I started out w/ 2 chickens. Clarice was a stray, and I got Olivia to be her friend. They got along well. Then, 4 years later, I added #3, Svetlana. This coincided (totally by accident) with Olivia's first bout w/ egg yolk peritonitis--so Olivia was in the house for 2 weeks and that gave Clarice a chance to bond w/ Svetlana--which was good, b/c at first she was picking on Svet mercilessly and trying to defend Olivia from her.
So after that they all 3 seemed to get along, BUT Clarice's allegience had shifted from Olivia to Svetlana. No one got picked on, but Clarice hung out w/ Svetty and they both mostly ignored Olivia.
Olivia just had a second bout of egg yolk peritonitis and is getting spayed (today, in fact--fingers crossed). But in the last 2 weeks, she's been getting picked on a LOT by Clarice. Olivia was in the house for a week while the abios and Metacam kicked in--they she went back out w/ the other girls. At first all seemed well, but in the last few days I've noticed the picking getting worse. I put out 4-5 separate bowls of food but no matter which one Olivia goes to, Clarice runs her off.
Could this be b/c of all the changes? In addition to Olivia being in and out of the run, I've also been having to catch her every evening and medicate her, AND I did some renovations on the run, which meant they were stuck in the coop for much of the day on 2 successive Saturdays.
Do you think things will stabilize? Or is it just that 3's a crowd? Should I get a 4th hen to balance things out? Thanks!
So after that they all 3 seemed to get along, BUT Clarice's allegience had shifted from Olivia to Svetlana. No one got picked on, but Clarice hung out w/ Svetty and they both mostly ignored Olivia.
Olivia just had a second bout of egg yolk peritonitis and is getting spayed (today, in fact--fingers crossed). But in the last 2 weeks, she's been getting picked on a LOT by Clarice. Olivia was in the house for a week while the abios and Metacam kicked in--they she went back out w/ the other girls. At first all seemed well, but in the last few days I've noticed the picking getting worse. I put out 4-5 separate bowls of food but no matter which one Olivia goes to, Clarice runs her off.
Could this be b/c of all the changes? In addition to Olivia being in and out of the run, I've also been having to catch her every evening and medicate her, AND I did some renovations on the run, which meant they were stuck in the coop for much of the day on 2 successive Saturdays.
Do you think things will stabilize? Or is it just that 3's a crowd? Should I get a 4th hen to balance things out? Thanks!
