Bullying chicken

[MNL]

Hi All, I have a Black Australorp hen, Mary Penguin, hatched 4/15/24. She has recently started bullying my polish bantam mix hen, Mabel. Mabel is 5 1/2 years old. Mabel has always had dominant tendencies and held her own. She is the last of 3 to my original flock. This past summer I had to put Lucy to sleep (she is the one in my photo bubble) due to heart failure. My new flock all hatched on 4/15/24, I picked them up at the post office two days later and they were kept inside until late Spring, I would let my older flock come in the house to visit them. My newbies consist of 1 Black Australorp, 1 bantam Dominique and 1 Laced Cochin. About three weeks ago Mary will run Mabel down the minute she (Mabel) shows herself. She'll charge at her clear across the run and grab her if she's able. Their hen house is attached to a 10 x 20 foot run that opens automatically. I only let them free range when I am home so I can be on hawk patrol. Except for winter when it's dark by the time I get home from work, they get a chance to free range just about daily. I also have a production Red that is a rescue. She would sometimes protect Mabel and is totally neutral towards her, so she floats between the "two flocks" at will, without any issue. They have a waterer in the run and one in the hen house. Their feed is in the run in a hopper style bin that they have to step on the platform for the lid to open to expose the food. I recently put a feeder in the hen house since Mabel now spends most her time inside. Until recently all 5 of them roamed the yard together and seemed like a cohesive flock. They all roost together on one bar at night. Mabel on the outside then Blanche (our rescue) then no particular order of the 3 newbies. I was hoping they would work it out, but at this point, I feel really bad for Mabel and her quality of life...or rather lack of it. I let her come in the house from time to time, but unfortunately 2 out of 3 of my dogs just don't settle while Mabel is poking around in the house. Also, haven't been able to fit her well with a "chicken diaper". Any suggestions would be appreciated!! Isolation...?Pinless peepers...? Thanks everyone!

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[DemeterAD9]

I haven't had any problems with hen vs hen aggression other than the odd squabble when they are at the feeder so I may not be much help.

From my understanding and experience with herd/flock/group animals it helps to have more individuals to spread the aggression and to help a bullied animal get "lost in the crowd". Along with more space, objects that will allow a bullied animal to stay out of the line of sight of a bully, and a little TLC most cases will resolve given time. But there is the odd situation of a persistent bully and/or bullied. In that case I either separate permanently or more often than not, get rid of one or the other. You'd have to take into consideration the quality if life for each bird.

Personally I think I'd be getting rid of the bully seeing as I wouldn't have so much time to get attached to her. But logically I'd get rid of the bullied hen seeing as she is long in the tooth and less productive. The heart would likely win in the end, seeing as it did for me when I had to pick which cockerels to keep. Unfortunately my heart didn't listen to reason and I chose the wrong roo the first time around

From what I've seen with my chickens which I've only had since last spring, a rooster really seems to help keep the peace between the hens. I honestly don't know who the top hen is in my flock of 21 birds but I know for sure the dominant roo is boss man yet he is very gentle with all but the spare roo, who will likely be gone some time in the spring. Of course if you only have a handful of hens and limited space that may not be an option for you, especially if you have the whole city limits thing going on.

 

[townchicks]

I have had good luck with separating the bully, within sight of the rest of the flock,but she can't get to them. A wire dog crate in the run, if it is secure, or in the coop, works well. Leave her in there at least a week. Lots of " clutter" in the run to block line of sight, and multiple feed and water stations help too. Good luck.

 

[Gezellige_Poes]

Hi All, I have a Black Australorp hen, Mary Penguin, hatched 4/15/24. She has recently started bullying my polish bantam mix hen, Mabel. Mabel is 5 1/2 years old. Mabel has always had dominant tendencies and held her own. She is the last of 3 to my original flock. This past summer I had to put Lucy to sleep (she is the one in my photo bubble) due to heart failure. My new flock all hatched on 4/15/24, I picked them up at the post office two days later and they were kept inside until late Spring, I would let my older flock come in the house to visit them. My newbies consist of 1 Black Australorp, 1 bantam Dominique and 1 Laced Cochin. About three weeks ago Mary will run Mabel down the minute she (Mabel) shows herself. She'll charge at her clear across the run and grab her if she's able. Their hen house is attached to a 10 x 20 foot run that opens automatically. I only let them free range when I am home so I can be on hawk patrol. Except for winter when it's dark by the time I get home from work, they get a chance to free range just about daily. I also have a production Red that is a rescue. She would sometimes protect Mabel and is totally neutral towards her, so she floats between the "two flocks" at will, without any issue. They have a waterer in the run and one in the hen house. Their feed is in the run in a hopper style bin that they have to step on the platform for the lid to open to expose the food. I recently put a feeder in the hen house since Mabel now spends most her time inside. Until recently all 5 of them roamed the yard together and seemed like a cohesive flock. They all roost together on one bar at night. Mabel on the outside then Blanche (our rescue) then no particular order of the 3 newbies. I was hoping they would work it out, but at this point, I feel really bad for Mabel and her quality of life...or rather lack of it. I let her come in the house from time to time, but unfortunately 2 out of 3 of my dogs just don't settle while Mabel is poking around in the house. Also, haven't been able to fit her well with a "chicken diaper". Any suggestions would be appreciated!! Isolation...?Pinless peepers...? Thanks everyone!

​

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You could try pinless peepers. I have had great success with this. In multiple situations, the offender(s) only had to wear them a short while and issues were resolved. Good luck!