The pecking order is getting bloody.

[Den in Penn]

If your sure you can get back in the crate before they are up and about in the morning and picking on her again. Can you put the whole crate in the coop?

Actually 7 Biddies idea is the start of the plan used to try to reset the pecking order. If you have the space, two separate pens. take the lowest on the order and separate her and the picked on one. Each week introduce the next lowest into the picked on one's pen. By the time you get to the problem birds the lower ones have formed a new order and hopefully the bully bird has their hands full trying to fit in that they can't bully. That's the theory anyway.

 

[Smoochie]

Great advice everyone. I would also isolate the bully when she is first introduced for a few days to mix things up in the flock. Usually less attention is drawn to the newby. Also, put her back at night. I also change things up to distract... Throw in a new log, add an old picture inside. It really helps out the new ones.

 

[SallyinIndiana]

"I have read a lot of good things about increasing mineral intakes to decrease pecking."


What kinds of minerals?

here is an article that mentions the different minerals but and what they do but it does not specifically mention pecking.
http://www.zootecnicainternational....ion/284-trace-mineral-balance-in-poultry.html

 

[meekmax]

I found some Rooster Booster pick-no-more cover-up lotion at the feed store. Has anyone tried this? It contains methyl anthranilate (a bird repellent and supposedly an ingredient in grape Kool-Aid), tea tree oil, calendula, and aloe vera gel.

My other Ameracauna has been bullied, so now I've got both in a crate in a coop. I think I've narrowed the aggressors down to the two Wyandottes in my flock. Once both Ameracaunas are fully healed, I'm going to ease them back in and separate out the Wyandottes. Does that seem like a workable plan?

 

[cloverdalehens]

How's it working so far? I'm having a similar problem too. My wyendote is getting broody and pecking on my americauna and wellsummer when I lock her away from the nesting boxes.

 

[meekmax]

How's it working so far? I'm having a similar problem too. My wyendote is getting broody and pecking on my americauna and wellsummer when I lock her away from the nesting boxes.

Unfortunately, I lost one of my Ameracaunas to her injuries. :-( However, I think I identified the bully. Both Wyandottes are instigators, but one does significantly more damage. The other is just ornery and a bit of a pest. I separated my biggest one out, and that seemed to help calm the flock. I keep her in a dog crate in the pen and put her in the coop at night. I'm not sure if I can ever totally re-introduce her to the flock again. We'll see.

 

[Hazel1234]

I have 4 Barred Plymouth Rock hens the same age (About 14 months old). I had never noticed any issues regarding their pecking order until a few months ago. They seemed to have singled out one of the hens and were relentlessly pecking her. I'm not sure if she's a lazy layer, but I'm thinking she is and she has always been somewhat of a loner.
They wouldn't let her eat, they wouldn't let her sit on a perch in the coop at night, she had to sleep on the floor. Anytime she got near them, they pecked her. She would stand in one place for the longest time, because if she moved they pecked her head. She was losing feathers on the back of her head and started to get bloody spots on her crest. I don't know what happened??
Since then, I have separated her and we built her a coop of her own in our fenced in back yard. There have been no eggs for the week she's been alone. There have only been a couple times since they started laying eggs that I got four in a day. It's usually two or three.
I tried introducing one of the less aggressive hens in with her and she started pecking at her. So, whether she's lonely or not, she is not going to be put back with her evil sisters. I'm at home a lot, she stays on the back porch almost all day. Her name is Hazel and she's my pet chicken. My son says we will eat her one day.
So far, the other three seem to get a long just fine together.

 

[meekmax]

Hi, Hazel. The one thing I found to be most critical is to keep any injured birds separated until they were fully healed. Hens have been known to cannibalize injured chickens.

Your lazy layer may not be lazy but, rather, in distress. If chickens are stressed or injured, they may not lay.

I was able to identify my biggest bully and separate her. That seemed to help the dynamic. Unfortunately, I could never re-integrate her into the flock. It seems my ladies have set their threshold to five chickens. One still gets picked on occasionally, but she holds her own.

Ultimately, I re-homed the bully. She is now with a larger flock with a rooster. A rooster will help keep chickens in line; however, a rooster is not always practical or permitted.

I would see if you can figure out who is doing the bullying. If so, try separating her like I did. When your other chicken is fully healed, try integrating her into the flock (slowly - I stuck her in the coop at night and pulled her out in the morning for about a week). If you don't see any improvement in her treatment while the bully is absent, she may have to remain separated permanently.

 

[Hazel1234]

Thank you for your input. Its hard to determine the main bully. When all four were together, two hens were pecking her. Yesterday, I brought the more docile one in the backyard to be with Hazel, and she pecked her too. So, I've concluded Hazel will stay alone. Maybe she's sick and they sense it?