Advice please

[chookies]

I'm not sure if Beryl is unwell or acting strange because she is being bullied?

Boudicca is the top hen and has become a bit of a bully , especially to Beryl as Beryl was next in line.

I first noticed when Beryl would stand back when I was hand feeding them all, then she waited to be last out of the coop in the mornings.

She now tends to creep slowly towards the feeders looking around to check for Boudicca she will do this looking at the food bowl looking at Boudicca as soon as she gets Close enough Boudicca will literally fly to either peck her, stare at her till she backs away or barge her out of the way eating out of that feeder or emptying the food on the floor.

So now Beryl mainly will just peck at the floor not actually eat from the any of the feeders (I have 5) I have seen her drinking but she will often stand under the coop or just stands near the feeder sleeping.

I'm just not sure if she is unwell or just very scared of Boudicca?

She was sleep standing by the feeder yesterday and I asked my husband to come out to look at her, he then got a load of maggots and threw them in to see if she would react and she did, in fact she was the quickest at getting them so that's why I question if she is unwell.
Any advice?

[bikesandbirdsbob]

Hi ,keep an eye on her , make sure she gets food and water .
Sounds like she is the one to spoil and get to be a lap sitter.
Chickens are like that .
My suggestion is to get two more girls or a large cockeral to keep the girls in order .
More girls will take the pressure of her and may get a friend from it .
Keep us all up dated and actions taken as never know might be new trick and woek.
Bob
(Best of luck )

[Grannyof4]

I certainly don't think it is necessary to go down the route of getting a cockerel. I don't know how many hens you have. Is she bullying any other hens? You could try the water pistol but it means you have to stand and watch in order to zap the bully. You could try removing the bully for a few days.

[kitla]

Perhaps you could try putting a couple of extra bowls of foods around, she may be braver with those while the others are at the main one. The bullying usually settles down once the flock has sorted out its order, but if a hen is poorly or broody they sometimes get picked on more often. So as Bob said keep a watch on her, check that her crop is full when she goes to bed & if you know where she roosts have a look at her night time poops - if she's pooping then she's eating, they're also a good indicator of illness if they arent quite normal.
By the way, my top hen has a peck at every other girl as they go into the coop at night, almost like a clip round the ear!

[lancashire lass]

My Bluebelle was a dreadful (and evil) bully even though for a long while she was only second in command, and the shy Amber Star even today, tucks her head in she looks like a headless chicken whenever the Bluebelle is around .... surprisingly, once she became top hen (sadly her predecessor died), her bullying has almost completely stopped although she does do the occasional beak butt to remind the others who is boss

[Grannyof4]

Kitla........Chookies already has 5 feeders.

You could perhaps move 1 of the feeders to where Beryl prefers to be.

[lancashire lass]

maybe have some sort of screen up in places so the bully can't see every feeder all the time so the others might be able to feed without an immediate response?

So now Beryl mainly will just peck at the floor not actually eat from the any of the feeders

chickens are natural ground scratchers and peck at food on the floor and if anything, it means the bully won't be able to control the feeders so religiously if the food is freely available elsewhere (I read a report that feeders actually encourage bullying - if a hen turned a rock over in the wild and found a feast, the others would rush in to eat with the top hen there first to make sure she got the most. I suppose the same applies to a food source like a feeder, even if there are several around)

Out of interest, I scatter fresh greens, seed and grain as a scratch food/treat for the day and it keeps them all busy scratching and turning the soil over to look and peck at anything interesting. The downside is, don't put too much food (presumably your feeders have layers pellets?) as any left too long especially on damp soil can get mouldy and cause crop problems, and also encourage vermin as well.

[KarenE]

Hi Chookie

It could be bullying as the others have said. Keep a close eye on her and if she isn't picking up or is going downhill in a few days then maybe get her to the vets for an opinion. If she's eating that's a good sign.

Try scattering food widely and distracting Boudicca so Beryl has a chance to get some. You may have to fed her seperately for a while if it's really a problem.

Also - have you checked her over to see if there's another problem? ie checked for mites/lice? Crop okay? Has she been wormed, and are her poos okay? And could she possibly be about to moult? Just in case there's an underlying health reason as that can prompt other chickens to pick on one.

[bikesandbirdsbob]

Hi the cockeral was a bit tongue in cheak . it is not nice to see the pecking order forming up. Cannot stop it . As long as no harm is being done and you can watch to make sure , sometimes it is best to let them sort it out . You can only put off the order not stop it.
If harm is being done you have to seperate them with a wire fence . They can then show of through it until they get fed up or a winner appears.
hosing them with water , takes their mind of it (for a while) plenty of space and feeding areas (water as well ) Still think sometime s another girl takes the pressure away from the bullied girl (Can also give her a extra problem .)
Let us know what happens as yet again your story will help in right and wrong results.
Sure that it will end good like most stories do ...
Bob

[Willow]

It sounds as though she is simply at the very bottom of the pecking order , you say that you have several feeders already, are they in view of each other?
I found a lot of this kind of problem could be sorted out by creating hidden areas within the run, blocking some feeders from the line of sight & giving the 'underdogs' somewhere they can have a bit of peace X