Jealous hen?

[Reggie99]

We’ve raised chickens for around 20 years and never seen this before.

Our experienced, older Belgian d’uccle has a clutch of chicks about 4 weeks old. They’ve just started mixing with the rest of the flock when out free ranging. Yesterday I noticed a young adult d’uccle (a previous chick of the mother) clucking around the chicks… like a food cluck but a bit weird. Millie (the mother) warned her to back off with posture, but the young girl attacked her and they fought. Later she made it up into the separate area where the chicks are and attacked Millie again, leaving her with a limp .

The young hen has never shown any aggression before. She’s not going for the chicks at all. She’s been broody on and off but not currently.

Obviously we’ll keep them separated but… what’s her deal? We’ve never had issues integrating mums and chicks with the flock.

 

[Farmgirl283420]

I’m interested to see what people say about this.

 

[Yardmom]

Did you have Millie completely separated from the flock the first 4 weeks? EIther way, it is not unusual for a challenge for status in the flock when a broody returns. I'm surprised you haven't seen it before. How large is your flock?

 

[Shadrach]

We’ve raised chickens for around 20 years and never seen this before.

Our experienced, older Belgian d’uccle has a clutch of chicks about 4 weeks old. They’ve just started mixing with the rest of the flock when out free ranging. Yesterday I noticed a young adult d’uccle (a previous chick of the mother) clucking around the chicks… like a food cluck but a bit weird. Millie (the mother) warned her to back off with posture, but the young girl attacked her and they fought. Later she made it up into the separate area where the chicks are and attacked Millie again, leaving her with a limp .

The young hen has never shown any aggression before. She’s not going for the chicks at all. She’s been broody on and off but not currently.

Obviously we’ll keep them separated but… what’s her deal? We’ve never had issues integrating mums and chicks with the flock.

Not identical but similar.
A bantam rooster invited a Marans/bantam cross pullet who had been thrown out of the tribe her siblings lived in to move in with them. The tribe had a very competant senior hen and the crossed hen and the senior hen got on well. The crossed hen became the tribe minder and kept the senior hen warm in the winter by sleeping more or less on top of her.
The senior hen sat and hatched a clutch, she had hatched a few clutches before and her mothering time lasted around five weeks when the chicks were rejected in no uncertain terms.
The crossed hen, mother and chicks ranged together for the standard five weeks. When the senior hen no longer fed the chicks, the crossed hen (Aunt) still would and these two fought over feeding the chicks.The period didn't last long but every time the senior hen found something nice and wouldn't give it to the chicks the Aunt would attacker her.

A few months later the crossed hen sat and hatched her own chicks and died defending them from a hawk.

 

[Reggie99]

Did you have Millie completely separated from the flock the first 4 weeks? EIther way, it is not unusual for a challenge for status in the flock when a broody returns. I'm surprised you haven't seen it before. How large is your flock?

Flock is currently about 10 hens, mixed breeds standard and bantam. Generally very settled and peaceful.

They have been separated by a fence but could see and hear each other.

I’ve definitely seen pecking order argybargy when a broody returns. I’ve also seen other hens show interest in the chicks and casually tend to them alongside the mother, with her permission.

This just seemed different, because 1. It seemed like the young hen was interested in the chicks in an ownership way and 2. The level of actual violence was intense and unlike usual status fights where no real harm is intended.

It likely is just pecking order, but she got a bit carried away. I suppose I was interested to know if others have had a hen try to actively steal chicks or harm a mum out of jealousy or hormonal weirdness.

 

[Reggie99]

Not identical but similar.
A bantam rooster invited a Marans/bantam cross pullet who had been thrown out of the tribe her siblings lived in to move in with them. The tribe had a very competant senior hen and the crossed hen and the senior hen got on well. The crossed hen became the tribe minder and kept the senior hen warm in the winter by sleeping more or less on top of her.
The senior hen sat and hatched a clutch, she had hatched a few clutches before and her mothering time lasted around five weeks when the chicks were rejected in no uncertain terms.
The crossed hen, mother and chicks ranged together for the standard five weeks. When the senior hen no longer fed the chicks, the crossed hen (Aunt) still would and these two fought over feeding the chicks.The period didn't last long but every time the senior hen found something nice and wouldn't give it to the chicks the Aunt would attacker her.

A few months later the crossed hen sat and hatched her own chicks and died defending them from a hawk.

Oh no poor girl. We had a huge hawk here the other day, it clocked the chicks but a flock of cockatoos chased it relentlessly until it left the area. My opinion of the cockies improved significantly!

We’ve had a couple of co-mothering situations where broodies have sat and hatched together and raised the babies harmoniously.

I do feel like this little d’uccle was having some kind of hormonal/emotional issue, as it seemed like she was trying to cluck the chicks away from their mum (even though she didn’t actually have anything to offer them) before she went unaccountably feral.

 

[Yardmom]

I did have a hen who would want half grown chicks. I don't remember her fighting the mothers, but she would take over after the mothers would ween. One time I caught her trying to pull brooder chicks through welded wire. I didn't realize until later she was not trying to harm the chicks. She wanted keep the chicks.