Need help with lonely hen

[MaeM]

Recently I've lost 2 hens of the 3 I had left, and there's only one left.

I can't get new friends for her or rehome her because she's a carrier of IBV and possibly Marek's. The vets advised me against mixing her with other birds.

And I think she's depressed. She doesn't look ill, and she's responsive, etc. But she spends a lot of time in the coop, doesn't want to come out, and is eating less than normal.

She's grieving, right?

What can I do for her, given that I can't rehome her or get her new friends? She's only 3

 

[sourland]

Try providing a large mirror for 'company'.

 

[MaeM]

Try providing a large mirror for 'company'.

Will do.

I have another question, though.

How long should I expect her to be like this? She lost her last two mates within one week, last one on Sunday.

Do chickens grieve and recover from losses as time passes? Could she get used to be alone? Is it too soon for me to expect her to act normal?

 

[MelkEyes]

Will do.

I have another question, though.

How long should I expect her to be like this? She lost her last two mates within one week, last one on Sunday.

Do chickens grieve and recover from losses as time passes? Could she get used to be alone? Is it too soon for me to expect her to act

I would love to hear how you handled this and if that chicken ever recovered from her grief. I am dealing with something a bit similar

 

[MaeM]

I would love to hear how you handled this and if that chicken ever recovered from her grief. I am dealing with something a bit similar

I manually took her out of the coop every day and encouraged her to eat and just do chicken stuff. Plenty of treats and... Damn, I even "dust bathed" in front of her to encourage her to do it herself (and it worked!).

She's still not as active as she used to be because she's really afraid of hawks, and with no flock to protect her, she feels too exposed in the open ground. So she hides a lot.

She's not living the best life, but she doesn't look depressed at this point.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

There are a few hatcheries that vaccinate for Marek's. I had a friend whose flock had lived through Marek's so she was always careful about purchasing vaccinated chicks and from what I understand that worked well for her. You could try looking into that.