Bullying

[DJgess]

I previously bought two Pekin chicks that had hatched this past monday. I am having a problem with the slight larger chick (Clarence) bullying my smaller chick (Rico). Clarence will grab at Rico’s feet and beak and even peck at his eyes. They are only 4 days old and I don’t feel separating them is a good idea. I read to hold Clarences beak together and tell him now whenever he does it but this does not work. Any help please because Rico is now missing feathers on his left wing and i don’t want this to get out of hand.

 

[Iluveggers]

I previously bought two Pekin chicks that had hatched this past monday. I am having a problem with the slight larger chick (Clarence) bullying my smaller chick (Rico). Clarence will grab at Rico’s feet and beak and even peck at his eyes. They are only 4 days old and I don’t feel separating them is a good idea. I read to hold Clarences beak together and tell him now whenever he does it but this does not work. Any help please because Rico is now missing feathers on his left wing and i don’t want this to get out of hand.

How big is the space they are brooding in? What else do you have in the brooder? I had one chick that liked to peck and I put a red dot on the brooder wall and she started pecking that instead of the others. I also hung a small dollar store mirror to give them something to look at different. Do they have a constant supply of food & water?

 

[rosemarythyme]

First off, you're better off separating them than holding their beak shut. A chicken isn't going to understand what that means because that's not something they'd do to each other.

Try some distraction "toys" like this: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/chick-pecking-other-chick.1430088/#post-23567316

 

[myawesomepullets]

Pecking can happen sometimes because of boredom or not enough space. They need to both be able to get warm and/or cool off without crowding each other, and they need to both be able to eat and drink at the same time with plenty of room. They also need to be able to walk around without being crammed into each other. (If you want you could send a pic of the brooder). If they have plenty of room, then they could be bored. In that case, you could give them little toys such as little roosts and stuff to climb on. That could be as simple as a little piece of sanded scrap wood. It also wouldn’t hurt to always make sure they have clean, dry bedding, plenty of food, and fresh clean water.