Hen being bullied! What should l do?

Emily0918

In the Brooder
Mar 6, 2021
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I recently got two new hens Olive (sliver laced Wyandotte) and Lola (black astralorp) Lola fit into my flock just fine and has made lots of friends olive on the other hand is having a hard time. When she first arrived the other chickens pecked her a lot and l figured it was normal because they had to sort the pecking order out but Olive would never defend herself and just lay down while they attacked her then hide in the hen house (now she refuses to come out) when she does she is constantly attacked. I have been putting food and water in the coop for her (she’s been at my farm for several weeks now and it hasn’t gotten better :() but she’s so miserable. What do l do?
 
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This is her when she first arrived, the only time she was out of the coop😔
 
It sometimes takes a long while to be accepted by the flock. So plan accordingly. My flock don't accept there 2 sons but they coexist by a distance and they sleep outside on the roof of the coop.
 
I've read that Wyandottes can be kinda cliquish, in that they like to mainly associate with other Wyandottes. That might be why she's having trouble fitting in. Not sure what would work for you to fix that...is there any particular hen that is the aggressor, or goes after her first? You can try taking them out of the flock for a few days so that they'll be distracted by getting back into their place in the pecking order.

You can also just try distraction itself--treats, new stuff, things to investigate and mess around with that aren't Olive. Hang a head of cabbage or lettuce where they have to jump to get at it. Put fresh straw/shavings in their run. You get the idea.
 
It appears that you did not quarantine her or introduce her properly so it will take a lot longer for her to fit in. Now your only hope is to break up the bullying by taking the hen that is leading the attacks and put her in time-out.
 
A couple of things to try:
  • Adding more clutter to the run. Can every hen see every other hen 100% of the time? Add roosts, add ladders, pallets, small pieces of cardboard or plywood, totes, anything that a bird can step behind and disappear for a bit.
  • Add feed stations in some of these places, where a bird can eat out of sight of birds eating at a different station.
  • Sometimes it is one wicked bird, with followers, sometimes it is the whole group. One wicked bird - put her in a dog crate for a week out of sight of the others. Let the others get along for a while before adding her back in.
  • If it is all of them, let them out of the run into your yard. Let the victim into the run, and feed along the fence for a few days.
  • Or you might re-home her. Some birds just do not fit in some flocks. A miserable existence. If I tried a few of the other things and it didn't work, that is what I would do. Sometimes you just can't fix it.
Mrs K
 

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