Runt of our group getting beat up, bleeding leg now

[armyfan]

New to the group, and owning hens. So hello! We have had them for 9 months in New York. 6 hens, 3 cinnamon queens, 2 brahmas, 1 black star. It seemed until about 2 weeks ago they were fine with each other. The black star started to exhibit head wounds/bare skin in small patches and when I would let them out of coop for their daily run around time, would witness her getting pecked on the head by our bully. This morning she was bleeding from her leg. Not gushing all over the place, but noticeable. As a rookie, I don’t know if this is general horseplay and somewhat routine, or something to be concerned about. We certainly don’t want to lose any of our ladies, and are worried about infections/diseases. Thanks for your time, and I apologize if this has been covered many times before.

 

[Redhead Rae]

New to the group, and owning hens. So hello! We have had them for 9 months in New York. 6 hens, 3 cinnamon queens, 2 brahmas, 1 black star. It seemed until about 2 weeks ago they were fine with each other. The black star started to exhibit head wounds/bare skin in small patches and when I would let them out of coop for their daily run around time, would witness her getting pecked on the head by our bully. This morning she was bleeding from her leg. Not gushing all over the place, but noticeable. As a rookie, I don’t know if this is general horseplay and somewhat routine, or something to be concerned about. We certainly don’t want to lose any of our ladies, and are worried about infections/diseases. Thanks for your time, and I apologize if this has been covered many times before.

Get some BluKote on that bird's wounds. Chickens can see red and will continue to peck at it. The BluKote will disinfect and color the wound a bluish purple, hiding it from the aggressors. If you can watch your birds, I suggest removing the aggressor before removing the one being bullied. If there are multiple aggressors, I would remove the worst one from sight of the flock for a few days and then reintroduce her. That may shake up the pecking order enough that she won't pick on the runt. If you need to separate the run because of injuries, you can put the runt in a confinement with it's own food and water in with the other birds so it maintains its place in the pecking order until it heals.

 

[DobieLover]

If one of your girls is bald from relentless pecking or bloodied regularly, that is excessive and you need to step in.
First and foremost, you should retrieve the victim and assess her wounds. Clean her up, stop the bleeding and apply Vetericyn or some other good antibacterial treatment.
Then assess your resource requirements: space, feeders & waterers and shelter. How big is your coop/run in feet x feet? How much roosting space do the birds have? How many feeders/waterers? Are there lots of places where your lower ranking girls can seek shelter, preferably out of the line of sight, from the upper ranking birds?
Oftentimes, bullying starts due to boredom or lack of adequate space. The rule of thumb is 10 sq feet/bird in the run and 4 in the coop. Being in NY, I feel that they should have more than 10 sq feet/bird in the run. I leave my coop pop door open year round so the birds can access the secure covered run whenever they want. So my 12 birds effectively have 224 sq feet available to them at all times until I open the door to the 1/4 acre poultry netted pen.
I have no bullying in my flock. I do have one LH who has been bloodied on her comb from time to time but she is actively attempting to move up in rank so she will get a good peck here and there from the upper flock members. It's not bullying.

 

[chickens really]

How big is the Coop and Run? What do you feed?..

 

[cmom]

I agree.

If one of your girls is bald from relentless pecking or bloodied regularly, that is excessive and you need to step in.
First and foremost, you should retrieve the victim and assess her wounds. Clean her up, stop the bleeding and apply Vetericyn or some other good antibacterial treatment.
Then assess your resource requirements: space, feeders & waterers and shelter. How big is your coop/run in feet x feet? How much roosting space do the birds have? How many feeders/waterers? Are there lots of places where your lower ranking girls can seek shelter, preferably out of the line of sight, from the upper ranking birds?
Oftentimes, bullying starts due to boredom or lack of adequate space. The rule of thumb is 10 sq feet/bird in the run and 4 in the coop. Being in NY, I feel that they should have more than 10 sq feet/bird in the run. I leave my coop pop door open year round so the birds can access the secure covered run whenever they want. So my 12 birds effectively have 224 sq feet available to them at all times until I open the door to the 1/4 acre poultry netted pen.
I have no bullying in my flock. I do have one LH who has been bloodied on her comb from time to time but she is actively attempting to move up in rank so she will get a good peck here and there from the upper flock members. It's not bullying.

My birds all have nice large pens. I leave my pop doors open too because my coops and pens are very well secured with lots of room. Since the birds like to peck at things I put flock blocks in all of their pens under their shade/rain tables. Good luck and have fun...

 

[Wyorp Rock]

New to the group, and owning hens. So hello! We have had them for 9 months in New York. 6 hens, 3 cinnamon queens, 2 brahmas, 1 black star. It seemed until about 2 weeks ago they were fine with each other. The black star started to exhibit head wounds/bare skin in small patches and when I would let them out of coop for their daily run around time, would witness her getting pecked on the head by our bully. This morning she was bleeding from her leg. Not gushing all over the place, but noticeable. As a rookie, I don’t know if this is general horseplay and somewhat routine, or something to be concerned about. We certainly don’t want to lose any of our ladies, and are worried about infections/diseases. Thanks for your time, and I apologize if this has been covered many times before.

Welcome To BYC!
Can you post some photos of your hen, her injuries, her poop and of your coop/run?
What's the sq. ft. of your coop and run?

Pull your bullied, bleeding gal and look her over really well. Tend to her wounds, wash up/flush out the wounds with warm soapy water or saline. Apply a triple antibiotic ointment, Vetericyn or Blu Kote. While you are examining her, check her for lice/mites, crop problems, etc.
I would cage her within the coop if you have room, provide her with her own feed/water. Let her rest and eat.

Space issues are one cause of being picked on, so evaluating space if a good idea.
Sometimes a chicken may be sick or even molting - this causes them to be a target as well.

Hopefully with more information and photos we can give you some suggestions.

 

[chickens really]

I can actually say with conviction that Chickens are complex creatures and can turn on a flock member in minutes. I definitely fed properly and had enough space in my Coop and Run. All hell broke loose and they almost pecked the one to death. No illness. Just Chickens being Chickens. I'm pretty much over Chickens ...
Ducks are easier...

 

[Redhead Rae]

Ducks are easier...

If a lot messier.

 

[chickens really]

If a lot messier.

Only if you don't practice Duck husbandry. My Ducks are no issue.

 

[Redhead Rae]

Only if you don't practice Duck husbandry. My Ducks are no issue.

I won't be getting ducks until I have a pond set up. We have too many water issues as it is right now. I couldn't imagine how muddy ducks would make it