URGENT!! Comb pecking!

[chickencheeper]

One of my chickens, River,(barred rock), has been grabbing and biting and pecking the combs of the the hens that have bigger combs, she is about 23 weeks and her comb is still very small, she is hurting the other chickens, what should I do?

 

[Mary's Backyard Chickens]

She probably thinks she is the boss.

I have the same problem with Barred Rock (Oreo.) We just bought her recently, and she is picking on the chickens......
It's something called the pecking order. That's when one of Your chickens think it's boss, and it will peck the other ones. Your other chickens besides River are on the bottom of the pecking order. There is one way that comes at the top of my mind to stop this.

You can put River in a separate coop. This means she won't be around the other chickens. A separate coop could even be a big dog cage, for one chicken that's plenty big enough.

 

[song of joy]

That sounds too aggressive for pecking order behavior. I'd recommend putting her in a separate cage within sight of the rest of the flock. Keep her there for a week or two. When you release her she will probably have to re-establish her place in the flock, hopefully not at the top as head bully.

Also, make sure the coop and run have enough room for the number of chickens that you have. Tight quarters and a lack of escape cover or hiding places in the coop and run can increase the odds of conflict within the flock.

It's also possible that you just have a chicken that will never play nice with others. Of all the breeds I've had, this has only been an issue with hatchery barred rocks, two of which I culled because they were terrorizing their flock mates.

 

[Mary's Backyard Chickens]

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That sounds too aggressive for pecking order behavior. I'd recommend putting her in a separate cage within sight of the rest of the flock. Keep her there for a week or two. When you release her she will probably have to re-establish her place in the flock, hopefully not at the top as head bully.

Also, make sure the coop and run have enough room for the number of chickens that you have. Tight quarters and a lack of escape cover or hiding places in the coop and run can increase the odds of conflict within the flock.

It's also possible that you just have a chicken that will never play nice with others. Of all the breeds I've had, this has only been an issue with hatchery barred rocks, two of which I culled because they were terrorizing their flock mates.

The pecking order is what it is.

 

[jay873]

Same is happening with my barred rocks except they are 7 weeks old and pull feathers from the other females its only 4 of them and 3 of them are pulling the feathers none of the other breeds are doing it and are the same age makes me want to get rid of them and use the space for buff Orpingtons.

Any suggestions

 

[song of joy]

Same is happening with my barred rocks except they are 7 weeks old and pull feathers from the other females its only 4 of them and 3 of them are pulling the feathers none of the other breeds are doing it and are the same age makes me want to get rid of them and use the space for buff Orpingtons.

Any suggestions

If they're routinely pulling out the feathers of other birds, that's one of the forms of cannibalism in chickens. Make sure their diet has enough protein (around 20-24% at that age), and make sure they have enough space and distractions (perches of various heights, things to peck at rather than each other).

 

[chickens really]

Yes, feather pecking and aggression is commonly caused by lack in protein ...I feed Grower all year around...Oyster shell out in a separate bowl...
You can make a Vasaline and Cayenne pepper mix and put it on the combs of the ones being pecked..Thicker but not globs...Chickens hate Vaseline and cayenne pepper...Sometimes it works...
I have no issues Here...I have Brahma and Orpington ...

 

[aart]

ETA:
For both @chickencheeper the OP, and @jay873 the add-on.

Space and diet.
How many birds, ages genders?
How much space, in coop and run, in feet by feet?
What and how exactly are you feeding?

Cayenne pepper won't 'burn' their mouths...but might their eyes, proceed with caution.

 

[jay873]

Space and diet.
How many birds, ages genders?
How much space, in coop and run, in feet by feet?
What and how exactly are you feeding?

Cayenne pepper won't 'burn' their mouths...but might their eyes, proceed with caution.

There are 14 young ones coop is about 30 feet long and 20 feet wide they eat grower feed so I don't think protein is a problem they get it in multiple trays in case the older birds don't allow them to eat at a certain one (there are 7 adult ones ) i thonk there are just mean I've heard of barred rocks being a bit aggressive

 

[SonoranChick]

I'm going to have to jump in here and agree with you guys, I've got a barred rock who has a bit of a pecking problem too. They are all 20 weeks old. She goes for the leghorns, because of the attractive comb. I noticed yesterday, someone had had enough and pecked back! She had a tiny mark on her comb, so I know they are trying to figure out who is boss. I used to try to interfere and keep them from being mean, but I've learned to just let them do their chicken thing and just think, "it is what it is". If I have a comb that has wet blood, I will clean it with a q-tip and maybe some Vetricyn. This is rare, usually it's just little peck marks here and there. Other than that, it is in their nature to have a pecking order and fight for the top spot.