New Chickens - One Being Bullied?

[ryanguevara1983]

I have just started keeping chickens. We were given two, then added two more the following day. There is plenty of space for them, but one in particular seems to have been singled out by the others. As soon as she popped out of the box, she was pecked. The other three hang around with eachother all day long, and she keeps out of the way, on her own. She is definitely the smallest of the four. Is this common and does it usually settle down? I don't want her to become too lonely!! I suspect she will be at the bottom of the pecking order - but will she ever be accepted into the group?

[Suechooks]

Someone has to be bottom of the pecking order - as long as no blood is being drawn just let them settle down. It may take some weeks but its how chickens are. They always have a hierarchy. It looks unacceptable to us but they're fine with it. Just make sure your small girl goes to bed with a full crop each night and give her places to escape in the run. I use plastic dog beds upside down and resting on tyres for shelter and hidey holes.

[Glutton4...]

...I use plastic dog beds upside down and resting on tyres for shelter and hidey holes.

What a great idea!

[Suechooks]

What a great idea!

I used to breed dogs so have several now surplus to requirement! You can put them straight on the ground for small chicks too. Trouble is my Silkies decided they make good nest places so had quite a numbe of eggs under one before I realised!
You can pick them up on Freecycle too sometimes.

[baldrick]

chickens are nastybitches! make sure there are lots of feeders and drinkers until they settle

[chatham chooks]

i have 8 chickens with 3 friends (2 blue belles, 4 calder rangers and 2 rhode rocks) we had 2 change a calder ranger as it wasnt well and got a surry in its place, it has been 24 hours and the others are all picking on the surry (drawing blood). have been advised to seperate them tonight and see how they go tomorrow, we have got some bumpa bits if it doesnt stop but dont want 2 use them if possible
any other ideas????

[RichmondHens]

Some people recommend spraying ALL the chickens with a vinegar solution so they smell the same. I would spray the bloody bits with purple spray as once blood is drawn they will continue to peck, till the death if necessary. If things are no better in a day or so then you will have to separate her. If there is room for one more I would try adding two new hens - first get another to keep the surry (never heard of that, do you mean sussex?) company and then when they are happy together introduce the pair to the rest. They will be bottom of the pecking order but someone has to be. Just make sure they have plenty of space to get away and plenty of hidey holes as suggested in earlier posts.

[kathyd]

I know just how you feel, it's awful when you first see them being bullied isn't it .

When I had bullying going on, I found that hidey holes are great as long as there's a second way out... my bullied hens used to try running into the integral run under the coop to escape, and then get hemmed in by their attackers and unable to escape. Eventually I rigged up a temporary corner in the main run, with 2 entrances and a bit of shelter and spare food and water inside, and found the bullies were happy having somewhere to 'round up' the 2 victims and chase them off to. It meant that the 2 victims could go into their own space if they wanted to, and could make their way back towards the main group at their own speed, and I could shut them in periodically if necessary to make sure they got something to eat and drink.

I found the most difficult thing was that they got blocked from entering the coop at night to sleep, as well as chased away from food and water and out of shelter when it rained. It didn't seem to matter how many dishes of food I put out, the others would always spread out and move from one to the other, chasing the newbies off as they went. Ditto with shelter. They used to have a rota system at bedtime, when they'd take turns to hide just inside the pophole and attack as the others tried to get inside. The 2 newbies got too scared to go in in the end and tried sleeping on the roof, so I had to stuff them in by hand via the side door and sometimes put my hand between them and the attacker - I found I needed to allow a small amount of pecking until the newbies went submissive, but prevented further bullying because I felt it was unnecessary. Newbies got wise eventaully and started going to bed before all the others .

Unfortunately the bullying started again a couple of days before the newbies started to lay, but settled down again as soon as the first egg appeared, when they seemed to be much more accepted.

The thing to avoid is to be seen by the others as giving the victims some kind of preferential treatment! This won't help anyone, honest! I found it better to let the bullies go into the 'safe' places, eat from the victims' dishes to see it was the same as their own food, and give the bullies their treats first to maintain their hierarchy - as long as the victims got their's as well.

I know it's hard to believe, but it WILL pass, really!

[tlck9]

I've had issues introducing chickens each time and I swear i'll never do it again - I've done it 4 times now!

I ensure that there are plenty of water and eating areas so the picked on girlie can at least eat - however ensure that the bullied one is eating and from time to time I would check her crop and remove her so she can eat if it got really difficult and I felt she wasn't eating (but only while the others were occupied with corn!)

I also took the advice of others on here and powdered them all and sprayed them with the anti peck even the bully! and this meant they smelled the same.

At one point I found that the bullied one wasn't getting picked on by 2 others so when it did get bad and blood was shed I put the 3 together and since then they have been inseperable