Roosters pecking at chicks

[anisa]

my husband told me to try the bigger set of chick in the garden with the roosters and see how they go so i did ... both my roosters started to peck at the chicks ..i'm not sure if this is normal and can they hurt the chicks ...i'm now not sure if it is the right thing to try to put them out yet ... and if it is how to we stop the roosters from pecking at them

 

[GodofPecking]

Pretty much all of the adult chooks will peck chicks at first, to establish the pecking order 'who's the boss' then the chicks are meant to keep out of the way of the adults. Of course it's hard to teach a week old anything how to do anything, so it might be a bit of time. How far does the chick run off after being pecked ? sometimes they don't go far and it sort of suggests that they aren't really hurt at all.

Today however, my few months old half size polish was set upon by a full size rooster, as if he wanted to mount her. I didn't like that, she is too small and delicate no matter what. It's a big rooster and shes the size of a dove. I'll move the polish elsewhere, where he won't go.

 

[appps]

How old are the chicks? There is sort of a window when they are just a few weeks old (I've done 7wks and 5 wks) when they aren't really seen as part of the pecking order and can be added to the flock. It's important to let them have escape points though in case of pecking, boards to run under, holes adults can't fit through etc and food and water at both ends of the run in case they get chased away. I let mine sleep seperate though still till they put themselves to bed with the big birds themselves after a couple weeks. Was very simple to integrate and no fights or problems.

However, once they get much older than that they fall into the same catagory as an adult bird for the rest of the flock and then they have to be taught their place in the flock and there is lots more pecking. Then it's actually better to wait till they get big enough they can hold their own a bit better.

Oh and disclaimer, I don't have a rooster but I have read posts from people who do who had the same results but the rooster can be a bit of a curve ball

 

[anisa]

to be honest i'm not sure how old the chicks are ... my first set i believe are about 5/6 weeks old the second set are a different bread i believe and look bigger we only got them last friday

i have taken pics of them but it doesnt do them justice i will try to up load them

the chicks dont run that far really and thats makes it easy for the roosters to do it again

the fun part for me was trying to catch them so i could bring them back inside as i didnt want to leave them their till i knew for certain .. they went all over the place i had to call my 6 year old to help catch them

 

[anisa]

first pic is the second set ..we dont even know what breed they are




second pic is the first set their was 7 now only 5 they i believe are 5/6 weeks old we have had them for nearly 5 weeks



this pic is from the second set ..they always jump up and sit on top



during the day when it is sunny we place them out in the balcony where they can get the sun

 

[azygous]

Are those pics recent or taken right after you first got them? Or is that the size the chicks are right now? Chicks the size of those depicted are much too small to turn loose with adult hens without a protected enclosure for them to run back into when pecked and chased.

 

[anisa]

Are those pics recent or taken right after you first got them? Or is that the size the chicks are right now? Chicks the size of those depicted are much too small to turn loose with adult hens without a protected enclosure for them to run back into when pecked and chased.

theses are todays pics.. and yes that is the size of them right no ... as i said the 2nd pic of chick we have had for nearly 5 weeks

 

[anisa]

i will take a pic of my roosters so that you can see better and advice better as i have said before this is all new to us

 

[Ridgerunner]

Another question. How old are the roosters? A dominant rooster should not peck those chicks but two immature cockerels easily could..

Azygous, supposedly it's the "roosters" pecking, not the hens.

 

[anisa]