HELP PLEASE! Month old chick head pecked severly (graphic picture)

[panhandler]

I ended up having to put her down. In addition to the scalp damage it looked like she had some pretty severe damage to both of her eyes. By the time I got home from work she was not doing real well and I decided that it was best. I don't know if she would have made it or not, but it was obvious that she was in a lot of pain and in shock. Thanks for the suggestions, hopefully we don't have to go through this again. Any Recommendations for when we try to introduce the other chicks again? I will probably wait at least another couple weeks before I try and leave them all together unattanded so I will have time to plan things out a little better.

thanks,
Brandyn

 

[Hen is cute!]

i'm soo sorry!!

 

[JakRat]

I just had to introduce 8 week old chicks and it was stressful. We ended up having to put up a partition of chicken wire in the coop to prevent pecking. We had one really violent hen that we actually sent to live with our rooster at another farm because she was attacking the babies... not just pecking but like full on attacking. Now there is some pecking, but it isnt harmful.

 

[cafarmgirl]

I would absolutely NOT introduce anymore of the 8 week olds for a while yet and especially not leave them unattended together, at all, yet. Integrating new chickens can be very difficult, chickens can be viscious! When you do start to integrate them the best way to do so would be to fence off part of the coop/run for them if possible. This way they can be in the same area and visible to the other's but not accessible. Sometimes even after a couple weeks of doing this you can still have a problem if you have a particularly aggressive hen or two.

What I have done in the past is give the new one/ones a section of the run for themselves and then at night they go into a wire dog crate inside the coop. They are also allowed out with the flock when I let them into my pasture. That said, I have one hen who I tried to integrate as a single new bird, they've never accepted her in the coop. They are fine with her outside but if they find her in their coop/run they attack.

If it appears you have an instigator who starts these nasty attacks you can try pulling that bird out for a while and see if the other's can settle in. Then put her back in after a few days. Again, you'll have to watch carefully.

Good luck, sometimes integrating is no fun!

 

[suzeqf]

I'm so sorry, I had an Ameraucana hen with a similar injury she was chased under something and scalped herself it looked really bad I though I was going to have to put her down but luckly she made it it took her 6-8 weeks to finally heal up and grow her feathers back but she's still scared to leave her roost for more than a few minutes.

 

[lilys chickens]

I tried to introduce my month old chicks with the rest of the flock and one of them got pecked very badly. does anyone have experience with something this bad? we don't have a vet close by that will see chickens and I want to know if this is an injury that can heal or if I just need to put the chick down. sorry for the graphic photo. Thanks.

I just started with chickens and I was told not to have young chicks mingle with grown ups because that is what will happen. Also chicks can't eat the same food as layers. You need to keep the younger ones separate until they are at least big enough and can take care of themselves. I had 4-10 week old chickens and 2-5 week old chickens and I kept a very close eye on them. They ate the same food so it was ok and even though they were 1/2 the size as the older ones they only got chased around. But soon enough they caught up in size and they all get along very well. I can't even tell what I am looking at. Get it to a vet or bring it in the house and give it some TLC till it is healed.

 

[JerseyGiantfolk]

I ended up having to put her down. In addition to the scalp damage it looked like she had some pretty severe damage to both of her eyes. By the time I got home from work she was not doing real well and I decided that it was best. I don't know if she would have made it or not, but it was obvious that she was in a lot of pain and in shock. Thanks for the suggestions, hopefully we don't have to go through this again. Any Recommendations for when we try to introduce the other chicks again? I will probably wait at least another couple weeks before I try and leave them all together unattanded so I will have time to plan things out a little better.

thanks,
Brandyn

Sorry about that, one of my sisters hens had the same problem, the other CCL's have already posted my methods of dealing with it.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Very sorry...

 

[Suzie]

I am so sorry too..!

Suzie

 

[BooeyBird]

My about 2 year Owl Pigeon pecked off many feathers of my Ringneck Doves head. It wasn't as severe as yours chick's head, but we couldn't afford any medicen for him at the time. I put a little neosporn on his wounds, and he was all healed in about a month.