Separate the bully or the bullied?

[Bluscorp22]

I have 2 - 7 month old partridge Cochin bantam hens, 2 - 4 month old mottled Cochin bantam hens and 2 - 4 month old Mille fleur d'uccle hens. Until this past Monday the 2 partridge girls were in a pen right next to a pen with the other four girls. They had been close neighbors for 2 months. Literally just hardware cloth separating them. On Monday I put them all in their permanent pen. The partridge hen that is laying went nuts! I understand they take pecking order seriously BUT she is on patrol all the time! She chases them down, won't let them eat or drink, won't let them in the hen house, and she won't let them on the roost. I took her out Monday night so the others could sleep. Put her back in on Tuesday night after everyone was asleep. Well, she has been right back at it all week! She cuts the other partridge a little slack but is relentless with the others, especially the d'uccle. Is this normal? How long to work it out? Separate her? Suggestions? Comments?

 

[lynnehd]

I would separate the bully completely from view of the others. How long is very tough to answer. You'll see 'a few days', 'two weeks', etc.

I had a barred rock hen that was relentless. Two weeks of separation didn't work for her, but I was able to rehome her, and she adapted to a new flock.

I will tell you that things were incredibly peaceful after she was removed. Sure, there was the usual order, shuffling at roost time, etc., but none of the other hens lived in terror.

So try separating the bully for a couple of weeks. That may work; it has for others. If not, figure out what you need to do.

 

[Bluscorp22]

Thank you very much for your help! Actually today was much better!! I was not home to supervise their bedtime but when I did get home and checked on them they were all together on the roost! I sure hope the worse is behind them! I do have a friend ready to take her if need be.

 

[lynnehd]

Thank you very much for your help! Actually today was much better!! I was not home to supervise their bedtime but when I did get home and checked on them they were all together on the roost! I sure hope the worse is behind them! I do have a friend ready to take her if need be.

Great news!!!! Most of the time, it does work out if you hang in there for a few days. It is torture to go through, though!

Mine never stopped being a vicious bully. Some chickens are outliers, that's just all there is to it.

So glad to know things might be OK.

 

[valerie5425]

7 days ago, I introduced a new pullet (4 months) to my flock of 4 hens, who are all about 8 months old.

I've tried everything I can think of, including separating her, putting her on the roost after dark, leaving her in the run alone, leaving her in the run with the others one at a time, etc. I have one hen in particular that is very focused on her. The instant I set her down on the ground (she loves to be held), Rosie sees her being lowered and charges at her. I've let her get beat up on a few times in trying to let them work it out on their own, but she winds up cowering in the corner after having her feathers pulled out, or shoves herself into a sliver of space inside the coop.

She won't come out for food or water, so I close the run door, close the pop door, and give her some time in the run without the others.

My next idea is isolating Rosie (bully) in a dog crate inside the run with all the others in there with her AND the new girl. New Girl is so SO scared and it doesn't seem to be getting better. She only eats and drinks when she's separated from the others.

Any suggestions? Or similar experience?

 

[crazychick26201]

It works best to keep Rosie away from the others for about four days. Completely out of sight. Do you have a place like a garage or basement where you can set up a dog crate? Provide bedding. Food and water and I used a small 2x2 pushed in for a roost. This will give your newbie a chance to establish with the others and knock your bully down a few notches in the pecking order. Then try Rosie back in, and if she can't play nice, back in the crate she goes. This can take a while before she gets the idea. Good luck! In my experience the pecking order kind of fluctuates for the first year, and the drama comes and goes.

 

[lealle4]

Hello! I know this is an older thread but I'm having an issue with a bully chick. I've got 7 4-5 week (not entirely sure of their exact age) chicks, barred rocks, Rhode Island reds and black sex links. One of the Rhode Island reds has been picking on the other. She got a bit bloodied up last week around her tail feathers and we separated her but she jumped the divider to be back with her comrades. Since then, no incidents, thanks to blue kote. Today however I noticed her being pecked at again. No blood as of now, and only one seems to be picking on her, but her vent is swollen and she's very lethargic. Her feathers are all puffed up and she isn't eating or drinking much. Since none of the others are picking on her I decided to leave her in the main brooder, but what do I do with the bully? Right now I have her in an older, smaller brooder right next to the main one. She flipped out when I separated her though so I split the flock so she wouldn't be alone. Will the separation still be effective if there are others with her or should she be isolated?

 

[sbhkma]

I had a bully hen. I rehomed her. I tried all sorts of fixes and nothing worked. Peace in the flock after Don't Touch Me Annie left.

 

[lynnehd]

Hello! I know this is an older thread but I'm having an issue with a bully chick. I've got 7 4-5 week (not entirely sure of their exact age) chicks, barred rocks, Rhode Island reds and black sex links. One of the Rhode Island reds has been picking on the other. She got a bit bloodied up last week around her tail feathers and we separated her but she jumped the divider to be back with her comrades. Since then, no incidents, thanks to blue kote. Today however I noticed her being pecked at again. No blood as of now, and only one seems to be picking on her, but her vent is swollen and she's very lethargic. Her feathers are all puffed up and she isn't eating or drinking much. Since none of the others are picking on her I decided to leave her in the main brooder, but what do I do with the bully? Right now I have her in an older, smaller brooder right next to the main one. She flipped out when I separated her though so I split the flock so she wouldn't be alone. Will the separation still be effective if there are others with her or should she be isolated?

Ideally, the bully is isolated for several days to a couple of weeks.
But that applies to a juvenile or mature hen, not sure about chicks. You hate to be cruel when they're only 4-5 weeks.

Still, this chick seems hard core. If you remove her for 2-3 days (if you and she can stand it!), and there is peace in your little flock, then at least you'll know the bully is 100% the issue.
The idea is that when the bully is reintroduced, after being alone, she'll be lower in the pecking order and shape up.

It's a hard decision!

 

[lealle4]

I had her separated with another for a couple of days but as soon as I put her back with the others she started in on boots again. She doesn't pick on any of the others and none of the other chicks behave this way. I separated her again last night, this time by herself. They're in two separate brooders right next to each other so they can still see each other. She cried for a little bit but has since calmed down with the exception of the occasional loud chirping session. I'm really hoping this works, otherwise I'll have to rehome her. She's so young I hate to separate her thank you for your help.