Hen wounded from bullying?

[Tylexie]

Yesterday, I noticed that my Araucana was missing feathers on her back, towards her tail, and also that she was wounded and bleeding. The wounds look like pecking wounds, and I have noticed her being skittish around some of the other hens, as well as the others going after her a few times. There are some pictures of her wounds below; do these look like peck wounds? How can I help/treat her? Any suggestions on how to stop the bullying?

P.S. I won't be able to isolate any of the chickens.

 

[littlefarmgirl9]

Clean the wound with water, spread some Vaseline. If you can, get BluKote from a farm store. As for stopping the bullies...not sure. Give em a spanking when they're being mean, maybe??
Although I'm not sure those are peck wounds. If you have a rooster, he might've pulled out some feathers while mating. Or the hens pulled them out to eat, though they only do that of they're low on protein . Hmm..

 

[Hen Pen Jem]

Greetings Tylexie,

Clean any open wounds with peroxide, betadine, or saline solution. Apply some Vetricyn spray, Neosporin ointment (without pain medication in it), Blu-Kote, or dab with colloidal silver.

Roosters and hens can chase and peck at her, causing damage to feathers, also grief and anxiety. So give her an edge by putting a hen saddle on her, provide enough space in the pen, free range them several times a week, add boredom busters like: plastic bottles (Parmesan cheese bottles with a flip top are great) with some scatch and or meal worms, fresh greens hanging around the pen, perches or platforms outside, a compost pen in the corner with some alfalfa hay, etc.

During long confinement, chickens need distractions that are a substitute for their natural foraging instincts. Otherwise they will pick on the most docile hens for entertainment or as an outlet for anxiety. This is a big problem for any animal in captivity.

I don't think you need to isolate any of the chickens, this sounds like a behavioral issue from stress.

Greens & fruit slices in large suet baskets.

A saddle/pancho for the smart hen.

The alfalfa pen, with a platform entry.

A lemon juice bottle with holes, for mealworms & scratch (too hard to fill). An empty Hentastic snack feeder on the left.

Well these are some of my distractions, you may or may not have some of your own.

These are my thoughts on your hen's issue, I hope they are helpful.

God Bless and peace to you.

 

[Tylexie]

Thank you for your advice. They free range pretty often now, but the featherless spot seems to have spread. Also, one of my other chickens has had the same thing show up on her. I'm starting to worry about diseases or parasites, but I still can't figure out what it is. Their cuts are closed now, but the featherless patches are spreading and the skin is red.

 

[Hen Pen Jem]

Greetings Tylexie,

It's true, other hens can cause feather damage, but there are other things to look at, too.

Do you have a rooster in your flock? This is important information.

Also, the missing feathers on the hen's vent area, are most likely due to the hen removing them. She appears to have some fecal matter on her skin, which indicates diarrhea. Continual diarrhea can burn the skin causing irritation, leading the hen to remove the feathers, and then cause more injury. Lice or mites can also cause a hen to over preen and finally remove feathers. If there is not rooster, excessive dust bathing to remove ectoparasites, can also break feathers. You may need to bathe the hen's bottom, to give her skin some relief. Epsom Salt baths work very well for this. Then, you can take a better look at her skin and feathers. Some of her downy feathers on her bottom, seem to be disintegrating. There could be some illness, parasite issues, and rooster damage going on. Many times, there is a combination of problems.

Can you provide more details?

• Are the hen's eating normally?
• Pooping normally?
• Laying normally?
• Preening or dust bathing excessively (everyday)?
• Do you worm your chickens?
• Check the roosting/perches for dots of blood.
• Have you actually observed other hens pecking at the feathers of this hen?

If it turns out to be other hens that are the culprits, then this may be a nutritional issue. Perhaps more protein in the diet is needed.

I hope this is helpful.

Have a blessed Easter, and God Bless.