Day 2 - Has the pecking already begun or am I being paranoid?

[Slidingfowl]

This is my 2nd adult attempt at keeping hens. Two days ago I picked up three thus far unnamed beautiful 16 week old hens that had all been raised together in a flock of more than 50 hens. The white is a Sussex Hybrid, the grey is a Belle Blue and the black is a Bovan Nera. They have a run of 3m x 3m and a DIY coop that is approximately 1m x 1m x 1m raised 1m off the ground. Everything is enclosed and half the run is covered with tarp.

My previous attempt at backyard chickens ended in somewhat interesting fashion last September. Someone (T*DD), left the gate open to the chicken run the day before my wife and I were married (I was sent a WhatsApp message by the neighbour on the day of the wedding to let me know a fox had eaten the chickens). Anyway, at that point, they were already segregated because two of them were picking on the third (broody) hen. Notwithstanding the broodiness I had issues with that flock for most of the time with either Bronwyn or Madge being picked on by Pat Butcher. Whichever one wasn't being picked on would join in.

We tried everything - hanging grit blocks, mirrors, interesting treats, lots of things to climb on and hide under, segregating them, letting them roam free as much as possible, mite treatment, anti peck spray and even belittling the bully by pretending to mount her (I kid you not). None of it really worked and it got quite frustrating.

Fast forward to now.

New chickens seem incredibly timid in general but I'm sure this is just them getting used to a new environment. Whereas the other hens pretty much immediately would either run away from you (or to you if you had treats) and were inquisitive and energetic, these hens seem a bit listless and disinterested in everything and dare I say it - a bit...chicken (sorry). I'm hoping that this is all fine and they just need to get used to their new environment and will perk up pretty quickly - maybe even a bit of sun would help!

That said, we'd hoped that the pecking issues with the previous chickens were because they were much older when we received them or that they had an existing pecking order or perhaps one of them was just a bully. But today, I just saw the Belle Blue take a chunk of feathers out of the Sussex Hybrid on more than one occasion.

Not sure what to do. Any suggestions re pecking gratefully received.

 

[Yowza Wowza]

I suggest posting this in the Chicken Behaviors and Egglaying forum.
You should be able to receive help there.

I wish the best of luck to you.

 

[Slidingfowl]

I suggest posting this in the Chicken Behaviors and Egglaying forum.
You should be able to receive help there.

I wish the best of luck to you.

yep will do - thanks!!

 

[Yowza Wowza]

yep will do - thanks!!

No problem

 

[drumstick diva]

 

[Joeschooks]

Hello and You’ve come to the right place! There’s loads of friendly, knowledgeable members who will be pleased to help. I hope you enjoy the site and find it helpful

 

[Teila]

G'Day from down under Slidingfowl Nice to meet you!



BYC has Topic of the Week discussions which I have found to be a great resource, informative and sometimes entertaining; so definitely worth checking out. This one may be of particular interest:
Topic of the Week - Feather Pecking/Eating

They may be bored or cramped for room and this might be of assistance also:
How Much Room Do Chickens Need

If you would like to share Pictures and Stories of your flock, you have come to the right place. BYC’ers never tire of these and do not back away slowly or commence eye rolling when the photo album or home videos come out

Including your general location on your profile will assist others. Location, climate, season etc can be important factors when members are responding to any questions you may have and vice versa.

You might want to also Find Your State Thread and pop in and say hello.