chicken are a mean bunch!

[gigelus2k13]

Hello,

I started keeping chicken last month, when I got two 15mo old Buff Orpington hens from a full-pasture egg farm. They got used to the new environment pretty easily and started laying eggs right away (each hen lays an egg every day with every 3rd or 4th day off).

Today I bought two 3mo old pullets (a BLR Wyandotte and a Barred Rock), sweet-sweet birds! I took them home, then put them together with the hens.

The hens started picking at them right away, hitting them with their beak, chasing them around, in short, behaving unbelievably mean. I let everybody out to the backyard and still the hens kept checking on the pullets and chasing them around. When sunset came, the poor pullets tried to get in the coop only to be pushed back, they even tried a few branches of the lemon tree to see if they could sleep there. In the end I installed a perch under the coop (which is raised), put the pullets in there and closed the ramp for the night.

I thought that Orps are gentle!

Is this aggressive behavior going to subside or do I have to take a drastic decision regarding who to keep?

Thanks,

Serban

 

[nanaluvsgps]

Just sorting out the pecking order. You could try putting the new additions in at night so that when they wake up they will be more likely to accept. Don't worry they will soon learn whose boss... no need to relocate any.

 

[hennotrooster]

Im with you..they are mean at least 4 of my six are. I have two sweethearts that are the bottom of the pecking order. One of them will get up on the roof of the coop when they go in for the night and the other will have her head down as far as she can get it so not to get pecked. I have started staying in the coop after taking Floppy off the roof and sitting her next to Speckles. I will bap (use a finger as my beak) the first hen that takes a peck at them. They now know not to do that and they get in their spots with no problem but I the head hen must be out their while they settle in. What is funny is that Gabby, who just completely dislikes her sister Floppy, will go to the roof of the coop if Floppy beats her inside and Floppy does the same for Gabby. Yes they can be mean.