Chicken fights??????

[Moby75165]

I’m thinkin one of my sweet ladies is actually being a bitch.
Look like chicken squabbles to you folks?
Those white patches look like feathers plucked.

 

[coach723]

Do you have a rooster? That is a common area for rooster damage from mounting. How many birds, ages, in how much space? Are they always confined or do they free range? Sometimes a dominant hen will also do mounting behavior in the absence of a rooster. Feather picking is also a possibility, if they are too crowded or bored.

 

[Moby75165]

I don’t have a rooster but I do think I have an aggressive hen. Not sure if they are overcrowded I’ve got a 4 foot wide by 8 foot long tractor, and a 3’ x 5’ coop. They’re attached. Occasionally I move the tractor around the yard

 

[Poultrykeeper12]

Hens get angry if they want to get broody. Is she showing signs of that? She could also be upset.

 

[coach723]

So you have 4 birds in there? It does look a bit small for them. Overcrowding is a common issue, most coops that are premade way over estimate the capacity they will hold. They look big when you have baby chicks, but once they are grown the truth sets in.. Most minimum recommendations are for 2 to 3 (4 is better) square feet in the coop and 8 to 10 square feet in the run per bird. Those are absolute minimums and the actual personalities and temperaments of the birds is the determining factor. One aggressive or dominant bird can make a space too small. What is enough space for one group of birds may not work for another with different flock dynamics. If you can find a way to give them more space during the day, that may help. You can also search for boredom busters for chickens, for ideas of how to occupy their attention in better ways.

 

[cluckmecoop7]

IMO, it looks a little small for four hens.....

And they never free range? Boredom might be the problem.

 

[sourland]

Someone is feather pecking/plucking - most likely out of boredom. If it escalates you may need to research 'Pin Less Peepers'.

 

[Moby75165]

Hens get angry if they want to get broody. Is she showing signs of that? She could also be upset.

One is definitely getting Broody.

 

[Moby75165]

IMO, it looks a little small for four hens.....

And they never free range? Boredom might be the problem.

Yes there’s five hens in there,
I think that’s the problem.
Add a broody hen and no free ranging and I have a fight.

 

[cluckmecoop7]

If you don't free range you need to make a bigger run..... sorry.