coop - she is probably not eating very well at all. This could very well be the reason she is not developing.

I would provide her with chick starter, some poultry vitamins (Poultry Nutri-Drench or Poultry Cell) 2X a week. Limit treats to no more than 5% of her daily intake. Egg or a few mealworms would be a good treat. Make sure she also has a source of grit and check her crop a few times each week to see if it's full at night and empty in the morning.

Since she is not getting "outside" and staying in, I would also look her over very carefully for external parasites. I assume she is not dust bathing.

Just my 2¢

Good idea about checking her crop, I hadn't thought about that.
I'm going to separate the meanest bully to see if that helps first. Then as Plan B I'll put Blondie in the cage.... how long do I need to do the Plan B, (Blonde caged)?
I'd like to get a video cam in the coop to, so I can see just how much stress she's having to endure.
We can buy some vitamins too. Our hens aren't dust bathing right now, it's been rainy for a few months but I do mix DE in the layers of the straw and pine shavings.
Could I ask what the benefits are to putting Blonde back on the Starter vs the Layer feed? More for body development maybe? We can definitely do that too.
Blonde seemed totally normal before we put all of the hens together, growing well, etc., she was in a brooder with 2 CA Whites, which were pretty aggressive as chicks, but as mentioned we gave those 2 away.
Is there a way to increase her appetite? She lives grapes sliced in slivers, but I know I need to limit that treat. She will eat a little bit of egg & yogurt though.
Thanks so much for your advise, much appreciated!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'm going to separate the meanest bully to see if that helps first. Then as Plan B I'll put Blondie in the cage.... how long do I need to do the Plan B, (Blonde caged)?
I'd like to get a video cam in the coop to, so I can see just how much stress she's having to endure.

Could I ask what the benefits are to putting Blonde back on the Starter vs the Layer feed? More for body development maybe? We can definitely do that too.

I don't know how long you would need to separate either one. You would have to take time to observe behavior.

If she is staying inside the coop all the time and seems terrified of the others, she is enduring a lot of stress. Stress is not good for chickens - it impacts their health just like it would in humans.

She's only 4 months old? She (and the others) still have a lot of growing to do. I would use Chick Starter or an all flock type feed at least until she starts laying eggs. More protein for development. Layer feed is really designed for actively laying birds.

 

[CountryChic63]

I don't know how long you would need to separate either one. You would have to take time to observe behavior.

If she is staying inside the coop all the time and seems terrified of the others, she is enduring a lot of stress. Stress is not good for chickens - it impacts their health just like it would in humans.

She's only 4 months old? She (and the others) still have a lot of growing to do. I would use Chick Starter or an all flock type feed at least until she starts laying eggs. More protein for development. Layer feed is really designed for actively laying birds.

All of the hens & rooster were bought as 1-day-olds, and are all 4 months old. We're getting a few eggs now, (only 2-3 daily), which I believe are from the Rhode Island Reds and maybe the other BO. We switched from the Starter to the Layer just 2 weeks ago, but maybe we did that too early. Since I have some laying, should I mix the two types of feeds? The eggs we're getting are small, but not tiny, well developed, and good hard shells (much harder than I was buying at the store).
So, we decided to separate Blondie first, hoping to get her weight up; then we will put the bully in a different cage, and before re-introducing Blondie to the flock, I thought it would be good to add her "sister," the other BO in with her for maybe 2 days, then release them together into the flock. After I see they have adjusted, add the bully back into the flock.
I attached 3 pictures. In the first picture is Blondie on a perch. I looked her over really well again today, her feet look normal, she hasn't lost any feathers, no injuries are apparent. I did get her to eat an egg, a little spinach and 1 grape. (She eats better when she's alone with me.
In the 2nd picture she's in her cage, its the full length of the 4 nest boxes with food, water and a lot of bedding. She walked in by herself and seemed pretty content until the flock was allowed to come inside and check it out, then she hid.
The 3rd picture is showing Blondie coming to the front of the cage after she realized the Golden Comet (the bully, who rushed in first to confront her), couldn't get to her. The flock eventually got bored and left except for the bully, she continued to check it out until I called them outside.
I also plan to close the flock outside and allow Blondie out of her cage daily for a little bit, keeping her safe in the coop, so she doesn't become weak. She will perch on my arm, so I can help encourage her to move around.
Thanks again for your advise

 

[Wyorp Rock]

You can mix the feeds if you wish, that way none goes to waste. For Blondie, I would feed the starter since she is a little behind(?) Is her beak and legs yellow?

Great place to separate her, hopefully she will build confidence while in the safety of her cage.

 

[CountryChic63]

Yes her beak and feet are yellow.

 

[CountryChic63]

I just looked the yellow beak and legs up; I have a Buff Rock, don't I?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Yes her beak and feet are yellow.

I just looked the yellow beak and legs up; I have a Buff Rock, don't I?

Could be!
Where did she come from?
Buff Orpingtons "should" have white legs and beak. Buff Plymouth Rock makes more sense with yellow legs and beak.