wierd behaivor

[dbkc397]

Hi All
I have 6 hens. 2 Silver Wyandottes and 4 Buff Orpingtons. All are about 7 months old. They all seem healthy. Except one is acting really strange. She fluffs up the feathers on her neck and the rest of her body as well. Then she puts out her wings about half way and points them at the ground. Then she drops her head and charges at a group of the other hens and runs around. The others are usually just hangin out. Not provoking her and I have seen her actually try and get under the other hens. Then they peck at her because she is a nuisance. Any ideas about what she is doing?

 

[Luvin Life]

I would think maybe displaying dominence over the hens, setting the pecking order? I'm not for sure, someone will have the answer.

 

[Year of the Rooster]

I agree it could be dominance but I've only seen my roosters do that..

 

[dbkc397]

I am home for the day today and this is the first time I have been able to just sit and watch. She has been sitting up on a small roof of a shelter and on a perch in the run. When she hops down, she gets into this display position I have described and runs around. One of the other wyandottes kinds of chases her and pecks at her. She hopped back up on the little roof and she is just staying up there. Could it be that she is the lowest of the order?

 

[koifarm]

Could be that she is exhibiting roo behavior, often in flocks without a roo, one of the hens will actually take on the job of roo. It may be that the hen is the dominant one and is shifting to more roo like behavior as a natural course of events.

 

[dbkc397]

Is there a way to get her back to being "normal"? She is staying up on the roof and the perch all the time now just to avoid being harassed.

 

[huck]

Quote:
I've got an BA that exhibits this same behavior-- the neck lengthening, the feathering ruffling, and the chicken-charging. She also flaps her wings at some of the girls sometimes

She's never too mean, though. Just goofy.

If you are having issues with pecking order, I've heard that giving your chickens "something to do" can help remedy that.... like a cabbage or whole melon to attack instead of one another.