Weird behavior

[Chee]

I have ten chicks of my flock that are just reaching five months old. One of the girls broke her leg quite badly while young, we gave a good try but decided she needed to go as she got older and getting around was difficult. Here's the sad part. One of the americanas her age "befriended" her as we called it and they both stopped leaving the coop to free range. We have 23 total. This was another reason to eliminate the one, I wanted the otherwise healthy chicken to be out in the world, not in the coop. Now that gimpy is gone, our Americana stays in the coop, often staring into a corner or hiding where she used to be with her friend. Forcing her outside isn't working. Any ideas?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I would leave her be, could be she's one of the bottom hen, my bottom hens sticks close to the shed generally. I have also seen chickens get depressed when they lose a friend. I would give her time to adjust and hopefully find another buddy.

 

[Peeps61]

Great advice from Old Hen. I was thinking the same thing. She may be mourning the loss of her friend and will get over it in her own time. I realize chickens aren't people, but they do feel loss. I also observe it in my hens and also with my dog. She had a companion that died of old age in May and she is still a bit puzzled as to where he went. We let her in the house with us when we get home in the afternoon evening, so that has helped.

 

[Chee]

Thanks for the advice, it breaks my heart a bit to never see her come out of the coop. They have a huge free range outside and she never seemed to have experienced it

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

She will gain more confidence over time. At 5 months they are sexually maturing and often like our own teenage time, it can be an tumultuous time. The desire for top pullets to expert their power over lower ones increases at sexual maturity, and it should calm down as they mature more.

You can take her out by the other ones daily, she will more than likely run back to the coop, but eventually she may stay out longer and longer.