New Hen is mean to my old hen...

Kerilou

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I have 2 Dominiques, one hen, one rooster. I got 10 RIR laying hens, approx. the same age as the Dominiques, on Saturday. One of the RIR's has started picking on Bernice, my Dom hen. Her feathers are all messed up. Hubby just came in and said Rusty the rooster is now picking on her, too. What should I do? I feel so bad for her. She has been keeping to herself, and I thought I was being crazy, but when hubby said he saw them picking on her, my heart broke..how mean! Is there anything i can do for Bernice?
Keri:(
 
were they mature hens or fully grown pullets that you introduced? Were the RIR's all from one flock? Generally all around here will recommend a 30 day quarantine period before introducing outside birds to your existing flock. Disease can take up to 30 days to show

As for solving the current issue, there are lots of things you can do

1.) Separate the pecked bird but keep her in the coop, partition off an existing area if possible, that way they cannot peck her but can still see/smell/interact with her. Put their food and water bowls next to each other with some kind of see through partition (chicken wire), that way they can eat and drink together while protecting the pecked bird

2.) Dust her with some anti peck dust - you can get it at a local feed store, it tastes terrible and the chickens will stop pecking her

3.) If there is blood, get her out of the coop - red is irresistable to chickens, they will peck, peck, peck until she is dead if there is blood showing. Put some red toe nail polish on and go into the coop with flip flops! Then slowly re introduce her after the wound is healed and the feathers grown back, do it with plenty of space and some time so you can observe the flock. Put a ring around the offending RIR so you can check she is not the only one up to the pecking tricks

4.) Take out the menacing bird and rooster from the coop, let the others establish the pecking order and then re introduce them as the minority, they should fall into place - rooster probably at the top of the list the hen elsewhere

5.) Let them free range together if possible, if they go after the bird she will have space to escape!

6.) Finally if you observe pecking in person, i kick the offending bird, not a boot like you would a football, more of a scoop, enough to ruffle the feathers but never to hurt them, it lifts them 2 - 3 feet off the ground, they stomp round petulantly afterwards but after a while they get the message

Ultimately you may not be able to stop it, i have 3 RIR's, they bow to my every (almost) command, i have 1 mille fleur bantam, they torture her and peck her for no reason, my coop is big enough that she can escape, she quit roosting with them a few weeks back, she roosts high up on the roof joists, away from the others, i have a run, she escapes the others, eats after they eat, drink after they drink, scratches, dust bathes and generally everything after the RIR's have had their turn. Such is the life of a flock of birds and their pecking order!

Good luck and remember as much as they are pets and i do see mine as pets that contribute to the families bottom line, we cannot project human emotions or behaviours on to them, they have their instincts and sometimes are set in their ways!
 
Thank you for taking the time to reply to me! I appreciate it. As for the quarantine, I was not aware of this until after they had already been put together...I feel terrible about it now...I can only cross my fingers now and hope for the best, I guess... The RIR's I introduced were last May's chicks, started laying in September. We got them from a neighbor who needed to get rid of them, cause he sold his farm. Yes, all 10 were from one flock.

I will try to look for some dust if the problem continues. I have not seen any blood *yet* but your statement put me on high alert. Can you tell I am new at this? LOL
I read hubby what you wrote down, and we will work on solving this problem. He said just now that Bernice is sticking by Rusty, Rusty is just bothering Bernice cause he wants "some". When she sticks by Rusty, the RIR leaves her alone. It is when she strays away from him that the RIR bothers her. If the RIR bothers her tomorrow, I will take her out and we will quarantine her.

And thanks for the pep talk. I tend to get over emotional--emotional enough for me and the animal! LOL

Keri


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No worries, i am newish to this as well. I marvel at their behaviour! Just this evening i came home, grabbed a picnic chair and sat drinking a cup of tea watching them scratch around and do their thing, very therapeutic! Don't worry yourself about the quarantine, its a best practice not law, if they came from a neighbour, the likelihood of them having something that they picked up from their environment that they are not also exposed to in your yard is minimal. It is more a practice if you introduce birds from a complete stranger from a totally different area.

