My Chicken Is Being Mean To My Quiet Chicken, Why?

[cloggadoo]

My nearly year olds Bamtams have grown up with each other and their sisters, but all of a sudden one picking on the other one.
The one whos picking on the other one is bigger and bold and its seems shes getting more aggressive and pecking on the head,
there both laying,
dose anyone no why shes doing that?

 

[CMV]

It's all a part of the pecking order. Your bold one is asserting herself as dominant over the quiet one. Just keep an eye on them and hopefully it will pass quickly. If the bold one becomes too much of a brute you may want to separate her for a week by herself. She will re-enter the flock as the new low man on the pecking order and will need to work her way back up to the top rung. Most birds that are separated never actually get back to their former positions. Usually the best bet is to let the flock work things out for themselves, but if one is drawing blood and being a jerk then I will resort to separation to prevent injuries.

Good luck.

 

[cloggadoo]

hi thanks for the info but we only have two now but will seperation still work? Tonight we have seperated them hopefully it will work

 

[Judy]

My chickens are pecking/eating each other's feathers:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=34705
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=31291
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=36139
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=30486

 

[Katy]

Chickens are often not the cuddley cute birds that some people would like them to be. They are often rather blood thirsty and if there is a weak one amongst them most of the time it doesn't take them long to make the weaker bird's life at the very least miserable or at the worst kill them.

 

[cloggadoo]

Thank you for your post but we only have the 2 birds and we hatched them out, could you keep a chicken on its own?