Resocializing a Timid Girl

[Earl in the woods]

Hi all, we have 2 barred rocks and 2 buff orpingtons in our backyard flock. One of the orpingtons was bullied before we got her by the rooster she was with in a previous flock. We got her at about 18 weeks old.

When we introduced her, there were 2 Columbian Rocks we had back then that were very aggressive with her. She gravitated to the other orpington and we thought all was well.

Then the snow came and forced them into the enclosure (10'x13')we have around the coop. We'd leave the door open in the morning and the flock would head to the space below the deck out back to give them room. Then I started finding her (Honey) alone, standing in the snow, puffed up on one foot. I had a friend that wanted to expand their flock so the Columbians got rehomed.
Finally, the question. Even with milder temps she still puffs up and doesn't forage or walk around like the others. We brought her inside the basement thinking it was cold stress. Could it be she needs to be resocialized? She got bullied before we got her then the Columbians bullied here. Am I identifying the problem or is it something else, and what's the next step? Sorry for the novel, we love our girls and want her to be comfortable and secure. Thanks for reading. Earl

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'd check her over for lice/mites, make sure her crop is emptying and consider getting a fecal float through your vet to see if she needs deworming.
Is she laying eggs? If she hadn't laid eggs and should have, she may be having some issues expelling an egg.

It's possible she may be unwell instead of bullied.

Do you see the others keeping her from food/water or pecking at her?

 

[Earl in the woods]

Checked, no mites or lice. She's better today, it's only been a week since the bullies left. Our township won't allow roosters and has 6 hen max for residential. My friend (re-home location) has a farm and his rooster straightened the bullies out in minutes.

Mild temps here for a few days definitely helps. Maybe she's starting to realize the mean girls are gone. Thanks for the response

 

[Earl in the woods]

I'd check her over for lice/mites, make sure her crop is emptying and consider getting a fecal float through your vet to see if she needs deworming.
Is she laying eggs? If she hadn't laid eggs and should have, she may be having some issues expelling an egg.

It's possible she may be unwell instead of bullied.

Do you see the others keeping her from food/water or p

I'd check her over for lice/mites, make sure her crop is emptying and consider getting a fecal float through your vet to see if she needs deworming.
Is she laying eggs? If she hadn't laid eggs and should have, she may be having some issues expelling an egg.

It's possible she may be unwell instead of bullied.

Do you see the others keeping her from food/water or pecking at her?

Hi again, our little girl was lethargic again today. So I did another lice/mite check (but used my reading glasses)and it was lice. The little buggers blend right in to the naked eye.
We emptied and treated the coop, treated all 4 girls, now we wait.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hi again, our little girl was lethargic again today. So I did another lice/mite check (but used my reading glasses)and it was lice. The little buggers blend right in to the naked eye.
We emptied and treated the coop, treated all 4 girls, now we wait.

I'm glad you checked her over and was able to treat her.
Hopefully she'll begin to improve. It wouldn't hurt to give her a direct dose of poultry vitamins like Poultry Cell a couple of times a week.

 

[Earl in the woods]

Hi again, our little girl was lethargic again today. So I did another lice/mite check (but used my reading glasses)and it was lice. The little buggers blend right in to the naked eye.
We emptied and treated the coop, treated all 4 girls, now we wait.

Thank you, I'll look into that.

 

[Earl in the woods]

Hi, we lost our girl Honey tonight. After yesterday's lice treatment and identifying what we thought was the problem we had high hopes for her recovery. Today she didn't leave the coop at all. I picked her up, put her in the run to get her close to food and water but she just stood still with her head buried in her feathers. I had a bad feeling tonight so I went to check on her and she was dead. My guess is more than one thing was wrong.

When we got her, she was about 18 weeks old but the back of her neck was bare from the rooster pecking at her. She looked pretty ragged. So we thought we'd be a perfect fit, she'd be a pet that laid eggs. The seller was a farmer I knew and I doubt much consideration of bullying was given. "Figure it out or you're dinner."

I have an idea, based on what I observed but wanted to ask the forum first. I researched Coccidiosis, Marek's and anything else I could think of. Nothing lines up. I'd appreciate any feedback. Thank you.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hi, we lost our girl Honey tonight. After yesterday's lice treatment and identifying what we thought was the problem we had high hopes for her recovery. Today she didn't leave the coop at all. I picked her up, put her in the run to get her close to food and water but she just stood still with her head buried in her feathers. I had a bad feeling tonight so I went to check on her and she was dead. My guess is more than one thing was wrong.

When we got her, she was about 18 weeks old but the back of her neck was bare from the rooster pecking at her. She looked pretty ragged. So we thought we'd be a perfect fit, she'd be a pet that laid eggs. The seller was a farmer I knew and I doubt much consideration of bullying was given. "Figure it out or you're dinner."

I have an idea, based on what I observed but wanted to ask the forum first. I researched Coccidiosis, Marek's and anything else I could think of. Nothing lines up. I'd appreciate any feedback. Thank you.

I'm sorry to hear about Honey

It's hard to know what was causing her decline, there's so many conditions that affect poultry and symptoms can look similar sometimes.

Without necropsy/testing, it would be just a guess. If she was new to your property, Coccidiosis could be a contributor to decline. Couple with external parasites and perhaps something reproductive, but again, just a guess.

You are in CA, so I'm not sure where you can get testing/necropsy. Agriculture of Ministry or through a Vet(?). If you lose more in a short period of time, it would be a good idea to investigate further.

 

[Mrs. K]

Not everything gets a long life. There is a theory that chickens pick up on an illness long before people and drive it from the flock. And often times, weekend animals are much more susceptible to lice.

I just think it was her time.

Mrs k

 

[Earl in the woods]

Not everything gets a long life. There is a theory that chickens pick up on an illness long before people and drive it from the flock. And often times, weekend animals are much more susceptible to lice.

I just think it was her time.

Mrs k

Thank you for taking the time to write. We've had our little backyard flock for a year and a half now. Before that I'd never given a chicken a second thought until I started looking after them. They imprint on you so fast. Whatever the name of the sound is, cooing? I just say they're talking to me. Then following me around the yard. I was hooked. I split wood with one swing every 5 mins, they jump up and want the bugs in the bark. I walk away til they're done. Then repeat the process over and over. Pretty entertaining to chicken people.

The first orpington was a sweetheart, full of energy and affectionate. We had two barred rocks and two Columbian Rocks. I wanted "Pumpkin" to have a sister but my friend only had the one pullet, the other 7 ended up being Cockerels. So I reached out to my other chicken contact and he had an orpington "Honey" that just started laying. . She was in rough shape compared to pumpkin. Feathers missing from the back of her neck, no tail feathers. He said that rooster was nasty, so my guess is she was destined for processing. But orpingtons were scarce at the time where I live so I thought she could use a safer place to live out her days as an egg laying pet.

To your point, the Columbians were sweethearts but weren't nice to Honey. Maybe they could tell she wasn't healthy.This was August, they had the run of the yard to free range. When the snow came we lost 90% of their daytime area. They stuck to under the deck and basement walkout. That's when I really saw the isolation. We're in Central Ontario Canada and our winter hit fast and harsh. Seeing her alone puffed up alone on the snow gutted me. I thought it was cold stress, I brought her in the basement. Read for hours and days about certain symptoms, physical traits, body language, anything. The harsh cold subsided but the symptoms stayed the same.

Last week I came on here for advice. I missed the lice the first time I checked, but second check with glasses I saw them. Treated her that day, she was gone the next.

We know it's part of the deal , still feel the loss though. Thanks again for your thoughts.