As for the "pep talk" i consume info from here, (my advice is a re cap of lots of ideas i have seen on here) hopefully some others will post with some other advice, there will be opinions from all angles, some have chickens and they are purely farm animals, once they stop contributing they go into the stew pot, others are vegetarian and bath and blow dry their birds weekly! Someone no doubt will disagree with my kick and scoop method! The blue dust i was talking about is called blue kote, i read elsewhere in these forums someone put vicks vapour rub over the area that has been pecked, that is probably a very easy, quick solution with a product you have lying around the house.

Like i said i have RIR's, some claim them to be very docile, mine can be docile, until the bantam has something they want, then they turn into monsters, i made sure the bantam was safe and not overly exposed to their harshness, after that, its up to her to not get in their way, she soon learned. In fact when i got home, she had laid me her first egg for over a month!

Lastly, not to be crude, if Mr Rooster wants "some" she better start giving out!

Good luck and welcome to chickendom, its fun, consuming and you will soon realize that you have become a crazy chicken person like the rest of us and will be tracking down where you can buy day old chicks and setting a brooder up in your kitchen (that is exactly what has happened to me since october!
 
Hi! Good morning from NY. Thanks for getting back to me! I can't wait until it is warm enough here for me to sit and watch the chickens! I have wanted them for SO LONG and circumstances finally went my way and I got my 2 Doms back in the fall. I guess I just felt bad cause Bernice was the "queen" all this time and now, well, she seems to be the pee-on. Can you tell I was teased and bullied when I was a kid in school? LOL! Rest assured, my chickens will not be shampooed or blow dried around here! We have a small hobby farm with some oxen, heifers, beef, and while the chickens are loved and taken care off, they won't be sleeping in my bed. I really don't think I could ever eat them, I just wanted them for a hobby, and for eggs. I believe we have blue kote and red cote in the barn. They are both sprays in a can, though, rather than powder. I do have vicks also, though. I am gonna try to keep a closer eye on the dynamics today and see how Bernice is doing, and go from there...Have a great day, and thanks againf for the advice!
(waiting for my baby chick order due 5/17, LOL)

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wow! I would love a hooby farm, right now i have to be content with chickens and vegetables galore! I only have 0.25 acre so cows, pigs or sheep are out of the question. What chicks did you order and how many? I have 2 plymouth barred rocks in the brooder in the kitchen, they are 3 weeks old and are now exploring the kitchen, when i came home yesterday they were hanging out on my counter top watching the birds out of the window!

How much land do you have if you have a barn and the other animals?
 
Place the bully hen in "chicken jail" for a week. I use a dog cage and she stays there, period, for a week. Then I reintroduce her to the flock. It takes some of the stuffing out of them; often that is the end of their bullying. If she resumes her bullying, back in jail for another week. Haven't had one that two weeks in jail hasn't solved. Good luck.
 
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I ordered 26. 12 EEers, 6 Black Australorp hens, one rooster, 6 Light Brahma hens, one rooster and hopefully a freebie! I got them from McMurray. They will be here in mid-May. So excited! We have 15 acres, most of it pasture land for grazing. My son is 14 and is in FFA, and hubby and I both have farming backgrounds, so we are really enjoying it!
 
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I have not seen any agression today..SOMEBODY ate Bernice's egg today, though. I am gonna keep my eyes open and jail the offender if need be...Thanks!
 
15 acres! That would be a dream, i would have to have a sugar momma to pay the bills, i would be lost for months tending my land, i would absolutely have cows, pigs, sheep et, plus a whole heck of a lot more chickens! Vegetables and fruit trees galore. Oh for that day to come

Chicken Jail! I love it, like solitary confinement, that is one i will keep for bullet point 6 next time someone has an overly agressive chook!
 

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