Bullying. Again. What am I doing wrong?

[thecatumbrella]

If it gets them sticking their faces in their feeder it’s worth it short-term

That's what I'm thinking.

 

[thecatumbrella]

Husbands! What can you do?

It's not the worst idea. Get a mouthful or crumble whenever you try to bully.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Oh hey! What about ... pinless Peepers???

 

[thecatumbrella]

Oh hey! What about ... pinless Peepers???

I doubt they'd fit! She's so, so tiny. Still fits in the palm of my hand (and I have tiny baby hands).

I'm starting to find multiple threads about d'Uccle bullies, so it's likely I misjudged the breed as docile. Everyone's getting some tough love today with only crumble in their feeders.

 

[thecatumbrella]

Update!

The solitary confinement in the basement brooder seems to have worked. I didn't even have to bother with a dog crate. She was so distraught about being separated from the flock for 5-6 hours that it knocked the sass out of her. Every interaction between the two since has been normal pecking order stuff.

We've also gone to hanging feeders only for the time being. Everyone has adapted just fine. I'll slowly restart the supplemental feed (with some mindful changes) and report back if I continue to have issues.

 

[2 Acres]

I really need help, BYC. I'm sorry this is longwinded, but I want to give as much relevant detail as possible. I'm certainly not new to bully behavior.

Backstory
I lost my original flock in 2023 (we rehomed several times) due to bullying and feather picking. We had 4 chickens in a 9x12 pen, 2 of which were production reds (the feather pickers). I learned my lesson about production breeds, flock size, breed disposition, redundant feeders/waterers, and visual blocks. We decided to try again this spring with an upgraded pen and new bantam flock.

The Bantam Flock
As many of you know, it's been very difficult to purchase chickens this year. I originally wanted a uni-flock of six smaller, docile birds. I ended up with 6 Pekin Bantams (3 Mottled and 3 Calico) + 2 Mille Fleur d'Uccle. One d'Uccle passed the first night. The rest are now 14 weeks old. All female.

The Problem
My d'Uccle has started to bully one of my Mottled Pekins. The d'Uccle has always been a bossy bird that's stimulated by pecking order disputes. But this new behavior is excessive. She goes out of her way to follow and harass the lower ranked Mottled. The Mottled does not fight back. She bows her head in submission and gets pecked repeatedly until she can't take it anymore and tries to leave. The d'Uccle will follow. The d'Uccle does have a tendency to get visually fixated (she'll peck at something out of place for 20+ minutes straight), and the Mottled she's bullying has a much redder comb than her sisters. I don't know if this is relevant. The d'Uccle is nowhere near point of lay. Still has a small, pale comb.

How I've Handled It
I watched this play out for about 2-3 minutes to see if it would resolve, then intervened. I started by giving the d'Uccle a peck correction on the head. She shook this off and resumed her harassment. I then gently pinned her down like a rooster would. She responded well to this and held a submissive position, even after I stood up. But she also shook this off and went back to harassing the Mottled. I then picked her up (she hates this) and held her for several minutes. That seemed to knock her out of it. I came back out a couple hours later, only to watch the d'Uccle stepping over other chickens to harass her victim who was dust bathing against the wall. At that point, I picked her up and brought her inside. She's sitting alone in the basement brooder. I will purchase a dog crate to put in the run this weekend.

My Setup
I'll attach a photo.
I do not free range, but I have a 9x18 covered run. There's a dedicated perching area with multiple levels and trays with pellets. I have 2 dig boxes with high walls to block sight of each feeder; one box is for dust bathing and one for peck toys (which contain a whole-grain version of their regular feed). There's a 4-foot bench they love to sit on and under. I have 2 feeders (with crumble that they ignore) and 2 waterers. We scatter pellets around the entire run twice a day for them to forage. I will occasionally offer them some of the plants growing on the left, or some fresh produce (cucumber, blueberries, etc), at the end of the day. The run has an industrial greenhouse fan, radiant barrier under the roof, and shade cloths that I move about to maximize cooling.

Please tell me what I am doing wrong. Is it really a matter of space? Is it because I'm not free ranging? Is my d'Uccle just kind of a butthole? How could I handle this better? I'll put her back out with the group at bedtime and monitor again tomorrow. Like I said, I'll pick up a dog crate to put in that empty center space (which is what the space is there for).

Any comments, feedbacks, suggestions... anything, seriously. It will be so much appreciated. I don't think I can handle having a flock unravel on me again. So please, let me have it if there's something I can be doing better!

Rule of thumb is 4 square feet per bird.

 

[2 Acres]

Rule of thumb is 4 square feet per bird.

I divided my coop down the middle, and left a "pass through" opening so the more docile chickens can find a spot to "chill"

 

[thecatumbrella]

Rule of thumb is 4 square feet per bird.

Well, they've got something like 23 sqft/bird. Best I can do right now.

I divided my coop down the middle, and left a "pass through" opening so the more docile chickens can find a spot to "chill"

Really smart idea!

 

[thecatumbrella]

Depressing update.

We have a new bully and victim. Both cochin bantams. Bully is Mottled, victim is Calico. Again, these are my only chickens, and everyone is a 15 week-old brooder mate.

This particular bully (Flora) is a lot more violent, and the victim is my chicken (Willow) with neurological problems. Willow, despite being small and sick, is actually a higher ranking chicken (either 1 or 2 on pecking order). Bully is following her around the pen, around/through obstacles, and ignoring Willow's submissive body language to full on fight with bites and kicks. I watched this behavior play out over 20-30 minutes before intervening. Flora is currently serving a sentence of solitary confinement in my basement. Willow has a hard enough time eating and drinking without being stalked.

Flora also had difficulty with some young chicks (3 weeks old) that we tried to integrate. We had a see-no-touch pen in their run, and she was the only one that become violent and tried to kick at the chicks through the mesh.

Any additional advice is appreciated.