4m x 3m Omlet pen, cube, new auto door still boxed and coop light

[mayflower]

Hi, I'm quite a newbie to henkeeping, but I have a few questions to ask you to get a clearer picture, so that the experts can advise you.

Firstly, has the pecking started recently?

Secondly, what sort of pecking is it? I know that sounds a silly question, but is it aggressive pecking or are they pecking one another's tails and those being pecked just standing allowing it to happen?

If they started recently, could it be to do with the hot weather?

Also if the fighting and pecking has recently started, maybe there has been a shift in the pecking order and the hens are sorting out who is going to be top hen this time round.

You can buy poultry spice from Omlet, and horsey places often sell Lifeguard that can be put into their water.

Are they laying well, or has there been a change in their routine?

I hope that someone will come on here soon and be able to advise you

Good luck.

[Egluntyne]

You could try anti peck spray, or blasting them with the hose pipe every time you see aggression.

 

It could just be that for some reason the pecking order within the group has shifted and they are sorting themselves out.

[Guest]

They are just re-establishing the pecking order...

 

This can happen at any time for example when starting a new flock, adding new chickens to an existing flock or when one hen becomes brave enough to fight the current system.

 

The best and most permanent cure for aggressive pecking is providing them with more space or keeping less chickens! It is confinement within a flock that causes stress and aggressive pecking.

 

Chickens kept in a completely free range environment with unlimited space with lots of hiding places to stimulate them and more than one food and water source, do not fight.

 

I keep my chickens in an old barn and allow them to free range completely and put themselves away, they find their own nesting areas, all whilst being guarded from foxes by one of our dogs. But this brings other drawbacks like not knowing where to find every egg and exactly how many hens are in the flock.

 

I am currently thinking of downsizing my flock to have more control over them...