Chicken delinquency and marginalisation

[RefugeeChicken]

Hi all

I have a pretty big plot of land where 4 chicken rule. Theyve got a an actual oldl house for a coop but i dopnt think they really use it, and i dont even lock the door due to the scarcity of predators in the region.

Theyve all been pretty decent with eachother like helping eachother give dirt baths and always being either in pairs or the 4 chilling together.

Now one of them is looking like ****, i think from attacks from the others, because she stopped laying eggs in the place where the others lay i think or some other daft **** like that. Bunch of bitches if you ask me. She looks kinda sad and doesnt engage in any chicken related activites any longer that i notice and is always alone while the other laugh at her and such. I even doubt theyre letting her eat much, i dunno.

She doesnt look ill nor anything shes still quite portely just looks like she had a bad trip to the hair stylist and marginalised.

Would a rooster stop chicken from having silly break ups like this? Should i erradicate that chicken cause she could be a bad influence on the others?

 

[mtngirl35]

How long has this been going on? Is she laying at all? If not she could be molting. Chickens stop laying and kinda act out of sorts and look a little scraggly during the molt. As far as a rooster goes, mine usually breaks up small disputes amongst the girls.

 

[RefugeeChicken]

thanks for input.

I dunno id guess about a week or a bit longer two tops. I dont spend much time with them to be honest.
Pretty sure she started laying her eggs elsewhere and the other didnt like that and decided to gang up on her for being different. Is that a thing? Also if the chicken was to be poorly shed prolly be dead by now no? if gone without health care for 2 weeks whilst ill
Im looking to get a rooster but if i want some decent genetics and the the ones i want were pretty dear frankly for transportation. I want biblue, aparantly certain specimens of the strain are extremely frequent double yolk layers and very rustic. I dont know if its just existent in spain thogh?
Also could a rooster be shared amongst different neighbours? Say could one rooster spend a few weeks at one location fertilizing one flock and then another few weeks at another and just be swapped back and forth every so often?
My grandfather used to say that if roosters dont think they have competition they kinda lose their spunk so to say so its good to have a couple of roosters on the go but have them separated or have enough chicken for a couple of roosters.

 

[bobbi-j]

thanks for input.

I dunno id guess about a week or a bit longer two tops. I dont spend much time with them to be honest.
Pretty sure she started laying her eggs elsewhere and the other didnt like that and decided to gang up on her for being different. Is that a thing? Also if the chicken was to be poorly shed prolly be dead by now no? if gone without health care for 2 weeks whilst ill
Im looking to get a rooster but if i want some decent genetics and the the ones i want were pretty dear frankly for transportation. I want biblue, aparantly certain specimens of the strain are extremely frequent double yolk layers and very rustic. I dont know if its just existent in spain thogh?
Also could a rooster be shared amongst different neighbours? Say could one rooster spend a few weeks at one location fertilizing one flock and then another few weeks at another and just be swapped back and forth every so often?
My grandfather used to say that if roosters dont think they have competition they kinda lose their spunk so to say so its good to have a couple of roosters on the go but have them separated or have enough chicken for a couple of roosters.

It's never been my experience that chickens will pick on one for laying her eggs somewhere else. I don't believe they really care about who lays where (unless, of course, someone is in "their" favorite nest box). They may, however target a weak one. I'm thinking that she may be molting as stated above, ro she could have mites or other parasites.
She would not necessarily be dead by now with no medical care if she were sick. Some illnesses can linger on.
I would not recommend sharing a rooster with neighbors. That's a good way to potentially spread disease and parasites from flock to flock. In my experience, my roosters have been plenty spunky without competition.

 

[donrae]

How old is she? My guess is she's molting.

And just as an fyi, byc is a family friendly site, please watch the language. Lots of kiddos on here.

 

[RefugeeChicken]

Thanks for input again. your points are plenty valid on the issue.

Quote:
But then dont chicken molt all at the same time? Now i think the others are envious.

Sorry about the language it wont happen again, i noticed after posting it got censored and got the idea. Thanks for pointing out.

 

[bobbi-j]

Thanks for input again. your points are plenty valid on the issue.


But then dont chicken molt all at the same time? Now i think the others are envious.

Sorry about the language it wont happen again, i noticed after posting it got censored and got the idea. Thanks for pointing out.

They don't necessarily all molt at exactly the same time. Somewhere around the same time frame, probably. I have several hens all in different stages of molt right now.