Help my rooster is attacking one of my hens!

[aart]

That's typical, and true of much information on the net, this particular forum is a prime example.
There are many opinions on how, and many different viable ways, to manage chickens.
It can take a good deal of time to read lots of posts and threads before coming to a conclusion/solution on what will work for your situation.

Some suggestions you read here will work for you and your birds, and some will not.
It also takes time to learn about chicken behaviors from your own hands on experience.
Chicken can be easy and fun, but there is a huge learning curve, the first year can be daunting with a lot of hard lessons to live thru.
Using this, and any forum, also includes a big learning curve to determine the best folks to listen to, and those you will do best to ignore.

Hang in there!

 

[Mrs. K]

It is tricky. If the hen is in very bad shape, well then she might need to be pulled. Try putting the two pulled hens close enough together so that they can see each other, as the one heals, buddy them up. It is better to reintroduce a pair than a single hen. But reintroductions can be hard.

Make sure that there are multiple hide outs in your run/coop set up, different levels so that birds can get away from each other.

Good luck,

Mrs K

 

[ValerieJ]

Make sure that there are multiple hide outs in your run/coop set up, different levels so that birds can get away from each other.

I'm going to work on this. Good idea. I have plenty of room to put as many get aways as needed. I have one bird who sleeps in one of the apple trees. Also, I do have the two "pulled" birds in the same room, but separate pens. they are right next to each other and seem to appreciate that. I often see them sitting together. I have a fenced in area right next to the chicken run where I can put them for a while to introduce them to the flock when the time comes. But, I am definitely keeping them safe for now. I have to go out and check on the 3 free chickens about every hour because I'm worried that the rooster may have had a bad influence on one of them. So far so good, no big squabbles.

, the first year can be daunting with a lot of hard lessons to live thru.


Hang in there!

No kidding, Aart! It was all fun and games here until I found out I had a rooster! Would not like to have another one of those for a long time, maybe never. I cannot believe how quickly he damaged my chicken. I have been in the habit of going and checking on them every hour or two, and had just checked on them before dinner and then after dinner, a wounded chicken. It was a nightmare. Thanks so much for all your advice and encouragement. Wish I had culled the rooster as soon as you said to, but that would have meant doing it myself, and I haven't grown that much in this process yet. I mean, they all have names. My plan was to let them live until they died of old age.

 

[dekel18042]

Oh no! This just tells me I will lose two more chickens! That is terrible news. Ethel is in very bad shape. Listening to all the advice I have gotten on this website tells me that if I let her back in the flock, she will be picked on by the other chickens because they are attracted to the red color. She is in bad shape. It's true that Shirl has not been injured yet, but she is the smallest and was the original one picked on by the rooster, who is no more. I'm really confused. Early in my interaction with BYC, I am getting conflicting advice. I'm just trying to do the best for my chickens.

What might work is if you have a dog cage or wire crate and can put her in the coop or run so she and your other chickens can see each other closely without interacting (And do slather her with blue kote. Once she is better if you can add a friend it will help and if you have an area they can free range together it should be fine if she can get away.
I have four separate coops with some adjoining runs. Once quarantine is over or young ones have been in their own coop and run for a while I just open the doors and let them come out. Make sure you have enough feeders and waterers so no one goes hungry,. Within a short time they should be getting along while going back to their own coops or cage at night.
Right now I have my main flock. I had a separate bantam flock that free ranged together with the large fowl but when the weather got cold last year the bantams moved in with the big birds successfully. I have this years hatchlings, almost three months old who have been out since 3 weeks. They go in the big pen and eat and some of the laying birds go in their coop and lay in their nest boxes. At one point accidently a pullet was locked overnight in the big coop with no problem. She joined her friends the next morning. I also have a bachelor pad. The roosters are well behaved so they are allowed out during the day.
I think part of the solution which you don't have is a multigeneration flock and plenty of room with escape paths and places to hide.
But since you don't have many chickens hopefully this will work on a smaller scale especially if you keep the birds in sight of each other.

 

[ValerieJ]

That is all great advice dekel. Thanks. I do have the wounded chick in a large dog kennel in my garage, and I have the littlest chicken in the brooder right next to her. They can see each other and sit next to each other all the time. My husband is building a second coop, but wasn't able to finish it this weekend, so it will be a couple weeks before I have that. I do have lots of space for making additional runs, and already have two separate runs. My plan is to bring the two indoor chicks out to the separate run initially, with their own coop. But, I think that will be a couple of months away because I understand it will take that long for Ethel to heal. And at this point I feel it's better for her to at least have another bird near her. If I can talk him into a third coop (for 5 chickens) I'll get another one for the main run and allow the chickens to choose where they want to stay at night. That might be asking a lot of him. Unfortunately he is traveling a lot this summer, which complicates everything for me.

What might work is if you have a dog cage or wire crate and can put her in the coop or run so she and your other chickens can see each other closely without interacting (And do slather her with blue kote. Once she is better if you can add a friend it will help and if you have an area they can free range together it should be fine if she can get away.

 

[ValerieJ]

Just in case someone with a rooster problem comes across this post, I want to update everyone on the rooster problem. I successfully mended the wounded chicken, although she will always be missing all her neck feathers. The timid chicken is okay too. The rooster, on the other hand, was made into Cockerell in Reisling Sauce. Delicious.

A year later, I have three new hens, all Australorps because I have discovered their sweet dispositions. And my old Australorp (well, one year old) has been brooding big time, so I got her a rooster. She doesn't have much to do with him, but all my other hens love him. They try to get their eggs under her. She was my timid one I put in protective custody a year ago, and now she is the star of the show.

Also, with this new nice rooster, all the hens are able to live together in relative "chicken harmony". He loves them and they love him.

I just want to say, having a rooster is wonderful. But, if he is mean, don't waste your time. There are many unwanted roosters who will love your flock. He wont attack them. He will bring them treats, and make sure they have eaten before he does. So, don't give up on having a rooster just because you have one that is too aggressive. But, do give up on the aggressive rooster, sooner rather than later.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Thank you for the update. You are right that the wrong rooster isn't worth the time and should be invited to dinner. The right rooster is a joy to have around and the hens appreciate him. Glad you found a good one.