I have a bully!

[Sylviaanne]

I put my chicks born on the 12th in with the chicks born on the 31st and they showed them how to eat and drink. No one bullied anyone.

I have 8 that were born on the 31st, 8 that were born on the 12th and 5 that were born yesterday and today. I put the older chicks out in the cage in the henhouse today and put my new born chicks in with those born on the 12th. I ran out of room to put the newborns somewhere out of the incubators and was playing "switch your pen."

The tallest chick didn't even seem to look them over and went immediately for the one with the sticky looking fuzz. It looked to me like it tried to hop over the baby and lost it's balance and threw it's wings out for balance. It fell off and a few seconds later I realized it was attacking the baby for the second time. I knocked it off and took the baby back to the incubator. I watched to see if it would switch it's attention to another baby but all it did was look at them like it was searching for the missing baby. None of the other 7 is paying the chicks any real attention.

I can't believe I feel like wringing it's little neck. Would this older baby be a cockerel?

 

[Sylviaanne]

It couldn't have been half an hour since I put that baby back in the incubator. It has looked sticky all day but now it is fluffy! I put another chick back in with it because I have read that they are very social and it's not good for them to be alone. This one is the next stickiest looking one and I am afraid that for whatever reason that older chick attacked the first one that it might do it to this one. I think I will put all 5 back in the incubator before I go to bed just to be on the safe side. One more has a little sticky look to it.

Why would it fluff up so quickly when it has been like that all day?

I do have a brooder for the 5 now that I put the older ones in the cage outside. I just thought that since the babies born on the 31st got along so well the those born on the 12th, why not let them teach the feeding and drinking to the new borns? I am glad I was right there and observant enough to have caught that.

 

[Owlgirl7]

The bully bird wouldn't necessarily be a cockerel. In chick days it doesn't seem to matter whether its male or female. It's whose the strongest and the oldest. The victim chick unfortunately was probably weaker than the bully chick and began picking on it. It could have been a competition for food, space, water, or light under a heating lamp. Squabbling among chicks can be common but "attacks" on chickens I believe are more common in adult birds. It probably would be best to separate the two age groups. Even a couple of days age difference can result in very different sized chickens and dramatic different rankings in the pecking order.

 

[Sylviaanne]

The bully bird wouldn't necessarily be a cockerel. In chick days it doesn't seem to matter whether its male or female. It's whose the strongest and the oldest. The victim chick unfortunately was probably weaker than the bully chick and began picking on it. It could have been a competition for food, space, water, or light under a heating lamp. Squabbling among chicks can be common but "attacks" on chickens I believe are more common in adult birds. It probably would be best to separate the two age groups. Even a couple of days age difference can result in very different sized chickens and dramatic different rankings in the pecking order.

Yes, I will but I had just put all of them, the older ones and the newborns in the new brooder. The bully didn't have time to feel threatened. I didn't even have the heat lamp set up yet.

 

[Owlgirl7]

Chicks are a lot of work and it's hard to keep up with all of their required duties! With different chicken age groups again it's hard to predict how they will react to one another. It depends on breed and the individual. I am also not sure how a damp chick could fluff up so fast but humidity in the air can change rapidly and help it dry--- that's my guess. Good luck with your bullying problem and happy chicking!

 

[wackypig]

We have a bully, too (Choco Taco), and I'm afraid they are mighty common. I spend tons of times with my chicks (like you, I have sets of different ages), and she gets jealous when I spend time with someone else so she attacks them. But, she's been a bit aggressive since I brought her home -- she'd just randomly attack the other chick's feet. She's about 8 weeks now, but not big enough to put in the coop with the adult hens. So, she and her sister (who she picks on) live in one large dog crate next to another crate of 3 5 week old chicks. I know they're all getting to know each other, but Taco is prevented from her bullying tendencies. It's really irritating sometimes.

Good luck with your littles!

 

[Sylviaanne]

We have a bully, too (Choco Taco), and I'm afraid they are mighty common. I spend tons of times with my chicks (like you, I have sets of different ages), and she gets jealous when I spend time with someone else so she attacks them. But, she's been a bit aggressive since I brought her home -- she'd just randomly attack the other chick's feet. She's about 8 weeks now, but not big enough to put in the coop with the adult hens. So, she and her sister (who she picks on) live in one large dog crate next to another crate of 3 5 week old chicks. I know they're all getting to know each other, but Taco is prevented from her bullying tendencies. It's really irritating sometimes.

Good luck with your littles!

LOL Foot fetish? Maybe you ought to put some nail polish on Choco Taco's nails and let her see how it feels. My chicks love, absolutely love, my glittery nail polish. Some times I actually get bit, not pecked because of it. It's only the adults that don't seem to care if I wear polish or not.

 

[Sylviaanne]

Chicks are a lot of work and it's hard to keep up with all of their required duties! With different chicken age groups again it's hard to predict how they will react to one another. It depends on breed and the individual. I am also not sure how a damp chick could fluff up so fast but humidity in the air can change rapidly and help it dry--- that's my guess. Good luck with your bullying problem and happy chicking!

The chick wasn't wet, didn't feel damp. It looked and felt dry and the look was like someone put too much gel in it's fur (?)

 

[Owlgirl7]

The chick wasn't wet, didn't feel damp. It looked and felt dry and the look was like someone put too much gel in it's fur (?)

Chick fluff can get spiky and sticky. Chicks do preen themselves so maybe it preened the spiky-ness out of its fluff.

Also, as you describe the bully was "toe-picking" at the other chicks and act as though another chick's or their own toes are tasty enough to eat. I've never had this result in injury but it can bothersome to see and is an early form of cannibalism. This occurs sometimes when the humidity or temperature in the brooder is too high. Or when the food isn't easy to reach. This is usually the chicks' instincts kicking in to start pecking on the ground for food. They look down and see feet that look like tasty worms to them. Lol! You can decrease this by spreading starter on the ground that is easier for them to reach and distracts them from other chicks' toes. I also know chickens hate mustard so if it becomes a big problem put mustard on their feet and one peck from the bully will leave it disgusted.

Hope this Helps ~Owl Girl~

 

[wackypig]

LOL Foot fetish? Maybe you ought to put some nail polish on Choco Taco's nails and let her see how it feels. My chicks love, absolutely love, my glittery nail polish. Some times I actually get bit, not pecked because of it. It's only the adults that don't seem to care if I wear polish or not.

Oh my gosh! I think you are right about that... Taco DOES enjoy my purple sparkly toenails. Silly little lady! My adult hens will also test out a painted fingernail, but they don't go after it with quite the same gusto.