I love that you care so much! She is definitely misunderstood by me; if there is a way to deal with her I don't know it. I'm afraid I have not unlocked the secret with this one. I'd say with the onset of regular laying she is pretty intense now. She is very high-strung, or something. Is there such as thing as a calming pill for a hen?
She is not squatting for me but when she gets a gleam in her eye, all growly, looking for a fight, I have taken to pressing down on her, hand on her back until she sits on the litter, and gently but firmly holding her there for 10 seconds or so. Hazel will sometimes come over and give her a couple of pecks. I release her and that seems to break it temporarily and she walks away. But she will come back again aggressively, sooner rather than later. I don't know if this is reinforcing a sense that she has to dominate me, as if I am a competing roo?
I have also tried ignoring her, or moving into her a little with my elbow or body so that she is not in a position to peck a hand while I do something like pet somebody else or lay down some pellets on their treat block. If she sees that I have pellets to eat she'll eat from my hands with the others, but pauses to glance up at me in between bites. Whereas everyone else just chows down.
It's very hard to do the normal things I do with the chickens if she is looking for a fight. (Tedi wants to stand and lean against a leg, or have my one hand a little under her, while being pet with the other; so then Diane comes over to bite any exposed hand. What do I do?) I sometimes pet Diane too as she passes by, I'm trying to normalize being touched, but she appears to not like it and takes it as an aggressive move by me.
Sometimes when I have to get something done and she wants to get all up in my business and bite me I pick her up and hold her with one hand against my side while I move about, either her head facing backwards or forwards. She might be quiet for a bit, or not, all growly and keening, but if quiet soon she complains and I let her down.
If I carry a stick around with me she generally keeps clear once she sees it, but sometimes charges to peck as I walk away unless it is behind me right in her line of sight. She wants to silently run at my legs and boots when I am moving away from her.
She is getting good at grabbing skin and twisting, if she catches me unawares. I had so many bites on my hands a couple of weeks ago before I realized how ramped up she's become that DH noticed. I also got a couple of marks on my forearm, and these were bites through exercise shirts plus a sweatshirt.
When I pick her up she is strangely compliant, though she might be growling. But if a hand is available in front of her she will likely try to peck it while held. She won't or can't bite very well unless her feet are on something solid. So I have held her on my lap for a minute or two, her feet off but her keel resting on my hand or leg. Only once last Fall did she relax enough to take even a one-eyed nap.
A hen on my lap brings Tedi around gently bokking, asking to get on too, because she loves lap time. Annie likes it too, but is asking less these days. Having another hen there and loving it, all happy, doesn't change anything for Diane though. She's usually just as upset or fearful or high-strung no matter who is with her.
Hazel will let her forage next to her. She will rest near Hazel. Tedi and Annie don't let her forage next to them for very long. Rest and preening times she's with anybody. But she's not that polite with Hazel either. Last week when Hazel was bathing, Diane decided to get up on the edge of the dustbath pool and step in - but decided to step right on to Hazel's back. Hazel was not impressed!