Rooster attacks new hen

[tomfromsc]

I'm sorry you are having problems.

Can you clarify are both new hens broody with chicks? Are both hens exhibiting "broody behavior"? (puffed up, protecting chicks, clucking, still providing shelter, showing chicks feed, etc.)

Photos of your space-coop/run (dimensions)?
How old is your rooster?

I'm not sure what you should do in this particular situation. It's unfortunate that the hen was attacked and I hope that her injuries are not too severe.

thanks for your reply both hens are with chicks but their behavior is very submissive towards the rooster they asume the breeding position whenever he is close and he attacked her in that posture and she couldn't get away so I broke up the fight,this was when they were out free range in a 50 x 50 ft fenced in area attached to their coop the rooster is 2 yrs old

 

[tomfromsc]

Lots of chick deaths are not the roosters fault,likely he owners,if you know the bird isn’t good with chicks an mothering hens,you should t be letting them come in contact till the chicks are older.A rooster is not being abbusive bud fending himself form a hen or driving strangers out his territory,if the hens.

he hasn't bothered the chicks just the new BO hen

 

[Chickassan]

Submissive yes, but is the hen in question laying again yet? The new hens shouldn't be in your flock until eggs are happening. The submission will keep happening and Bruce will keep being Bruce. He will just be brutal and not mate because what's the point of mating a hen that isn't laying or treating her nicely so she can take resources from hens he knows are breeding material?

thanks for your reply both hens are with chicks but their behavior is very submissive towards the rooster they asume the breeding position whenever he is close and he attacked her in that posture and she couldn't get away so I broke up the fight,this was when they were out free range in a 50 x 50 ft fenced in area attached to their coop the rooster is 2 yrs old

 

[tomfromsc]

Submissive yes, but is the hen in question laying again yet? The new hens shouldn't be in your flock until eggs are happening. The submission will keep happening and Bruce will keep being Bruce. He will just be brutal and not mate because what's the point of mating a hen that isn't laying or treating her nicely so she can take resources from hens he knows are breeding material?

thanks thats an interesting point something for me to think about but the hens are laying again

 

[tomfromsc]

If it wasn’t so bad,I would say let it continue.It about three weeks for my boy to fully except a hen I introduce into the flock.Just because she is a girl doesn’t teens she is gonna slide in for free,and she has kids,please!My rooster is a great guy,but he can’t stand broodies,I would wait till the hens are doen brooding,then try again.My rooster now courts the run around the yard,it takes time but birds will adjust to the new comers.Maybe separates your rooster,don’t get rid of a good rooster.

thanks after reading all the comments I think I will just watch him closely for a while and maybe I can figure a way to seperate the chicks from the hens like keep the chicks in the brooder coop and let the girls out by themselves and try introducing them again to see what that does

 

[DrFrank]

How did you end up with two mothering hen? Were these 2 BOs part of the flock prior to brooding? If you somehow ended up with mother hen and chicks, it's prudent to wait till the mother hen weans the chicks off before integrating them. You are having a potential disaster at hand, the rooster or the original hens could easily kill the chicks. Separate the 2 BOs and their chicks, allow them to grow out a lil' bit more and then integrate them all in a neutral zone.

 

[tomfromsc]

How did you end up with two mothering hen? Were these 2 BOs part of the flock prior to brooding? If you somehow ended up with mother hen and chicks, it's prudent to wait till the mother hen weans the chicks off before integrating them. You are having a potential disaster at hand, the rooster or the original hens could easily kill the chicks. Separate the 2 BOs and their chicks, allow them to grow out a lil' bit more and then integrate them all in a neutral zone.

my original post explains that.... thanks for your input

 

[chickengeorgeto]

I have two new hens i'm trying to introduce to my existing flock... The two new hens are Buff Orps and they are both with... chicks... 3... and 4 weeks old...

Chicks this age are more than old enough to be weaned. The problem is that the hens have been separated from their flock and now the poor rooster is unable to understand why his hens are un-submissive to him. There would likely not been a problem at all if the two mother hens had been allowed to raise their chicks in and amongst the rest of the flock. Hens with NEW chicks have a privileged place in a flock and roosters respect this privileged position, just remember that chicken childhood is very short compared to the childhood of humans.

 

[tomfromsc]

Chicks this age are more than old enough to be weaned. The problem is that the hens have been separated from their flock and now the poor rooster is unable to understand why his hens are un-submissive to him. There would likely not been a problem at all if the two mother hens had been allowed to raise their chicks in and amongst the rest of the flock. Hens with NEW chicks have a privileged place in a flock and roosters respect this privileged position, just remember that chicken childhood is very short compared to the childhood of humans.

thanks.... good food for thought

 

[tomfromsc]

Thanks for your interest ...I decided to put Bruce in jail Thursday July 26th. After free ranging for the day every one ( the original 4 hens the 2 new hens and the 5 , four week old chicks ) just went into my big coop all on their own and Bruce was still out so I took advantage of the moment and I shut the door and locked him out then herded him into the Nursery coop by himself. This is where the Orpingtons hens and chicks had been staying .Much to his dismay the nursery was now jail for Bruce .He is 4 feet from the other birds and can't get out . His sentence was 2or3 weeks and then he gets out , hopefully with an attitude adjustment . My thinking was this also gave all the others time to adjust and I hoped they would get along....forward to August 15 Bruce got out of jail a changed chicken everyone gets along very well the chicks have started foraging on their own a little squabbling around food but NORMAL ...YES my penal system works ....Thanks everyone for your advice