Need some help

[chix man]

I'm sorry. Her FEATHERS were missing. Yes this did happen all of a sudden. I had 2 Roos before the other passed. But I did notice this morning that the Roo that is left has become very aggressive torwatds her.

 

[aart]

I'm sorry. Her FEATHERS were missing. Yes this did happen all of a sudden. I had 2 Roos before the other passed. But I did notice this morning that the Roo that is left has become very aggressive torwatds her.

The remaining cock/erel may have been the 'second in command' and is now trying to gain dominance....and she may not want to submit.


Still need to know these things:

How big is your coop/run, how many birds, age of birds?
What do you have them on for feed?
What do you have for windows/ventilation in the coop, and what are they covered with?

 

[bobbi-j]

Aart is asking for some very valid information. Coop size can make a huge difference in chicken behavior, and manufactured coops are notoriously advertised to hold more chickens than they really should.

 

[chix man]

The coop is 97"H x 87" W x 97" D. The run is 10ft by 10ft. We have layer crumble feed and also cracked corn. There are 2 windows in the coop.

 

[lazy gardener]

Is the duck a drake or a hen? I'm guessing that your roo, or your duck, if it is a drake is the instigator, but if one bird is singled out for abuse, the rest of the flock will often join in. Especially in a crowding situation. While technically, your coop is big enough for up to 14 chickens, your run is only big enough for 10. And when ever you add an other species, or a roo to the mix, you need much more room than that, IMO. The fact that you have an abused bird says they need more space. How much cracked corn are you giving them on a daily or weekly basis? They may need more protein. Even if they were just getting layer, without the added cracked corn, they may be deficient in protein. That can lead to feather picking or aggression issues. If you have a drake in that coop/run, that can be a serious problem, as a drake who tries to mate a chicken can kill her.

 

[chix man]

I give them cracked corn everyday mixed in with the layer feed

 

[aart]

I give them cracked corn everyday mixed in with the layer feed

What is the protein content in the layer feed?
Most are 16%....and the scratch is diluting that to even lower.
Not a good idea to mix it anyway.

I like to feed a flock raiser/grower/finisher 20% protein crumble full time to all ages and genders, as non-layers(chicks, males and molting birds) do not need the extra calcium that is in layer feed and chicks and molters can use the extra protein. Makes life much simpler to store and distribute one type of chow that everyone can eat. I do grind up the crumbles (in the blender) for the chicks for the first week or so.

The higher protein crumble also offsets the 8% protein scratch grains and other kitchen/garden scraps I like to offer. I adjust the amounts of other feeds to get the protein levels desired with varying situations.

Calcium should be available at all times for the layers, I use oyster shell mixed with rinsed, dried, crushed chicken egg shells in a separate container.

 

[lazy gardener]

How much cracked corn? The corn is low protein. The layer feed is the very minimal amount of protein for a layer, many folks find that their birds do BETTER when they get MORE than 16%, which is in layer. By giving them cracked corn, you are decreasing their protein to a level where they may be engaging in feather picking or aggression simply because they are malnourished.

 

[mobius]

As it is getting quite cold here, i am giving my 6 about a cup, no more, of scratch, before bedtime. It is separate from their feed. I too am learning about the need for more protein than I thought, so the mealworm farm is coming in handy (about 1/2 cup live mealworms I think per day for mine is good). The extra protein has also helped with speeding up the molt, I am just about sure of it.

So feed can be tricky, a bit, and I am learning what the stores sell (e.g. layer feed) is not necessarily what is best. So I am fermenting it and also supplementing it until it is gone.

All in all, a learning and tweaking process.

Hope the little hen is better!

 

[amc123]

So today when I came home from work one of my hens was making a sound. At first I thought she was about to lay an egg but the sound continues into tonight. So when I looked in on her, her back seems to be missing all her hair. Like it looks raw. So I put some veterycin on it. Any ideas why her back is like that?