Bully Chicken

[chickencuddler]

Hi, this is my first day on backyard chickens. I've had chickens for over a year now but my first flock of four all died by neighborhood dogs so now with my new flock I keep them inside a fenced in area.

With my resently aquired flock after my first flock died, bought 6 new pullets and they all love each other lots. But when they were a few weeks old we went to a gragae sale and their was a year old chicken for sale. The owners said that the rest of her flock had died and that she was a lone surviver. So we bought her and quickly introduced her to our young pullets. She was a little mean to our pullets but we thought nothing of it since they were just getting to know each other, but now its been over a month and all six of are pullets are still too afraid to go near her and I don't blame them, because she pecks hard!
I'm afaid that once the little ones grow up their going to team up and peck at her and I don't want that. How do I make them just be friends?

 

[Den in Penn]

You didn't say how old the pullets are. If they are still small, she will continue to dominate them until they behave like she wants them to. Heck even if they are near to laying she still will try to dominate them, that's the chicken way. Until the little ones grow up you never know how they will act.

 

[shmccarthy]

She's probably just establishing that she's the dominant chicken. I wouldn't worry too much about it, unless it starts to get messy and blood gets shed. It just sounds like the pecking order right now.

 

[chickencuddler]

The pullets are reaching 16 weeks, but I thought that establishing a peaking order only took like a week this has been going on for more than a month.

 

[Den in Penn]

If you don't have two feeders and waterers having a second set may help. It will allow the younger ones avoid hen. Do you have a large run or free range them? More space and distractions are a plus. Some survivors just are very driven and take a while to settle.