Bullied new hen

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Nikkicharl
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Joined: 01 Aug 2017, 10:52
Gender: Female

Re: Bullied new hen

Post by Nikkicharl »

Thank you all once again for your comments, and it does help to know that I'm not the only chicken owner continually stressed out with problems! Cheshire Chick - even my hybrids that I've had from point of lay haven't got past 3 either. Many hens have succumbed to peritonitis and others have had mystery illnesses; all have been nursed to the best of my ability. I too had a hen drained and even had a contraceptive implant placed in her at great cost but she died the next day. My last 2 ex bats lived just 5 months, the 2 before only 2 months.

My longest lived hen at 3 and a half was Lucy, an ex barn commercial layer who I had put down with peritonitis on Monday. I found a nearby farm vet to do this who turned out to be cheaper than my regular small animal vet. In the last 2 months of her life Lucy cost me well over £300 in vet fees as she had 3 episodes of her crop swelling up like a water balloon. The last time made her very ill and It took me a week of syringe feeding to bring her back to her normal self. Added to that an outbreak of red mite in the coop which made Lucy anaemic, not to mention nursing my very sick budgie Charlie indoors at the same time, and I was nearly tearing my hair out!

My bantam cockerel Luke was brought to me about a year ago as a chick by my daughter (even though I forbade her to do so). A woman had abandoned him in a box under a bush in a car park and fortunately was spotted doing so. My daughter happened to be teaching animal care on the site so naturally she ended up with him in her classroom. He grew into the most beautiful bird, resembling a gold laced wyandotte but with feathered feet. Some of my neighbours didn't appreciate his crowing and one reported me to the council, which is why Luke now spends every night in my kitchen. I did think about trying to rehome him but nobody wants cockerels, the cockerel rescue centres are too far away and I wouldn't trust internet adverts for cockerels - I suspect they'd end up either in the pot or used for fighting. So Luke is here to stay and I must say I love him to bits. He is the reason why I have to persevere with keeping hens. When Luke is alone outside he crows practically non stop and I'd most likely end up with enforcement action from the council!

So back to my present situation. Flossie has been secured in the rabbit hutch while I've been out, free ranging in the garden while I've been in, and has had the run of my kitchen at night. That has meant she and Luke have been near each other. Surprisingly Flossie has chosen to roost right next to Luke's cage and has shown interest in him, craning her neck to look at him. He has turned out to be the worst aggressor so I hope this contact will help. They're all in the garden at present and Flossie is under the bush. I think her nervousness is making the situation worse. The other 2 largely ignore her till she starts to panic and run from them; it's then that they run after her and peck. My next job is to fence off a small area where I can keep Flossie apart but within sight. I'll see how things go and post an update soon.

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kitla
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Joined: 30 Oct 2009, 23:25
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Location: Northants

Re: Bullied new hen

Post by kitla »

Well you sound like a pretty devoted mad chicken lady, just like quite a few of us here! I understand your fondness of Luke, we have a cockerel that is such a friendly cuddly fellow I cant imagine our garden without him, but unlike you our neighbours quite like his crowing. The last 2 hens I got were ex batts, they instantly made friends but one of them fought violently with my cockerel & I kept them in a fenced off area for over a week while they accepted eachother. I scattered mealworms each side of the fence so all chooks ate them together & Bill felt that he was "providing" the treats for the new girls a well. Things did settle down & suddenly they were a flock. It did help that my grumpy hen had a friend though, could you squeeze one more in so Flossie could have a buddy?
"He who is cruel to animals becomes hard also in his dealings with men. We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals."
--Immanuel Kant
Nikkicharl
Learner Laner
Posts: 15
Joined: 01 Aug 2017, 10:52
Gender: Female

Re: Bullied new hen

Post by Nikkicharl »

Another hen is a possibility Ketla, though it would be just my luck for the new one to side with the bullies!

Luke used to be scared of the hens when he was growing up, but eventually the urge to mate with them got the better of him. He used to run up to one of them, jump on her back then run away again. That's when he realised they weren't so scarey after all! It made life a lot easier when I was able to put them all in the same run together.
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Mo
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Joined: 30 Apr 2007, 09:39
Location: Cheshire (nr Chester)

Re: Bullied new hen

Post by Mo »

Even when introductions go smoothly I've noticed that there is usually an 'old' flock and a 'new' flock. Then some months down the line and suddenly there's one flock.
Dance caller. http://mo-dance-caller.blogspot.co.uk/p/what-i-do.html
Sunny Clucker enjoyed Folk music and song in mid-Cheshire
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ChickenCarol
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Joined: 13 Jun 2012, 21:08
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Location: Buckinghamshire, England

Re: Bullied new hen

Post by ChickenCarol »

Keep persevering and you will get there. I have had easy integrations, medium integrations and really difficult integrations. It seems to be different every time. You always get there in the end though. I have thought it was never going to work and then it gradually gets better and then as Mo says one minute they are two flocks and then one day you realise they are one flock. I think other than illness, integrating can be the worse part of chicken keeping but it is worth while when they finally all get along.
Vines
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Joined: 03 Aug 2017, 10:44

Re: Bullied new hen

Post by Vines »

It's horrible when you see one getting bullied by the others. Tricky to deal with too.

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