Oh Hai another Newcomer

[TrinityCreed]

Poor dears, ugh! I feel awful. Their coop isn't huge, ten by seven ish. The run is free range, with three acres they roam on normally. I have four waterers out and three feed ones.

I am thinking of building a secondary coop off the side of the regular one. Its a converted tack room off an old barn. There are ten nest boxes, and three sets of roosts in varying heights.

This winter will have less birds in the coop than last year due to culling four roosters and the loss of five hens so far, so I'm hoping they'll be ok. We get seven foot drifts so they don't get out too much in winter.

Ugh I feel bad now

 

[TwoCrows]

I would go sit with them for a half hour a day or so and see what is going on, who is going after who and just what the deal is. Chickens need 5 square feet per bird in the coop. And this is floor space, not including roost bars and nest boxes. If one is a big trouble maker, separate her out or use pinless peepers. Peepers will stop aggression in it's tracks.

If vent picking is indeed what is going on, I would not do the varied level roost bar thing. At least not one over the other. This can make vent picking worse if a butt is in another's face. This can also lead to toe or leg biting. So I would keep all the roost bars on one level. Make sure you have enough bars and plenty of room for everybody. Go up at roosting time and watch what goes on too. There is usually a lot of fighting at roosting time. I go up there often and make sure everybody gets on the bar ok. I line them up in pecking order from highest to lowest. This way there is less fighting. My birds have learned where their spot is on the bar and rarely do my birds fight. At least not at roosting time.

 

[TrinityCreed]

Ok. I'll try to see if I can build out in spring. We just put in a new fuel tank so I'm broke and can't build now.

They have about a body height plus between bars so no one's too close that way. But I'll try to build some more bars at the same height.

When I go in at night ive never seen fighting or anything, except when a hen gets tired of the rooster. During the day they are in groups and no one gets chased around. I'm home all day all I will try to keep more of a eye on them.

Maybe I should give them stuff to play with too?

 

[Kelsie2290]

TwoCrows has given you some great suggestions on dealing with vent / feather picking. Pinless Peepers usually stops it totally when they have them on ... but in the summer PPs do make it hard on free range birds if you expect them to find a lot of their own feed. Since it is winter and they are probably going into molt anyhow, you might also consider culling any of your older birds as they quit laying if it looks like they are the problem... vent picking/ feather plucking is a really hard habit to break totally.

 

[TrinityCreed]

Going to try some of these! The oldest are only two, so I'm hesitant to cull. But I'm going to try some of these and build out next year to give them more space.

I feel bad for the poor dears! yeah in spring and summer we do let them free range, as well as provide feed. It's been helping keep our pests down, so that's been nice!

I think we're going with more barreds this coming year as they've been our best behaved birds. Hopefully I can give then more space and it'll help too.

I'm planning on browsing this forum more for ideas for space and roosts for them all, too!!

 

[TwoCrows]

Good luck! We have all dealt with this sort of thing. Don't feel too badly.

I have a hen that wore pinless peepers much of her younger years. She was a comb ripper. She is improved greatly this past year and hasn't needed peepers in about a year now. These peepers do stop the aggression if you don't want to cull.

 

[drumstick diva]

You can bake egg shells and then crush them to use as a calcium source- so ,your birds don't have to go without, if the feed store doesn't have oyster shell.

 

[TrinityCreed]

Thank you. I really do just want to be a good chicken parent lol. Going to try to see who is instigating and go from there!

And we do give them the shells crushed and baked. But with them laying :/ the woods we were short on eggs !! Sneaky hens

 

[sunflour]

Welcome from Georgia..so glad you joined us.

 

[Mountain Peeps]

Welcome to BYC! Please make yourself at home and we are here to help.

Best of luck to you!