Sofainthefog
In the Brooder
Hi all,
I know the topic has been touched on before, but does anyone have recommendations for an anxious hen? Some context:
She is technically the oldest of a mixed flock of 8. I got 3 female chicks initially (she generally acted as the alpha of the 3), and then 5 additional a few months after. 1 of the additional is a bantam rooster, and all of the new additions are smaller than her. Generally the 3 older girls stick together, but overall the flock is well integrated. They have all been together over a year now.
My "problem" girl is a cuckoo marans. She has always been more of a flighty bird, which I know on its own isn't abnormal, but little things that have stacked up concern me. When she is actively laying, she tends to lay banded eggs (which to my understanding means the egg went through some kind of trauma and the shell had to reform) and her eggs tend to have thinner shells than any of the other girls. She has had issues with bullying, randomly picking fights or just being kind of a brat. Now the rooster tends to keep an eye on her to break up her fights with the ones she picks on; particularly one of the bantam cochins, who I think is by a slight margin the roosters favorite. I notice now when I feed them treats, the cuckoo marans will pace around at a distance, not wanting to go into the circle to share. If she gets close she acts kind of frenzied about eating even though the other 7 can handle the sharing no problem. But she still likes to get up high and fake "crow" like the rooster lol. I swear she has a strange internal power complex! Either she's the alpha, or she doesn't know where to fit in.
Currently my reason for seeking advice is that she seems to be going through a pretty rough molt. In the past, as long as theres no bloody fights I've mostly resigned to her working things out with the flock on her own, but right now she's obviously uncomfortable, and she's been making a constant low "peep peep peep" noise, almost like a chick but with a chickens cadance. is that just her replacing her normal chattiness with a softer sound while she's molting? does anyone else have experience with this? She also has been getting a slight purplish tinge to the back of her comb.
And is there any other special TLC treatment I can give her to help her get through the molt? Or to help ease her anxiety, in general? For context, they have a 12x8' covered run, and I let them out daily to free range in our backyard which is pretty spacious. They are on layer pellets with additional eggshells free choice. Our nights are getting into the high 40s so it seems cold to me for a chicken that is half pin feathers, but I’m not sure if i'm just being overly fussy over that part. The only real predators we deal with are hawks, but their coop is very secure and I've never had a run in with anything else trying to attack them or get in.
Thank you in advance for any advice/help
I know the topic has been touched on before, but does anyone have recommendations for an anxious hen? Some context:
She is technically the oldest of a mixed flock of 8. I got 3 female chicks initially (she generally acted as the alpha of the 3), and then 5 additional a few months after. 1 of the additional is a bantam rooster, and all of the new additions are smaller than her. Generally the 3 older girls stick together, but overall the flock is well integrated. They have all been together over a year now.
My "problem" girl is a cuckoo marans. She has always been more of a flighty bird, which I know on its own isn't abnormal, but little things that have stacked up concern me. When she is actively laying, she tends to lay banded eggs (which to my understanding means the egg went through some kind of trauma and the shell had to reform) and her eggs tend to have thinner shells than any of the other girls. She has had issues with bullying, randomly picking fights or just being kind of a brat. Now the rooster tends to keep an eye on her to break up her fights with the ones she picks on; particularly one of the bantam cochins, who I think is by a slight margin the roosters favorite. I notice now when I feed them treats, the cuckoo marans will pace around at a distance, not wanting to go into the circle to share. If she gets close she acts kind of frenzied about eating even though the other 7 can handle the sharing no problem. But she still likes to get up high and fake "crow" like the rooster lol. I swear she has a strange internal power complex! Either she's the alpha, or she doesn't know where to fit in.
Currently my reason for seeking advice is that she seems to be going through a pretty rough molt. In the past, as long as theres no bloody fights I've mostly resigned to her working things out with the flock on her own, but right now she's obviously uncomfortable, and she's been making a constant low "peep peep peep" noise, almost like a chick but with a chickens cadance. is that just her replacing her normal chattiness with a softer sound while she's molting? does anyone else have experience with this? She also has been getting a slight purplish tinge to the back of her comb.
And is there any other special TLC treatment I can give her to help her get through the molt? Or to help ease her anxiety, in general? For context, they have a 12x8' covered run, and I let them out daily to free range in our backyard which is pretty spacious. They are on layer pellets with additional eggshells free choice. Our nights are getting into the high 40s so it seems cold to me for a chicken that is half pin feathers, but I’m not sure if i'm just being overly fussy over that part. The only real predators we deal with are hawks, but their coop is very secure and I've never had a run in with anything else trying to attack them or get in.
Thank you in advance for any advice/help
