Hen Pecking Rooster

[Chicks By The Bay]

I have 2 hens and a rooster. The barred rock is constantly going after the light Sussex rooster and plucking his feathers. This is new behavior. What can I do?

 

[Lady of McCamley]

First, what is your protein content in your feed. Feather picking can be a sign of lack of protein. So check that first. I recommend 18% for many breeds.

Check the BR to see if she is molting or has lice/mites or otherwise irritable from some affliction.

If you don't think it is deficiency, or something irritating the BR, you can give your BR a time out to help chill her. She may believe herself to be the top bird in the flock, and if your roo is somewhat submissive, she is hazing him.

Observe their behaviors. What has changed in the environment? Has the rooster reached full sexual maturity recently? The BR may be going after the rooster because he is constantly, well, uhm, wanting attention, and she's "got a headache." She may be completely fed up with him.

If he is younger, a mature hen is also simply not going to put up with an over rambunctious young rooster maturing sexually. I actually put my teen boys alone in with a group of matrons who teach them manners VERY quickly. They have to learn to dance and woo and appease their girls if they want action.

You also have a small group of hens to rooster. It may help to add a couple more hens to divert his attention better and put the pressure off the BR.

So it could be a number of things.

My thoughts,
LofMc

 

[50-45-1]

Are your chickens confined in a small area?

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Yes...size of area is very important.

And...I doubt you are doing this...are you lighting the coop? Too much lighting can cause feather picking.

LofMc

 

[aart]

@Chicks By The Bay good questions here.
I'll ask how old are the birds?

 

[Chicks By The Bay]

Yes...size of area is very important.

And...I doubt you are doing this...are you lighting the coop? Too much lighting can cause feather picking.

LofMc

Thanks for replying. I think they have plenty of room. I think I will segregate her for for awhile. Buck the roo is rather submissive.
Chicks by the Bay

Yes...size of area is very important.

And...I doubt you are doing this...are you lighting the coop? Too much lighting can cause feather picking.

LofMc

Not lighting the coop.

 

[Chicks By The Bay]

@Chicks By The Bay good questions here.
I'll ask how old are the birds?

They are about a year and a half.

 

[SHP]

I am so glad to find this thread!

We are having the SAME problem! Mature BR hen is pecking my 5m old BCM roo. He IS rather rambunctious and definitely favours her, though I can't even tell why, other than he's scared of my RR (she's all the best kinds of feisty ), and the other 2 old enough to dance with are pretty fast .

He's learning to dance, but he gets turned down a lot. He can be leaving her alone and she'll walk up from behind him, intentionally make her way round directly to his chest to pick his feathers...and he LETS her! He just stands there and LETS her!

I have tried putting stuff on him to stop her, but maybe she likes it more ? I tried isolating her for a couple of days and yesterday's when I let her back out it seemed better. I read in this forum that it could be protein so this morning I threw in chick starter for them to peck and scratch at just in case, I've been giving them greens hanging from a cord in the run to keep them occupied and tonight when I went down to lock the door for them after a very busy afternoon/evening his neck and chest were so much worse! He's going to be bare if this keeps up, and it's cooling off here!

I will check her again in the morning for mites/lice or signs of them. Thinking I might have to isloate her for a lot longer? The run is big, but the coop is too small for our dog crate with the waterer and feeder in there. I had her in the crate, in the run, covered over with blankets for night, but I really didn't like doing that. I have to find something small enough for inside of the coop.

Is there anything else I can do? Should I put something on him to cover his bald spot until it grows back?

 

[SHP]

I am so glad to find this thread!

We are having the SAME problem! Mature BR hen is pecking my 5m old BCM roo. He IS rather rambunctious and definitely favours her, though I can't even tell why, other than he's scared of my RR (she's all the best kinds of feisty ), and the other 2 old enough to dance with are pretty fast .

He's learning to dance, but he gets turned down a lot. He can be leaving her alone and she'll walk up from behind him, intentionally make her way round directly to his chest to pick his feathers...and he LETS her! He just stands there and LETS her!

I have tried putting stuff on him to stop her, but maybe she likes it more ? I tried isolating her for a couple of days and yesterday's when I let her back out it seemed better. I read in this forum that it could be protein so this morning I threw in chick starter for them to peck and scratch at just in case, I've been giving them greens hanging from a cord in the run to keep them occupied and tonight when I went down to lock the door for them after a very busy afternoon/evening his neck and chest were so much worse! He's going to be bare if this keeps up, and it's cooling off here!

I will check her again in the morning for mites/lice or signs of them. Thinking I might have to isloate her for a lot longer? The run is big, but the coop is too small for our dog crate with the waterer and feeder in there. I had her in the crate, in the run, covered over with blankets for night, but I really didn't like doing that. I have to find something small enough for inside of the coop.

Is there anything else I can do? Should I put something on him to cover his bald spot until it grows back?

I checked her over this morning, no pictures, it's too hard to hold her in the beam of the flashlight, splay feathers, keep her from freaking out at me and take a pic at the same time ..

She has a dirty bum, bit of stuck to her feathers (her is a bit wet) so I started with her vent area. She seems a bit dirty, but doesn't look like what I've seen of mites and lice/nits in pictures. She had nothing I could find under her wings at all.

Quite a lot of her underside isn't feathered, guessing she hasn't grown them back since being broody? Or do they just keep a much larger bare patch than I realized? And maybe a bit of a bruise on her breastbone, dark reddish patch. Unless, would she get that from leaning on the perch all night? I've not checked them over so early morning (5:15) before.