Handicapped Chicken getting pecked Bald! BLU-KOTE didn't help!

Shkittles

Songster
10 Years
Jan 27, 2009
215
2
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!Somewhere in Central Ohio!
I have a White crested Polish Cockeral named Batman and he has a hurt leg and my RIR pullet, and a few of my sex-link pullets have been pecking at his crest so i put Blu-Kote on it and it didn't help at all they still peck at it. So today I went out to put them up for the night and noticed the still pecking his fro and in the center of his fro he's completely bald and you can see his scalp and some blood.
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So I don't know what to do. I have him separated from them, right now he's in the dog kennel. Is there anything i can use to make them stop attacking him? I do have a pen right next to the chicken pen with it's own run next to the chickens run that my 4 ducks are in that i could put him in, but in order to do that i'd have to get rid of my ducks and i don't want to do that, but i love Batman so it's an option, BUT 1 that i DON'T want to go with, but if it's my only option i might take it.

Help!

!Shkittles!
 
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I'd plan on separating him at least until all his feathers come back. If he's in a run where he can see the rest of the flock and they can see him, it would help with integrating him into the flock later.

Hopefully one of the super-experienced members will weigh in here.
 
Thanks, i do have a pen beside the chicken one with a run beside the chicken run but my ducks are in there and i don't know how they'd get along. Tomorrow i'm gonna put him in with the ducks and see whether they get along. If they do i might keep him with the ducks.
 
I had this exact same problem. Polish with the center of her head pecked bloody. I couldn't seperate her easily. I used small rubber bands like the groomer uses to put in hair bows with and pulled the feathers around the wound together over the top of the bald spot. Like a pony tail. I had to redo it several times and it took a few weeks to grow out. You have to wait for the pin feathers to open up after growing out too or they will peck them and you have to start all over again. My family thought I had finally lost it ...putting pony tails on chickens....but it worked.
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besides she wouldn't keep the hat on;)
 
Once the pin feathers grew in I took the band off and the chickens pecked the pin feathers. Then I started over and waited for the pin feathers to break open then took the band off and they didn't peck her head after that and ( knock on wood) it hasn't happend since. I think it started after they had all been rained on and her poof was all floppy and hanging in her eyes.....someone thought it looked like it needed a peck and made it bleed ....then there is a red spot that needs to be pecked....then it became a big target. I had to really keep a eye on my ponytails because the second it broke or came out they would start to peck at her. Sometimes it took more than one ponytail to get it all covered up and keep it in tight. And the rubber bands need to be clear or nude or match the color of the head feathers so they don't find them interesting and want to peck the bands. Mine literally were the rubber bands groomers use on dog ear bows they were really small.

I also trim the feathers around their eyes so they can see better and avoid getting pecked. I do this on all my polish. I use a small round tip pair of manicure scissors. You just can't cut too close or the feather bleeds. It helps but I do have a few polish that are still getting their backs and tails pecked. Its so funny its like beauty parlor day. I wrap them up in a hand towel and clip it with a cloths pins (like a salon smock) so they hold still and can't run away. Then I put them on my patio table in front of me and start trimming. I'm sure I look crazy but it works. You may want to do the towel wrap while you do the ponytails too, then you can do it without help.

This is what worked for me because but I didn't have a way of separating her from the flock for weeks while her head grew in.
Good luck to ya.
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Thanks for all the help. I put Batman in with the ducks and he's getting along with them, so I think he'll just live with them for the time being.
 
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