Bullied Chook

[klyng99]

Hi there, I'm new here and have sought you guys out in the hope that you will have some words of wisdom. I had ex-batts for many years and am used to introducing new hens etc and then sadly we had a fox attack which killed them all. We decided to get some non ex-batts for a change and a friend leant me her incubator and some possibly fertilised eggs. We hatched the chicks 4 years ago to the day and kept 6 hens and a cockerel who have been a happy flock ever since. We lost one a couple of weeks ago, she became sick and within a few days had died. Last week another chook began to look unwell and I thought she was going the same way. The other hens began bullying her mercilessly and I don't mean the usual pecking order nonsense but proper feather pulling, blood drawing stuff. She has rallied from the illness and is otherwise well. She now has a bald, bleeding head and comb (been using hoof tar on it which I've had success with in the past but hasn't deterred this lot one bit. I am very worried that if I separate her I will never be able to get her accepted again. Keeping her segregated long term is impossible. Does anyone have any idea why they have suddenly turned on her? I noticed today that she is pulling out her own chest feathers ?through stress. Any help/advice gratefully received.
Thank you xx

 

[TwoCrows]

Hello there and welcome to BYC!

Sorry for all your losses, trials and tribulations.

Flocks know when a member of their own is sick in some way. And what they do is try to run the bird off from the flock so as to protect the entire flock. I would imagine the other birds felt she could endanger them and they ganged up on her. Unfortunately this is what flocks do. And yes it is sad.

In this case, you need to first make sure she is healthy. Worm your birds if you haven't done so in the past year. Worms eventually kill your birds. Check for mites and lice. These too will drain the life right out of the bird. Offer up some vitamins and probiotics to their diet in case they are missing something.

Make sure you have at least 10 square feet per bird in the run and 4 to 5 square feet per bird in the coop. Chickens turn on each other when they feel cramped. Use more than one food and watering station. When birds are hungry and thirsty, they want to hoard these areas for themselves if they think it might run out. And the lower order birds are going to suffer or can even starve. And starving birds are weak.

Give them things to do...ladders, mirrors, levels and lots of places to roost at night. And make sure you have enough nest boxes. 1 box per 2 or 3 birds. (My birds would kill each other if I went with the standard 1 box per 4 hens)

Lastly...sometimes some birds just do not ever fit into a flock and they may need a permanent separation. What you might do is find one or two birds that DO get along with her and keep them together in their own area. All birds have their buddies and there usually is one or two that get along with a bullied bird. However before keeping her with others, if she has any open wounds, make sure to cover them with blu-kote or a hen saddle or something so that her wounds are not bothered by the others. Chickens go after blood and wounds.

Good luck and I hope you can get all this sorted out!

 

[N F C]

Hi, welcome to BYC!

TwoCrows has given you excellent advice, I hope it helps. It's hard to see how chickens treat each other sometimes. Please keep us posted on how it all works out for you and your girl.

Thanks for joining us!

 

[trailrider330]

Welcome to the BYC flock! We are glad you joined us!

TwoCrows gave you great advice! Good luck!

 

[drumstick diva]

You may want to outfit the others in the flock with "pinless peepers," (put in searchbox to check them out) it doesn't allow straight ahead vision, which throws off their pecking attacks. In time, she will heal and you may want to try the others without the peepers to see if their attitude has changed. If not you may want to make her a house chicken or rehome her.

There is a growing movement toward house chickens (pets) you can check out " people with house chickens," to see how they handle it.

 

[BantamFan4Life]

Welcome to BYC! I'm glad you joined us!