Isabel Allen
In the Brooder
- Jan 9, 2021
- 11
- 39
- 46
Hi all,
First of all I'm new here - so sorry if this is in the wrong thread.
So - last November (2020) we had a fox incident. Margo was killed and Mary was attacked but healed physically. After the attack, she was completely dazed for a few days. Her previously big and beautifully red comb (it was so big we thought she was a boy while she was still growing) shrivelled up and became very light pink. She withdrew completely from everything and spent all day every day waiting to be let into the house.
She is not close at all with the other chickens. Margo was the nicest to her - we have two others. Barbara is really quite vicious to her, and Jerry (hen with a boys name!) is pretty much impartial, though sometimes gets feisty with Mary if she tries to eat from the same bowl. She still wasn't super close with Margo so I doubt that is the root of her trauma.
Her behaviour is what is concerning me most right now. I raised her from a baby - the local school had an egg hatching program and she was the only one that hatched. We took her in alone, and I was with her 24/7 for about two months. She became the most cuddly lap chicken I've ever known. After she was fully grown, she naturally grew more independent and doesn't love to be held as much now. However, she never even fought back to the others and was always the most docile, friendly chicken until the attack. She's now obsessed with attacking people's feet - she will throw herself at your feet if you get close to her.
Then, I went into the run yesterday morning and noticed blood everywhere. It wasn't masses of blood - just little specks everywhere - on the food and water bowls, the mirror we keep in there, both coops (inside and outside) and Jerry's head was covered in dark, scabby patches. I was initially horrified, but it's not a serious injury and the blood probably got scattered because of the way they shake their heads. Still, it's completely unheard of for any of my chickens to attack eachother - and there's no sign of anything else getting in. Barbara and Jerry get along completely fine. I strongly suspect it was Mary and perhaps she just snapped. Like I said before, the others pick on her a lot and she never fights back - she usually just runs away. She absolutely could though, she has a very sharp beak (the others are ex battery and both have filed beaks) and she's probably twice as heavy and much bigger.
I'm really worried because like I said, I raised her from a baby (attached a picture!). I care so deeply about my chickens and this one has been with me through the worst of 2020. It was only after the fox incident that she started acting like this. They're separated now but due to bird flu they can't have access to the garden so during the day they're squeezed into a small run which none of them like.
Any advice you have on helping her get back to normal would be much appreciated. I'm trying to get another chicken so she at least has one chicken friend but can't until the bird flu thing has passed. I also would massively appreciate if anyone has suggestions for fixing Jerry up again.
First of all I'm new here - so sorry if this is in the wrong thread.
So - last November (2020) we had a fox incident. Margo was killed and Mary was attacked but healed physically. After the attack, she was completely dazed for a few days. Her previously big and beautifully red comb (it was so big we thought she was a boy while she was still growing) shrivelled up and became very light pink. She withdrew completely from everything and spent all day every day waiting to be let into the house.
She is not close at all with the other chickens. Margo was the nicest to her - we have two others. Barbara is really quite vicious to her, and Jerry (hen with a boys name!) is pretty much impartial, though sometimes gets feisty with Mary if she tries to eat from the same bowl. She still wasn't super close with Margo so I doubt that is the root of her trauma.
Her behaviour is what is concerning me most right now. I raised her from a baby - the local school had an egg hatching program and she was the only one that hatched. We took her in alone, and I was with her 24/7 for about two months. She became the most cuddly lap chicken I've ever known. After she was fully grown, she naturally grew more independent and doesn't love to be held as much now. However, she never even fought back to the others and was always the most docile, friendly chicken until the attack. She's now obsessed with attacking people's feet - she will throw herself at your feet if you get close to her.
Then, I went into the run yesterday morning and noticed blood everywhere. It wasn't masses of blood - just little specks everywhere - on the food and water bowls, the mirror we keep in there, both coops (inside and outside) and Jerry's head was covered in dark, scabby patches. I was initially horrified, but it's not a serious injury and the blood probably got scattered because of the way they shake their heads. Still, it's completely unheard of for any of my chickens to attack eachother - and there's no sign of anything else getting in. Barbara and Jerry get along completely fine. I strongly suspect it was Mary and perhaps she just snapped. Like I said before, the others pick on her a lot and she never fights back - she usually just runs away. She absolutely could though, she has a very sharp beak (the others are ex battery and both have filed beaks) and she's probably twice as heavy and much bigger.
I'm really worried because like I said, I raised her from a baby (attached a picture!). I care so deeply about my chickens and this one has been with me through the worst of 2020. It was only after the fox incident that she started acting like this. They're separated now but due to bird flu they can't have access to the garden so during the day they're squeezed into a small run which none of them like.
Any advice you have on helping her get back to normal would be much appreciated. I'm trying to get another chicken so she at least has one chicken friend but can't until the bird flu thing has passed. I also would massively appreciate if anyone has suggestions for fixing Jerry up again.
