Hello,
So, a few months ago, one of my chickens passed away because of a hernia. All the chickens in my flock are 4 years old, so the pecking order has been the same for a very long time. Well, once this chicken died, the dynamics in the flock have changed considerably.
I now have 4 chickens. My australorp is the leader. She is very close with my barred rock and they are always together. One of my Rhode Island Reds is kind of a loner, and, though she joins the other two occasionally, she spends most of her time by herself. Finally, my other Rhode Island Red, Penny, always liked to be with the others, but she seems to be kind of on her own now. The chicken who died was an absolute sweetheart, and was nice to all of the other chickens, whether they were above or below her in the pecking order. Now Penny is all alone, and seems to be getting bullied a lot by my other Rhode Island Red and the Astralorp.
Penny is always very cautious and tentative now, which can't possibly be good for her health.
Is there any way I can stop the bullying, and maybe fix the flock dynamic? I have room for 2 more chickens, would it help to add 2 more chicks, or would it make things worse?
Re-homing any of them is not an option, so I need to find some way to have them all get along again.
Thanks for your help!
So, a few months ago, one of my chickens passed away because of a hernia. All the chickens in my flock are 4 years old, so the pecking order has been the same for a very long time. Well, once this chicken died, the dynamics in the flock have changed considerably.
I now have 4 chickens. My australorp is the leader. She is very close with my barred rock and they are always together. One of my Rhode Island Reds is kind of a loner, and, though she joins the other two occasionally, she spends most of her time by herself. Finally, my other Rhode Island Red, Penny, always liked to be with the others, but she seems to be kind of on her own now. The chicken who died was an absolute sweetheart, and was nice to all of the other chickens, whether they were above or below her in the pecking order. Now Penny is all alone, and seems to be getting bullied a lot by my other Rhode Island Red and the Astralorp.
Penny is always very cautious and tentative now, which can't possibly be good for her health.
Is there any way I can stop the bullying, and maybe fix the flock dynamic? I have room for 2 more chickens, would it help to add 2 more chicks, or would it make things worse?
Re-homing any of them is not an option, so I need to find some way to have them all get along again.
Thanks for your help!
