A couple of my new RIR hens decapitated and were eating the head from a younger bird!
I just recently started my own backyard flock as a hobby with the hope of eggs as a benefit. I acquired a flock of about 10 birds recently, which came with two young ones. One of the younger birds already had a damaged eye from being pecked. The previous owner is also inexpeireced and she said she just put the two young birds in with the flock and several of the older hens attacked just this one bird so she removed them both and kept them seperate.
I thought it would be better to introduce the young birds to the flock using a dog crate to keep them seperated. I've had the younger birds enclosed in a large dog crate and then put the crate in the hen house. They've been in there with the hens for almost a week and I was just considering letting them out. This afternoon I heard a lot of unusual racket coming from the hen house and went in to investiage and found the carnage of this poor fellow. I'm shocked that the poor little fellow didn't just move to another area of the cage to keep from getting pecked like that. The other one escaped harm again, they seem to prefer that one to the one that has died.
Do birds pick on certain babies if they sense that there is something wrong with it internally? I just can't figure out why they would constantly bother one bird but then accept another? I'm told that they were both from the same flock.
Is it proper to keep young birds out of the flock entirely until they are fully grown? I believe these are about 8 - 10 weeks old. They are smaller bantams, but almost as large as others in the flock. The RIR don't bother the adults.
So.... now that the RIR have tasted meat/blood are they going to be visious? They were pecking at my shins and hands when I went in to remove the mess.
I feel so bad for the little bird and will feel terrible if this was due to me trying to rush the process.
I just recently started my own backyard flock as a hobby with the hope of eggs as a benefit. I acquired a flock of about 10 birds recently, which came with two young ones. One of the younger birds already had a damaged eye from being pecked. The previous owner is also inexpeireced and she said she just put the two young birds in with the flock and several of the older hens attacked just this one bird so she removed them both and kept them seperate.
I thought it would be better to introduce the young birds to the flock using a dog crate to keep them seperated. I've had the younger birds enclosed in a large dog crate and then put the crate in the hen house. They've been in there with the hens for almost a week and I was just considering letting them out. This afternoon I heard a lot of unusual racket coming from the hen house and went in to investiage and found the carnage of this poor fellow. I'm shocked that the poor little fellow didn't just move to another area of the cage to keep from getting pecked like that. The other one escaped harm again, they seem to prefer that one to the one that has died.
Do birds pick on certain babies if they sense that there is something wrong with it internally? I just can't figure out why they would constantly bother one bird but then accept another? I'm told that they were both from the same flock.
Is it proper to keep young birds out of the flock entirely until they are fully grown? I believe these are about 8 - 10 weeks old. They are smaller bantams, but almost as large as others in the flock. The RIR don't bother the adults.
So.... now that the RIR have tasted meat/blood are they going to be visious? They were pecking at my shins and hands when I went in to remove the mess.
I feel so bad for the little bird and will feel terrible if this was due to me trying to rush the process.
