What is everyone’s pecking orders rules?

[TinyRaptorDodos]

I’m just finding out my flocks pecking order is just odd. Once the rules are set no one messes with each other.
New hens are taught their place then left alone, there’s no pecking or plucking unless they’re bored and cooped up and the other heh is iridescent or bearded.
There is no “I’m the boss don’t you forget” or “I eat and drink first” no fighting to get higher in the pecking order, nothing like that. Not even my roosters fight.
Just unspoken rules, the roosters are ever taught the hens are superior and not to be messed with.
Cinnamon is the highest in the pecking order for sure.

How does everyone else’s pecking order go? (This photo is a small section of my flock, I have about 29 or 30 chickens so far and got rid of a couple of those hens)

 

[Sally PB]

The top and second hen don't get involved, much. There is one hen (bottom of the first flock I had) who is The Mean Girl. She hassled the second batch of chicks, and now the third batch of chicks. I gather she's insecure, but so it goes. She has someone lower than she is.

My rooster doesn't seem to give a damn.

 

[TinyRaptorDodos]

The top and second hen don't get involved, much. There is one hen (bottom of the first flock I had) who is The Mean Girl. She hassled the second batch of chicks, and now the third batch of chicks. I gather she's insecure, but so it goes. She has someone lower than she is.

My rooster doesn't seem to give a damn.

It’s always the roosters going “ugh, hens am I right?” While eating treats

 

[Red Mangrove]

It's very rare that chicken violence here goes beyond light pecking. Only as chicks age do they get pecked to learn their place in chicken hierarchy

Adult combat between hens is very rare and almost exclusively occurs over broody hens attacking perceived danger to their babies. They'll attack a dog, hen, rooster or fox all the same

However adult roosters will fight violently until clear dominance is established. Then the loser runs away and lurks on the periphery trying to steal hens and establish his own tribe, or at least that's what my [free-range] coopfowl and junglefowl do

 

[Sueby]

The top and second hen don't get involved, much. There is one hen (bottom of the first flock I had) who is The Mean Girl. She hassled the second batch of chicks, and now the third batch of chicks. I gather she's insecure, but so it goes. She has someone lower than she is.

This. But at first my mean girl was 2nd or 3rd from the bottom & we had a major shake up & she got beat up pretty good by the one below her (a couple other low ones piled it on too). They fought like roosters, I'd never seen hens do that. It went on for a half a day before her face & comb were bloodied & bare of feathers so I separated her for a few days to heal. When I put her back there was some squabbling still with the one hen, but it settled quickly & she learned her place. She is still low man between the older hens & she's normal mean to the new girls. No one else cares about the new girls & they don't care that she's mean to them, lol.

 

[Mrs. K]

There is probably 100 different ways of raising chickens, and the space and set up, number of birds in the flock have a huge impact on the behavior of the birds.

Birds that are kept in more confinement, tighter, smaller flocks are going to have more of a pecking order, and it is liable to change.

Birds in large flocks, tend to hang with friends, and it can be hard to see a pecking order. I think if you can't figure out the pecking order, it is a pretty good sigh that you have more than enough space.

Flocks where new birds, or new chicks are added once or twice a year, tend to be more tolerant of new birds, verse a flock of single age birds that are 3-4 years. Those old biddies can make adding birds rather hard.

Space, and clutter can help a lot. If the run is set up, so that a bird can see all of the other birds 100% of the time, without hideouts, or other clutter, they are much more apt to have pecking order problems.

Mrs K

 

[TinyRaptorDodos]

There is probably 100 different ways of raising chickens, and the space and set up, number of birds in the flock have a huge impact on the behavior of the birds.

Birds that are kept in more confinement, tighter, smaller flocks are going to have more of a pecking order, and it is liable to change.

Birds in large flocks, tend to hang with friends, and it can be hard to see a pecking order. I think if you can't figure out the pecking order, it is a pretty good sigh that you have more than enough space.

Flocks where new birds, or new chicks are added once or twice a year, tend to be more tolerant of new birds, verse a flock of single age birds that are 3-4 years. Those old biddies can make adding birds rather hard.

Space, and clutter can help a lot. If the run is set up, so that a bird can see all of the other birds 100% of the time, without hideouts, or other clutter, they are much more apt to have pecking order problems.

Mrs K

Mine free range. Got a lot of loners, got some groupies, got some “you have food so I like you for now”

 

[Evadig]

I have no pecking order ! That is to say, none enforced by pecking. I have four hens, one was bullying the other. Nothing would help. Finally I separated them for good - the bully (Lyd) has to live with the greedy pig (Rose), and the victim (Minna) gets to hang out with the good girl (Prudence). They still free range together but they sleep in two separate coops at night. Since then the bully has mellowed out considerably and neither pair ever fights.

 

[Mrs. K]

Mine free range. Got a lot of loners, got some groupies, got some “you have food so I like you for now”

Exactly what I see.

Finally I separated them for good - the bully (Lyd) has to live with the greedy pig (Rose), and the victim (Minna) gets to hang out with the good girl (Prudence). They still free range together but they sleep in two separate coops at night. Since then the bully has mellowed out considerably and neither pair ever fights.

What you really did was add more room.

 

[Evadig]

What you really did was add more room.

Yes, but why don’t the pairs fight? The first pair (Lyd and Rose) is in a very small coop until their bigger house is finished, and they still get along just fine.