2 yr old Roo Injured or Sick?

[Lelilamom]

My 2 year old roo started hunching over with his head down in the corner of the yard two days ago. I put him in a crate, gave him yogurt and olive oil and raw egg mixed with water. He took everything I offered but I had to hold his head and put the food in his mouth. He wasn't injured, didn't have a poopy or bloody butt, nor did he have lice or mites. I thought disease right off the bat.

Then I found my 4 yr old roo unable to bear weight on his left leg. Clearly there had been a scuffle. So I thought possible injury.

I put the first guy back in the coop because he is eating and drinking on his own, and now he's still crowing and mating but mostly he just sits in the corner with his head down. He does run over when I have treats. This morning he got the snot kicked out of him by my third and youngest rooster, a one year old Buff Orpington. I blu-koted him up and he's confined in a section of the coop where he can't be harassed.

Do I simply have a battle for the alpha going on in my coop or are there darker forces at work? If it's the roos playing king of the mountain, what kind of injury would cause him to hang his head like that. Neck muscles or tendons?

 

[sourland]

Any animal getting the back of his head banged up like that would hang its head. Sounds like it is time to limit the number of roosters in your flock.

 

[Lelilamom]

Any animal getting the back of his head banged up like that would hang its head. Sounds like it is time to limit the number of roosters in your flock.

Oh yes, I've been contemplating getting rid of this very guy for two years now. In fact, I tried to give him away last summer but no takers. I should have sent him to freezer camp when I sent three others last fall. He's so good with his hens I hesitated. I have 39 hens, so I thought three roos would be ok. Apparently not.