Resource guarding keeps derailing my flocks. Can't crack the code!

[thecatumbrella]

I was around last night when mine went to roost and when I eventually decided to investigate the thudding and screeching coming from one coop, I found a pullet roosting on the shoulders of a cockerel who was still stood on the ladder but had tried to jam his head up between her legs to get onto the roost

Oh my gosh, you can always count on your birds to be as awkward as possible!

 

[kattabelly]

Oh my gosh, you can always count on your birds to be as awkward as possible!

I just tried to get a recording of what "normal" bedtime sounds like around here but they weren't being as loud as they sometimes are (didn't realise BYC wouldn't let me embed vocaroos but it's here). Right after I hit 'stop' there were a few screeches and then one of them - I swear I'm not making this up or exaggerating - started braying like a donkey.

 

[thecatumbrella]

I just tried to get a recording of what "normal" bedtime sounds like around here but they weren't being as loud as they sometimes are (didn't realise BYC wouldn't let me embed vocaroos but it's here). Right after I hit 'stop' there were a few screeches and then one of them - I swear I'm not making this up or exaggerating - started braying like a donkey.

The struggle is real to not be “outside edge bird”! I took so many videos when I had the full 7, because bedtime was always hysterical.

And for anyone wondering why I didn’t keep the larger Omlet: it’s $2000 piece of junk that leaks and has loose doors for predators to rip open. The tiny Cube is built like a tank in comparison. Oh well. Another failure on the journey

 

[ChickyCh00k]

I tend to agree with many others here that much of what you describe, especially at roost time, is quite normal. I realize the coop/roost size is a big contributing factor. However, chickens will act like this at bedtime no matter the size of the coop or how much roost space there is. I have 19 hens in a 10x12 coop with a 6' roost bar and two 9' roosts. 24 feet of roost space and those a**holes are beating the out of each other nightly to jam themselves into the back 3 foot corner. I cut plastic lattice and made roost dividers (sort of like what @kattabelly is suggesting) which helped a lot, although I know it would be really hard to do in an Omlet coop.

One of my favorite BYC members (R.I.P., aart) referred to it as the "Roost Time Rumble" and it is FACTS! I have a camera in my coop and I just don't watch them at bedtime. "Why are they acting like animals?!?!" During the day, they're all fairly peaceful, but when it's time to roost, forgetaboutit!

The food and water issue, like others have said, seems pretty normal. You likely wouldn't notice it as much if you had more chickens . I know that sounds "hensane" at this point, but with only 2 other chickens to compete with, it's much easier to "guard" the food and water. (I'm not necessarily advocating that you get more chickens, but I'm not NOT advocating for it... )

It sounds like you're doing everything right and you're a wonderful chicken parent. I also think normal chicken behavior can look absolutely horrifying to us tender-hearted humans who believe in civilized communication and behavior. Whatever you decide to do is the right choice for YOU, and I hope you are able to find peace in chicken-keeping at some point!

 

[Carontheroad]

Right?? This was my husband’s complaint. Just go to bed dude! Why are you leaning over Poppy to take cheap shots in the dark…

They did so well in the run today that we gave them another chance to go to bed in the Omlet. She did the exact same thing. I know you’re a Nestera user. Do you ever see this from yours?

You could try playing some quiet classical music at 432 hertz in or near the coop at night to see if that helps. I’ve had some success with that. I use Spotify on my cell phone with a small blue tooth speaker. I think the 432 htz is important as that is the natural frequency of music. You can search on Spotify for classical 432 htz and then pick calming songs/arrangements. Since you have a camera in the coop you could really see if it has an effect.

 

[CombNWattles]

One thing I’ve observed is that chickens don’t really feel safe on ‘perches’ that are resting on the ground. Their changed behavior during the night looks to me like they were uneasy. They feel safest in that corner, away from the door. If they had more vertical space they might relax a little.

 

[Mother of Chaos]

One thing I’ve observed is that chickens don’t really feel safe on ‘perches’ that are resting on the ground. Their changed behavior during the night looks to me like they were uneasy. They feel safest in that corner, away from the door. If they had more vertical space they might relax a little.

I have a Nestera coop, a bit bigger than OP’s Omlet, and the perches are a whopping 11” off the coop floor. The coop itself sits on a platform 3’ above the run floor.

I was worrying about the low perches too, but a veteran member here (Shadrach) said that it’s more a matter of total height above ground. So in effect, the Nestera perches are four feet up. They’ve never had a problem with them.

Maybe a thought for those of us who have the equivalent of Tiny Houses for chickens?

 

[TMurphey]

- History -

I had three large fowl in 2023, kept in a 9x12 pen. They shared one feeder. Resource guarding started when the last one began laying at 7 months. I added a second feeder. The birds being pecked away WOULD NOT go to the second feeder. Instead, they'd collect any scraps that fell from the dominant hen's feast. I believe this resulted in a small degree of malnourishment. The Golden Comet began picking butt feathers to supplement her diet, then my Australorp began laying shell-less eggs and becoming egg bound. I suppose the egg issues might have been coincidental, seeing as she was a new layer. Everyone was rehomed to a free range environment. All problems resolved in their new home.

