? Lonely chicken

[Stephanie6456]

Hi ...looking for some advice please - I have three pekin bantams- due to bullying and not being able to rectify it I have the ladies living as a two and a one (the one who was bullied) this has been the case since October. They can see each other through a fence. I am worried the one on her own will get lonely ????? Should I get her a friend???? My only concern is that if she doesnt bond with a new chicken I could end up in more of a situation and have three groups ... please any helpful advise ?????

 

[sourland]

If she is doing well in the 'look but don't touch' set up, I would leave things as they are. Every time we add birds the flock dynamic changes , and there is the possibility of introducing disease.

 

[Stephanie6456]

If she is doing well in the 'look but don't touch' set up, I would leave things as they are. Every time we add birds the flock dynamic changes , and there is the possibility of introducing disease.

 

[Stephanie6456]

She does seem to be doing well ..I think it's me worrying about her more than anything

 

[Callender Girl]

This is a tough one, in my opinion.
I seem to be doing it both ways here. Neither is perfect.

On the one hand, my "house chicken," a single chick, was given to me last fall. She was too small to go out with the others, then it was too cold by the time she was old enough and feathered out. At almost a year old, she spends nights in a large dog crate in the house and makes field trips outdoors during the day. (Yes, she will have to transition outdoors come winter when moving indoors and outdoors would be too much temperature change. She will have a private coop then. And, yes, I do spoil my chickens.)

Although she loves to hunt for bugs, forage for greens and dust bathe, Dot doesn't have any real chicken friends (most of my girls hang out with the hens they grew up with or their roommates from the various coops). Sometimes, she dust bathes near the others, but she doesn't have a "flock." Even Lottie chases her.

Lottie is the bottom hen in the pecking order and lives in my avatar coop. She NEVER has feathers on her butt. The girls free range during the day, and she hangs out with some of her coop mates then., I guess chasing Dottie off gives her some sense of status.

It's hard to watch a hen get bullied. But Lottie willingly hops into the coop at night with her tormentors, uses the nest boxes in that coop even though there are other coops open where she go lay. I've considered trying to work her into a different coop, but she seems to accept her position. The pecking order seems to be much harder on me than on her.

If your girl can see the others, maybe she isn't lonely. But I think she will always be the hen with the least status with them. I can't argue against getting more chickens (properly quarantined, I NEVER object to more chickens!!). but I don't know that it would solve the problem.

In other words, I can't really offer advice, only examples. Good luck finding a workable solution.

 

[Stephanie6456]

This is a tough one, in my opinion.
I seem to be doing it both ways here. Neither is perfect.

On the one hand, my "house chicken," a single chick, was given to me last fall. She was too small to go out with the others, then it was too cold by the time she was old enough and feathered out. At almost a year old, she spends nights in a large dog crate in the house and makes field trips outdoors during the day. (Yes, she will have to transition outdoors come winter when moving indoors and outdoors would be too much temperature change. She will have a private coop then. And, yes, I do spoil my chickens.)

Although she loves to hunt for bugs, forage for greens and dust bathe, Dot doesn't have any real chicken friends (most of my girls hang out with the hens they grew up with or their roommates from the various coops). Sometimes, she dust bathes near the others, but she doesn't have a "flock." Even Lottie chases her.

Lottie is the bottom hen in the pecking order and lives in my avatar coop. She NEVER has feathers on her butt. The girls free range during the day, and she hangs out with some of her coop mates then., I guess chasing Dottie off gives her some sense of status.

It's hard to watch a hen get bullied. But Lottie willingly hops into the coop at night with her tormentors, uses the nest boxes in that coop even though there are other coops open where she go lay. I've considered trying to work her into a different coop, but she seems to accept her position. The pecking order seems to be much harder on me than on her.

If your girl can see the others, maybe she isn't lonely. But I think she will always be the hen with the least status with them. I can't argue against getting more chickens (properly quarantined, I NEVER object to more chickens!!). but I don't know that it would solve the problem.

In other words, I can't really offer advice, only examples. Good luck finding a workable solution.

Thank you for your advise

 

[Stephanie6456]

Calendar girl - sorry I hit the wrong button x thank you for the advice - she seems happy - I think I maybe worry too much - sounds like you have a lot if feathered friends !!!!