We have 12, 7-8 month old Golden Buff hens. One of my girls went broody and we had to put her in a broody cage ( we called it chicken jail..haha ) to finally break her. However, the flock will not accept her back. They pick on her and have now started ganging up on another one of my girls too. Gertie ( the ex-broody) and Gobbles ( my husband named her and thought it was funny) both have to spend their days in the coop sitting on the roosting bars while the other girls play in the run. I had to put them all outside today because I am cleaning the coop and my poor two girls are in the corner under the coop because the other girls keep picking on them. How do I get the other girls to accept Gertie and Gobbles? Gobbles is also missing a lot of neck feathers. I am hoping that it from molting but I am not so sure that it is. Any advice would be appreciated.
Are any of the hens leading the pack and getting everyone else going when it comes to ganging up on Gertie and Gobbles? If there is, isolate them for a few days.
We had something similar when we had to remove one for a few days because sick. When we put her back they made her life he'll for about a week then it all settled back to normal but with her having moved down the pecking order. As long as they aren't hurting them as in braking the skin or bleeding I'd just let them sort it out and then reevaluate in a week. I think it's just their nature to take this sort of thing as an opportunity to jump up the social ladder at the expense of the other chook. As an aside I've never had this problem with broody returns so I'm wondering where your broody box is? The time ours was sick and we had this problem she was out of sight but my broody's are always in view in their "gaol" and life goes on as normal when they are returned. I also lock up nest boxes and let them return to the flock to sleep each night. I wondered if yours was out of view and that's what has caused this? Was she totally removed for the time in gaol or did she sleep with them at night?