Pecking order

[tralfaz]

how does this work and how do you tell who's on top?
Are there more than one honcho or is it like a parliament, where several rule?
And is it more like a caste system where the bottom members never rise?
My favorite chicken appears to be on the bottom, but I want to boost her confidence to stand up to the bullies.
I feed her extra worms and fresh veggies and she's getting bigger everyday, but she's still a bit of a wimp.
Lost cause or just fun poultry psychology while stuck home?

signed, Sigmund

 

[rosemarythyme]

I can only answer for smaller flocks (maybe bigger ones have multiple heads?) but yes I'd say there's generally a top dog, and everyone else falls under her. If you have a mature rooster then he should be the top, but there'll still be a dominant hen as well.

Pecking order isn't linear or fixed. Birds will rise and fall in rank. Even the top bird can get dethroned and replaced by another. Especially in cases where you add new birds or chicks, as they integrate in that's when you'll get to see obvious shifting around in the pecking order.

 

[aart]

I feed her extra worms and fresh veggies and she's getting bigger everyday, but she's still a bit of a wimp.

How do you do this around the other birds?

Lost cause or just fun poultry psychology while stuck home?

Not a lost cause and definitely if you have more time to observe, do so.
Observation is always good, expectations may need to be tempered.

I've never really been able to tell the head hen in my flock of ~15-20.
This really explains it well:

Pecking order isn't linear or fixed. Birds will rise and fall in rank. Even the top bird can get dethroned and replaced by another. Especially in cases where you add new birds or chicks, as they integrate in that's when you'll get to see obvious shifting around in the pecking order.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Oh, I did forget to answer, how do you tell who's on top? Look for the hen that all others give way to. When you bring feed or treats, there's usually a bit of squabbling as all the birds run in. Some birds will peck at birds that are lower ranked than them, or chase them. The head hen often can just give others the stink eye and they'll move away without her needing to do anything else. If my head hen actually has to tell another bird to move it, she usually nails them hard, once, and then goes back to eating. Doesn't bother fighting or fussing. None of the others will tell her no.

 

[tralfaz]

How do you do this around the other birds?

easy because she likes people more than the others. But once the others smell fresh worms, the gig is up!

 

[tralfaz]

Oh, I did forget to answer, how do you tell who's on top? Look for the hen that all others give way to. When you bring feed or treats, there's usually a bit of squabbling as all the birds run in. Some birds will peck at birds that are lower ranked than them, or chase them. The head hen often can just give others the stink eye and they'll move away without her needing to do anything else. If my head hen actually has to tell another bird to move it, she usually nails them hard, once, and then goes back to eating. Doesn't bother fighting or fussing. None of the others will tell her no.

Ahh, its the one who gets to the feed with no lip or beak from the others, thanks Rose