Pecking order after injury

[Mountain_artist]

Hi,
Two weeks ago exactly, one of my 4 barred rock hens, Chickpea, was attacked by a coyote. It was bad and we almost had to euthanize, but she pulled through. Here's the thread on that:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/chicken-was-attacked-by-canine-what-to-do-next.1288059/

Now, we are having pecking order issues. She WAS the biggest and friendliest of the girls. They're all about a year old, we got them at the same time, and they free-ranged during the day. I really never noticed any aggression from any of them.

NOW, Chickpea is pathetic with her entire back half totally featherless. Her wounds are healing well, and feathers are starting to poke back in, but she's much smaller looking than she used to be. We cover her bare butt in Blu Kote just to help camouflage it some, but its not working. The next-biggest hen, Venus, is bullying her badly, to the point where she isn't allowed to get any food or water. She was just sitting pathetically on the roost all day long. I put her in her own area of the coop with he own food and water, separated with hardware cloth so she can still see the others. Venus now pecks at ME(!) aggressively when I come in to check on Chickpea!! She also struts around and squawks awfully at me! Should I isolate the bully instead? Will this improve? What else can I do?

I need to point out that, since the coyote attack, we haven't free ranged them *at all.* They are not used to being cooped up. They DO have a nice coop and run (pictures are included in thread I linked above,) but they used to have 2 acres of yard and woods. Coyotes are everywhere right now, as my neighbor has calves in the pasture across the way, and the coyotes are lurking in the hopes of nabbing some veal. I hear them all night. Letting the chickens out to free range will result in certain death. My husband is about to fence in an additional run for them, but it won't be nearly as strong as the existing coop/run structure that is predator proof. It will just be a fenced in area. I'm worried they'll be eaten.

 

[aart]

I would just keep CP separate for now.
You are basically doing an integration of a single bird.

Venus now pecks at ME(!) aggressively when I come in to check on Chickpea!!

Don't put up with that for a second.
Have had this happen several times, mostly with hand fed chicks often as they come of age and get spunky. It's pretty easily curbed with calm and deliberate determination.

I peck them back, on the head or anywhere I can reach, with the tips of thumb and first 2 fingers, as hard and fast as many times as I can before they get away. Well, not hard enough to hurt them, just startle them and let them you mean business. That's what another chicken would do, so they understand that kind of communication.

If that doesn't work after a couple applications, I hold them down to the ground with my hand on their back until they submit....again firmly enough to get the job done but not hurt them....add a few finger pecks and/or tug on the feathers on the back of their neck.

 

[nchls school]

Sounds like your hens are busy forming a new pecking order. The injured hen will have to be kept separate until she heals. I'd meet aggression with aggression. The hen will back down. Most likely things will calm down once the new situation becomes familiar.

 

[Skipper81]

They naturally know how to handle this
The advise about holding down a chicken sounds very scary from a chickens perspective
You can’t pick the pecking order only the chickens can

 

[nchls school]

No you can't pick the pecking order,, but at the same time it's not good to let them be aggressive towards people. I've never had a hen be THAT aggressive. Maybe when they have chicks to protect. "hold it down" if the situation got that bad I'd get rid of the bird. I've only had roosters get so aggressive; they became Sunday dinner. I've about 10 roosters-none are aggressive towards me. A few are actually quite friendly.

 

[aart]

The advise about holding down a chicken sounds very scary from a chickens perspective

"hold it down" if the situation got that bad I'd get rid of the bird.

Let me explain....have had to do this with 2 birds, pullets about 4-5 months old.
Pecking back didn't work, as it had with several other birds of varying ages, I held them down very briefly, not with any violence or injury....they submitted-squatted down and quit fighting and I never had any trouble from them again. I do not tolerate chickens being assertive in my space....they are livestock animals, I am the keeper and food bringer...don't bite the hand that feeds ya
Please don't call PETA on me

 

[Mountain_artist]

Thanks for the answers everybody! My main concern is keeping Chickpea safe while she is healing, while not isolating her too much that integration becomes an even bigger problem. I definitely want to discourage Venus's bullying of Chickpea and ME!! I did put the other low-order hen in the enclosed part with Chickpea for a bit, thinking maybe she'd like to have a friend, and maybe Chickpea wouldn't be the oddball out. I really don't know what I'm doing here though! We've only had them a year and they're our first. Everything was going along fine for so long! The "enclosed area" is just the part of the run that goes under the coop, and we have windows all around it right now as a wind break and sort of a green house so it gets warm during the day. There's hardware cloth separating it from the rest of the run--isn't that enough exposure to the rest of the flock to prevent reintegration issues?

When Chickpea heals up and grows back her magnificent tail (her tail was something! Almost like a tom turkey's fan tail! Nobody messed with her! lol!) will Venus back off? Do pecking order issues really only last a couple of days?

I know what you mean by "hand fed" but nobody has ever acted aggressive before, and we don't dote over them a whole lot usually--they do their thing and don't really want to interact with us too much. We have two youngish daughters (5 and 9) who fuss over them a little, but the hens are mostly disinterested in all of us unless we have food. They're not "lap hens" or anything (not that there's anything wrong with that, it's just that "hand fed" makes me think of more pet-like chickens and ours are more livestock-like in my mind...or am I missing the jist?)

I actually sewed Chickpea a little coat that covered her wounds and kept her warm, but she kept taking it off. Same with the *second* coat I made her! (This is all getting out of hand lol!) While she wore the coat, the flock had no issues with her at all. I was so optimistic!
Edited to add: I just noticed the irony of my assertion that they are not pet-like, followed by the admission that I sewed this chicken multiple coats! This whole chickening adventure is a strange trip indeed!

 

[Mountain_artist]

Do you all think the new aggression is also being made worse by being cooped up when they had free-ranged before the attack?
My husband is going to build an addition to the run with some simple fencing, but it won't be as protective as the existing coop/run, and will still be a far cry from 2 acres of free ranging! Will it be enough to help settle things down?

 

[aart]

isn't that enough exposure to the rest of the flock to prevent reintegration issues?

Yes, it is..a mesh separation wall is good.

Do pecking order issues really only last a couple of days?

They can, but I wouldn't count on it.

(not that there's anything wrong with that, it's just that "hand fed" makes me think of more pet-like chickens and ours are more livestock-like in my mind...or am I missing the jist?)

I hand feed on occasion, it's fine, just be aware that some can take advantage and get too assertive.

I actually sewed Chickpea a little coat that covered her wounds and kept her warm, but she kept taking it off. Same with the *second* coat I made her! (This is all getting out of hand lol!) While she wore the coat, the flock had no issues with her at all. I was so optimistic!
Edited to add: I just noticed the irony of my assertion that they are not pet-like, followed by the admission that I sewed this chicken multiple coats!

It's fine line....but I'd forget the coat. Some folks use saddles/coats successfully, but others find them more problem than solution.

Do you all think the new aggression is also being made worse by being cooped up when they had free-ranged before the attack?

Yes....I was going to mention that but forgot. Chickens don't like change and being confined is a pretty big change added to bringing the patient back out to he coop. The more space the better.