Hello,
Hope someone can help. My 1 yr old hens are going after the 2+3 month old chicks I bought @ feed store.
Currently have to have them in 2 separate houses.
I have to build 1 house for them all. It will have the 'area/bird/recommendation.'
I tried putting them in @ night together, almost disaster.
They have lots of room to roam together during the day out of their coops but when the babies get near, the big girls attack as if the yungins' are their next meal.
The big girls were very calm before this and when babies are not around. (No roosters)
Light brahmas (3) and buff orpingtons (2). I have all different types of babies.
I am just starting out, so will prob have other questions down the road.
Thanks for any suggestions
Help! Hens hurting yungin's
Yes, you will have to keep them apart, as they will kill the younger ones.
I had the same problem. I ended up having to divide my coop into 2 sections in order to keep them safe. Later I made a hole thru that only the younger ones would fit thru. They would venture out into the other part of the pen with the big chickens, but when they got too rough, the little ones could run back into their side and get away. Eventually they all accepted the young ones as part of the group. But it took some time and got better as the chicks got closer to the size of the others.
Same thing happens when you put a new chicken of any age into a coop.
They will pick on the new one brutally and sometimes kill it. There's just a pecking order that is all business to them.
I had no idea my ladies would be so brutal. They have always been such sweet birds. They got ahold of a little 3 m old barred rock a couple days ago and made her comb bleed before I could get to her.
Will I always have to keep the bantams (3) separate from the others when they are all full grown?
I also have a supposed mottled cochin bantam that is about 2 months old and not feathered yet. Starting to look bald cuz her down is rubbing off. What's wrong with her? Is there anything I should be doing with her?
Thanks for the info.
When I introduce new hens into my coop, I put them in a big cage and put the cage in the middle of the coop for about a week before I even let them mingle. This way the hens can all look each other over and fuss at each other without any physical violence.
This also helps me to evaluate the new birds and make sure they are not sick or infested with lice or anything. I wouldn't want to put any sick birds or bugs in my healthy flock of hens.
Once I added a white leghorn chicken and the others waited until I let her out and they killed her. Some times they just don't like a particular bird. I sometimes wonder if that white leghorn had something wrong with it and they knew it, but I couldn't tell?
What you are experiencing is typical. Babies learn quickly, but it's better to separate, via fencing, for a while before allowing them to go head on. I like 'friendly' chickens that like people and I've made my selections accordingly. I had three RIRs/mixed with ill temperaments, so I re-homed them. My hubby laughs, but I intend to have a harmonious chicken yard and if someone is mean, they are removed. My chickens are pets, treated like royalty and I will not tolerate in fighting. Oh, how I pray Avian Flu does not become a reality
Yes , I went through all this too! My older ones refused to let any around them that werent there own! Now once they got there "grown up" feathers they seemed to be accepted easily! But they were also big enough to run out of harms way, and werent looking for a Mama any longer!