Help for the Newbies with a bully

I've only had this once, and it was with younger chicks so my advice may not apply. But what we ended up having to do after trying other solutions was separate the bully from the flock entirely (so they could not see or hear her) for about a week. When she returned, she was an "intruder", and she got hammered. She has been low girl ever since.

It was not an ideal solution...we think it made her kind of neurotic. But she was a serious, blood-drawing, won't-quit bully and the other choice was culling.

Good luck. I hope it all turns out for the best.

Edited to add: I forgot to say

 

This is my first batch of chickens so I can't help you. Sounds aweful, you must be stressed! Hope you get lots of good advice! Good luck

 

I'm probably the last person in the world who should offer advice on this. I had the same thing happen here last year - I had 4 hens and one roo (who was originally #4 out of 5 in the pecking order). Blackie, at the bottom of the order, got pecked a bit, but nothing too bad - the alpha birds was really sweet. Then the alpha bird died very suddenly, leaving #2 and #3 to grapple for control for a few weeks. Once the order was established, they BOTH turned on little #5 in a bad way.

Unfortunately, #5 had to be separated from the flock for 2 weeks around that same time due to a foot infection (the others wouldn't allow her to perch anymore, and she slept in poop, I suspect). When we tried to put her back with the others, they went batsh*t crazy on her, and I swear would have killed her. We brought her back indoors. Every couple of days, we tried to sneak her back with them, with the same result. I was so worried about her, I just let her move indoors. Problem solved! She loved it in here!

Fast-forward 6 months. Husband insists she become a chicken again instead of a house pet and the cat's chew toy. There is no way those mean girls are taking her back. I do the only thing I could think of that wouldn't result in her death - or my divorce. I get 5 pullets. Figure, heh, maybe if I slip her in with a slew of other birds, maybe they won't notice my baby...

It sort of worked. The mean girls still peck Blackie, but not really any more than they do the new girls. And amazingly, Blackie grew a set and learned how to give it to the younger ones. Not in a vicious way (unlike her original flockmates), but to establish territory and keep them away from her treats.

So my solution to you is simple: get more birds. You'll always find a good excuse to do it if you ask the right audience.

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But if you do have to work with what you have, definitely move the mean girl completely away from the others. Otherwise, she'll be whispering orders to her capos though the glass divider, ordering the hit. I've been tempted to do it with my alpha bird, but frankly, I don't like her enough to want her in the house with us. She's a real pill. It may come to that someday - but that day is not today.

 

I cannot say I am an expert either, and my experience has always been with bully roos. What has been working this summer is that the bullys get picked up or chased at the first few offences and now all I have to do is yell at them across the lawn and they straighten out. They see me as the dominant roo for sure. I love my birds, but we are not as bonded as you are with yours. Separation might be good, but it might also be good to apply a little discipline to the situation like giving them a soft boot off the hen they are picking on. It worked for my roos. Welcome to BYC and I hope you find a solution that works for you and the girls!

 

It sounds to me like normal pecking order behavior as your hens reach maturity. As long as there's no blood drawn, I think the chickens need to sort things out for themselves. Things should settle down in a while as soon as the dominant hen feels comfortable about her job.

There are things you can do to help the bullied hen have a more pleasant life in the meantime. Your coop is a tad on the small side for three chickens. Be sure that your chickens are never locked inside it other than at roosting time, and let out first thing in the morning. Usually, the rule of thumb for a coop is 4 square feet per chicken. Your run is plenty large, though. You can put up things inside the run for the bullied chicken to hide behind and get out of visual contact with her tormenter: even some cardboard boxes would work for this.

You could set up two separate feed and water stations, one on each side of the run, so that there is no way the bully can cover both stations at the same time. That way, the picked on chicken can still get to feed and water.

Last fall as our flock was reaching maturity, we dealt with similar problems. It was our favorite hen, Billina, that the dominant hen decided to pick on! It was awful for a while, but then things settled down. This spring, when we had to rehome our rooster, we sent the dominant hen along with him to a new home. And instead of the no. 2 hen inheriting the mantle, what do you know? Our favorite hen became the queen. She's a much more benevolent ruler than the previous one; when she reinforces her dominance over the other chickens, she does it with a light hand...ehr..beak. She only chases another chicken for a few steps, not all the way around the yard like the previous head chicken used to do.

I know we're in for pecking order battles again this fall, though, as our spring crop of chicks reaches their maturity. Sigh. I hope Billina keeps the top job!

 

Hi! Thanks for the update! This has been of great interest to me.

I have 16 week olds, and 6 weeks olds in a split run with a dog crate for the younger ones. I am going to wait till at least 10 weeks for the babies, and then I may be "sitting on a bucket" (funny visual ), in about 4 weeks! Hope your chickens are all well when you come home from your long day at work.

Good Luck!