Background information: I have 4 chickens in a 3' by 3' coop and a run 3' by probably about 10'. So it is on the smaller side, and there used to be a bigger run, but it was uncovered and I lost a hen to a hawk, so I haven't used it for a year or two. 3 of the hens have lived together since they were chicks for 4 years without any incidents. The 4th hen, Phredd, I added sometime in the winter and they've been getting along fine for months, no issues. So I'm not sure what would have caused this new behavior.
My one hen, Mara, (one of the original 3) was out roaming one day while I was outside, along with the other 3 hens. I noticed one hen (Phredd) was grabbing Mara's comb, so I picked up Mara and noticed that she had what looked like a couple scabs on her comb. I put on some blu kote (supposed to heal and also cover up red blood so the chickens don't peck at injuries) and put her in a small cage by herself. She's been in there for one night, a full day, and then this morning (the incident was Saturday night, this post is Monday noon). I tried to put her back with the chickens, but two of them were attacking Mara's comb. She's back in the cage now. She isn't what I'd call skitish, but she does still try to run if I try to catch her, and usually doesn't feel relaxed when she's in my arms. However, ever since I've been taking her inside and outside, she's just allowed me to easily pick her up without resisting at all, and she doesn't try to get out of my arms at all - she feels perfectly calm. Her weight seems to be the same and she's eating and drinking. I have another coop that I'm going to clean out for her, but I'm worried about her being alone.
Has anyone else had this experience? Could she be sick?
My one hen, Mara, (one of the original 3) was out roaming one day while I was outside, along with the other 3 hens. I noticed one hen (Phredd) was grabbing Mara's comb, so I picked up Mara and noticed that she had what looked like a couple scabs on her comb. I put on some blu kote (supposed to heal and also cover up red blood so the chickens don't peck at injuries) and put her in a small cage by herself. She's been in there for one night, a full day, and then this morning (the incident was Saturday night, this post is Monday noon). I tried to put her back with the chickens, but two of them were attacking Mara's comb. She's back in the cage now. She isn't what I'd call skitish, but she does still try to run if I try to catch her, and usually doesn't feel relaxed when she's in my arms. However, ever since I've been taking her inside and outside, she's just allowed me to easily pick her up without resisting at all, and she doesn't try to get out of my arms at all - she feels perfectly calm. Her weight seems to be the same and she's eating and drinking. I have another coop that I'm going to clean out for her, but I'm worried about her being alone.
Has anyone else had this experience? Could she be sick?
