The pecking order in my flock has changed...why?

[Auntiejessi3]

I have 3 ladies 13 weeks old, 1 BO, 1 LB, 1WTB. When I got them at 4 weeks old the WTB quickly took the reins, but now that she is so much smaller than my other 2 (about half the size) my BO has taken charge. There was a lot of feather puffing and face to face stand offs for about a week, but nothing serious, but now if the WTB tries to get food or treats before Ruth(BO) or Maribell(LB) Ruth gives her a look and she backs off. Is the size difference what prompted this?

 

[Ridgerunner]

No, not size difference. There are many cases where bantams outrank full sized fowl. It's the spirit of the chicken that counts, not size.

Thanks for including ages, that gives a strong hint that they are maturing. They mature at different rates. It is not unusual for the pecking order to change as they go through puberty. That's my guess for why that happened. They still have a lot of puberty to go through so it might happen again. When that happens there can be some drama but like yours it isn't that serious. Often you don't even notice the change.

Glad it was pretty much without drama for you.

 

[Auntiejessi3]

No, not size difference. There are many cases where bantams outrank full sized fowl. It's the spirit of the chicken that counts, not size.

Thanks for including ages, that gives a strong hint that they are maturing. They mature at different rates. It is not unusual for the pecking order to change as they go through puberty. That's my guess for why that happened. They still have a lot of puberty to go through so it might happen again. When that happens there can be some drama but like yours it isn't that serious. Often you don't even notice the change.

Glad it was pretty much without drama for you.

Thank you! This is my first go round with chickens, and I'm loving it, just want to be as informed as possible

 

[MarkJr]

It’s truly a case of ‘Not the size of chicken in the fight, but the size of the fight in the chicken.’

They are amazing critters.

 

[Auntiejessi3]

It’s truly a case of ‘Not the size of chicken in the fight, but the size of the fight in the chicken.’

They are amazing critters.

That's a great analogy