So I have 3 RIR hens and i recently got some silkie chicks. I thought to make things easier, i'll introduce them now so that it won't be so hard later. So i take my little silkie chick ( about a week old ) outside. The past few days i have shown him to my hens on the over side of the chicken wire. They seemed calm and curious about the little guy so I decided that maybe it was time for them to actually get close and personal with him. So i let my chickens out and they've gathered around me. So i put down him down and one of my hens proceeds to peck his little head. I understand that it is wrong to hit animals. I know that there defenseless and so on and so on. But i'm not going to lie, I punched that hen as hard as I could. I didn't even think about it. It was just instinct. So I pick the poor little guy up and hes crying obviously. I check for blood or a bald spot but hes fine. I know that introducing new chickens to the flock isn't exactly a smooth transition but good god, its a baby chick! How can my full grown reds possible see that little baby as a threat?
So i guess what i'm asking is how can I get my hens to not treat my chicks like a punching bag?
So i guess what i'm asking is how can I get my hens to not treat my chicks like a punching bag?