dead hens

[arberbarber]

Help! I have had 4 dead hens in two weeks. I find them in the coop among pulled feathers, but I see no sign of blood, broken or bitten skin, just some signs of pecking and a lot of loose feathers around them. Is this a rooster problem? We have one rooster and he aggressively tries to mount the girls when I unlock the coop door, but never seen any other threatening behavior. I'm pretty sure everything is locked down, no holes in floor, windows or ventilation. Would there be any other small rodents that would be this destructive?????


Greg

 

[chfite]

The chickens may have simply died, and the others pecked at the corpse. Roosters aren't gentle in the approach to mating. As humans, we think that it appears rough and brutal, but it is how it is done.

What is interesting is to watch the rooster try to mount and have the hen blow him off. If it were really a forceful act, she would not be able to reject him.

There are some bad roosters out there, just the same.

Chris