- Today -

New bantam flock, kept in a 9x18 pen. They've grown up always having multiple feeders. Four have reached point-of-lay, and all four began resource guarding along with it. Once again, the birds being pecked away WILL NOT go to another feeder. They perform the same eating-at-their-feet behavior. When this happens to an active layer, they end up "lashing out" at the bird below them in the rankings. All their behaviors are pecking order related (not bullying), but it's turned up to 11. They don't even want to share coop space with their underlings, all because top bird doesn't want to share a multi-port feeder, and they refuse to go to another one to fulfill their egg laying needs.

- Extra Details -

Everyone eats 20% all flock by Kalmbach. The crumble is checked daily for freshness and replaced weekly. All feeders are accessible and easily used by everyone. It doesn't seem to matter if there's a visual block between feeders or not. I will say that the bantam flock are VERY nervous birds. They're six months old and still get spooked by the wind blowing. No predators have visited the pen (we have cameras), and I've added privacy screening along some of the walls to help them feel more protected.

- Help? -

What is going on? Judging by everything I've read over the last two years, resource guarding between broodermates seems rare. Why is it happening to me so consistently? These birds want for nothing (other than free range time). We're rehoming the last of the bantams this week, and I'm thinking I'm done with chickens at this point. I can fix their crappy coop (Omlet Eglu), but I can't change the confinement situation at this property. I see many, many chicken keepers housing their flock in similar (or worse) enclosures without issue. So please, let me have it. What am I overlooking?

Is it possible to feed them separately? A couple of times a day. It may be a little more time consuming for you but, if possible, it's worth it. I have a large and "randy" roo who is rough on my hens. I have hens that will live in the coop and in the nesting box just to keep him at bay. I had a hen that would literally come out to a perch and fly do me when I would come into feed them. I would grab a scoop from the feeder and let her feed outside the run while I watched her. When ready and after eating and drinking (about 15 min) I would put her back in the run. She would immediately run up the ramp into the coop to keep away from the roo. I thought she was getting back into the flock and appeared to be eating and drinking so I let her be. Unfortunately, I lost her this summer when it got extremely hot outside. I suspect she dehydrated.
By the way...we did have the room to put up another run, so we eventually did. We now let the hens over to that run during the day and then back to the original run in the evening so they can sleep in the coop together. I have 7 hens and the 1 roo. He was an accident when we bought ALL pullets from Tractor Supply and one of them turned out to be a rooster. He is a beauty, and we raised him from a chick. We've decided to keep him.

 

[thecatumbrella]

You could try playing some quiet classical music at 432 hertz in or near the coop at night to see if that helps. I’ve had some success with that. I use Spotify on my cell phone with a small blue tooth speaker. I think the 432 htz is important as that is the natural frequency of music. You can search on Spotify for classical 432 htz and then pick calming songs/arrangements. Since you have a camera in the coop you could really see if it has an effect.

I love that you brought this up, because I did this whenever I needed to bring them inside (my neighbor's doing major construction next to their pen). I have a Calm Radio subscription and tried some different frequency stations. I'd have to go back and see which ones were successful. They definitely have preferences! No piano, for sure. They also liked talk radio and simple folk music.

I never got a chance to try it outside because I always had fans running at night to cool the coop/run. It would have been an interesting test.

One thing I’ve observed is that chickens don’t really feel safe on ‘perches’ that are resting on the ground. Their changed behavior during the night looks to me like they were uneasy. They feel safest in that corner, away from the door. If they had more vertical space they might relax a little.

I'm not sure how they perceived sitting on the roosts. It's an interesting thought. I do agree that no one wants to sit near the door (I wouldn't either). We were going to test a different prefab with "raised roosts", but I just ran out of time. Decided to get them rehomed with new flocks before winter, rather than mess around and risk failure in freezing overnight temps.

I was worrying about the low perches too, but a veteran member here (Shadrach) said that it’s more a matter of total height above ground. So in effect, the Nestera perches are four feet up. They’ve never had a problem with them.

That's really interesting. My Omlet setup would have only been about 18-24" up.

Is it possible to feed them separately?

They always had the option to eat separately (and not be bothered), but only some of them would actually do it. I guess it was too ingrained to do everything as a group. I'm happy you found a system that works for your roo!

 

[Sefirothe]

I’m currently down to three hens, all hatched/raised together in a 6’x8’ coop with 6’ of roost (plus another 6’ if you count the flat edge of the poop board lip that some chickens in the past did use).

And who ever called it the Royal Roost Rumble is absolutely correct. One hen puts her head down and walks along the roost trying to simply bulldoze the other two off the roost. One pecks heads and feet to move the others away from her. And the biggest fluffiest girl just wants to cuddle up to everyone and go to sleep.

They do NOT settle until it’s too dark for them to see.

These three are two and a half years old. Have lived together since hatch. You think they’d have it sorted out by now but nope.

No video, but I do have some funny action shots.

Edit to add: these pics were taken from last night’s video history FYI.

They do eventually sort it out and end up like this: