Playing VS. Fighting

[1dude]

My hens did a little playing when they were young. They would also run around and crah into each other and make a lot of noise. At 16 weeks they chase each other around the pen all the time. Stand up face to face and stare at each other. They don't seem to be fighting, rarely they peck each other.

 

[debid]

They are working out the pecking order. That happens with both genders and is an ongoing process. Don't let anyone tell you that you have a rooster based solely on fighting. I have a hen that fights just as much as any rooster. Girls can be brutal. The one at the top of the order will have to maintain that by challenging all of the rest and answering any that push back.

ETA: the only time to worry is if feathers are being pulled and/or blood is being drawn.

 

[Rabbitman2012]

They are working out the pecking order. That happens with both genders and is an ongoing process. Don't let anyone tell you that you have a rooster based solely on fighting. I have a hen that fights just as much as any rooster. Girls can be brutal. The one at the top of the order will have to maintain that by challenging all of the rest and answering any that push back.

ETA: the only time to worry is if feathers are being pulled and/or blood is being drawn.

In your opinion what is the best way to deal with the birds once there is feather pulling and blood being drawn?

 

[Fred's Hens]

Some of this "over exuberant" warfare is often the result of too little space, and too much bright, white light. Chicks, raised by a broody hen, spend a lot of time under her wings, in darkness. When she does take them outside, they are busy with investigated the world and eating. Not much time to get fussy with each other.

In the brooder, bad pecking behaviors can be toned down by keeping the environment darker and a heat emitter or red bulb seems to help, in our experience. Bright ambient light from the room they are in can also effect them. High protein feed of 24% is often enough to discourage cannibalism. Finally, space. Boredom and over crowding are not good things.

Just some things to evaluate and look over in your own system. Best wishes,

 

[debid]

Some of this "over exuberant" warfare is often the result of too little space, and too much bright, white light.  Chicks, raised by a broody hen, spend a lot of time under her wings, in darkness.  When she does take them outside, they are busy with investigated the world and eating.  Not much time to get fussy with each other

In the brooder, bad pecking behaviors can be toned down by keeping the environment darker and a heat emitter or red bulb seems to help, in our experience.  Bright ambient light from the room they are in can also effect them.  High protein feed of 24% is often enough to discourage cannibalism.  Finally, space.  Boredom and over crowding are not good things.

Just some things to evaluate and look over in your own system.  Best wishes,

This. If it's too rough, odds are they are crowded or otherwise overly stressed. FWIW, my crazy hen always picks her big scraps during range time. She's assertive, not stupid -- she wants to be able to run when she's in over her head. She's never drawn blood.

 

[centrarchid]

I can have knock down drag outs in free-ranging birds so confinement is not always involved. Birds need not be games for this to occur. It often boils down to politics where where one individual decides to challenge another that will not back down without a little scrap. More often than not disputes are settled with much more subtle signals than outright fighting or chasing. Watch birds closely and you will be able to discern rank based on vocalizations alone.