Sorry, this may be long winded. . . .
So, my black astrolorp hen (Bullet), was recently pecked down pretty badly by her coop mates. After assessing and treating her wounds I decided to recover her in the garage in a crate. Anyway, she spent about 2 weeks in the garage and after several days in a row of much grousing on her part and returning to regular egg laying, I decided it was time for her to go back to the coop. Last night was warm and dry so I turned her out in the yard first and then let the rest of the girls out with her. Lots of scraps and treats were scattered about. Now, she has always been low down in the pecking order and when she scuffled with the dominant hens I didnt think too much of it, considering what I observed as normal. All of them eventually headed in when it got dark and they settled down relatively quickly after I locked them up. ie- not much scuffling, fussing or jockeying for position. When I opened the coop up this morning, I did make a point to do this early to discourage them from fighting, she was on the highest perch next to the window - in my observance the most highly sought out perch in the coop. All the hens came out for treats. Except her. She was fluffed up and preening when I checked on her. She would not come out even for radish peels. She looks fine, not new wounds and no feathers pecked or picked by the others. Shes just acting strange. Any thought or insights?
She is 3 years old, very docile usually, comes when called by my one daughter and to the eye looks fine. Her time in the garage she was fed feather fixer feed, extra cooked proteins,clean water at all times and a few fresh greens were offered daily. I'm stumped unless she has just decided to claim the coop for herself.
Thanks
Update: after several severe thunderstorms complete with tornado warnings rolled through tonight, she has been pecked again. Brought back to the hen hospital. Stay tuned
So, my black astrolorp hen (Bullet), was recently pecked down pretty badly by her coop mates. After assessing and treating her wounds I decided to recover her in the garage in a crate. Anyway, she spent about 2 weeks in the garage and after several days in a row of much grousing on her part and returning to regular egg laying, I decided it was time for her to go back to the coop. Last night was warm and dry so I turned her out in the yard first and then let the rest of the girls out with her. Lots of scraps and treats were scattered about. Now, she has always been low down in the pecking order and when she scuffled with the dominant hens I didnt think too much of it, considering what I observed as normal. All of them eventually headed in when it got dark and they settled down relatively quickly after I locked them up. ie- not much scuffling, fussing or jockeying for position. When I opened the coop up this morning, I did make a point to do this early to discourage them from fighting, she was on the highest perch next to the window - in my observance the most highly sought out perch in the coop. All the hens came out for treats. Except her. She was fluffed up and preening when I checked on her. She would not come out even for radish peels. She looks fine, not new wounds and no feathers pecked or picked by the others. Shes just acting strange. Any thought or insights?
She is 3 years old, very docile usually, comes when called by my one daughter and to the eye looks fine. Her time in the garage she was fed feather fixer feed, extra cooked proteins,clean water at all times and a few fresh greens were offered daily. I'm stumped unless she has just decided to claim the coop for herself.
Thanks
Update: after several severe thunderstorms complete with tornado warnings rolled through tonight, she has been pecked again. Brought back to the hen hospital. Stay tuned
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