My7GoldenGirls
In the Brooder
- Jul 17, 2023
- 15
- 4
- 19
Please help, I am at a loss. We have 6 girls and one rooster, all raised together since 1 day old in our care (May 23rd 2023 was their hatch day). Nothing has changed- food, water, space. One Wyandotte hen has been occasionally pecking at the rooster to where he only had three scraggly tail feathers (they really never grew in) for a couple months- she is also his favorite hen. 4 days ago I noticed she pecked at his rear and drew a drop of blood so I immediately separated her outside the coop and enclosed runs to let her free range in the yard until I got a separate pen to place across the yard. I have been keeping her isolated in this separate pen for three days, grabbing her out of the coop just before dawn and putting her back in the coop at night to roost. Yesterday there was heavy rain and storms in our area and I had been noticing she had been demoted to the lower roost bar so I tried leaving her in with the other chickens in the run yesterday. She pecked my rooster bloody and I will add a picture of this. I separated her today only to see her sister Wyandotte pecking at the rooster and also pecking at the other two hens that were picked on by her sister, not as often, minimally.
Do I have to rehome the two Wyandottes? What is causing this? The food is organic and 16% protein, they also get other things, but it seems this is behavioral. Please help, thank you! I don’t want to isolate my rooster, because then he will be powerless/demoted, but I also don’t want him to die.
Do I have to rehome the two Wyandottes? What is causing this? The food is organic and 16% protein, they also get other things, but it seems this is behavioral. Please help, thank you! I don’t want to isolate my rooster, because then he will be powerless/demoted, but I also don’t want him to die.
