Alfred Posted October 17, 2008 Share Posted October 17, 2008 Hi all, I am new to this site having just got my first 3 hens on wednesday from the BHWT - yay! However there has been trouble in paradise... 2 of the hens are almost completely bald (as you would expect with ex batts) and the other is bigger and has quite a few feathers. On the second day, the one with feathers started to beat up the other 2 in a most vicious manner. I know they are supposed to fight at first but this is ridiculous. At first the bully hen would not allow the others near the food and kept chasing them off, jumping on their backs and grabbing on to their combs until they bled. The 2 bald ones would run into the eglu to hide. I tried providing more food and even scattered food over the whole of the run area thinking this would stop them fighting. But then the bully would not let them out of the eglu and stood outside the door pecking up the food whilst the others cowered inside. Then I put some food in the eglu itself, in the nesting box. However this made it even worse as the bully then went inside the eglu and managed to corner the other two not letting them out or near any of the food or water. if either of them tried to get a peck in they would get beaten up. After a morning of this i decided to put the bully in a wire cat basket (with some food) inside the eglu run and the other 2 have spent a happy afternoon pottering about. However as soon as I put the bully back in she started to peck them again and they ran away. I know you aren't supposed to separate them but the 2 bald ones will starve otherwise! Should I persevere or just get rid of the baddie now? Alfred Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted October 17, 2008 Share Posted October 17, 2008 Welcome to the forum. Sorry you are having a rough time. Ex-batts can often be aggressive as they have had to fight to get at the food in the cage and it takes a while to "unlearn" this behaviour. You could isolate the bully, or put a bumpa bit on her, or try spraying the others with something bitter tasting such as Anti peck spray, or Tea tree Spray. If you put three food stations out she should have difficulty manning them all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alfred Posted October 18, 2008 Author Share Posted October 18, 2008 Thanks for the advice, I will try the bitter spray and get a bumpa bit. For the moment I am keeping the bad hen in the cat basket, although it is a bit small. She is not just trying to protect the food - today I let them all out into the garden and she was chasing the others up and down and pecking them viciously even though none of them were anywhere near the food. The others are so scared that as soon as i let her out of the cat box they start looking wary. It's a bit sad - I want them to be happy together! Dawn Ruby Cleo (bad hen!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeckyBoo Posted October 18, 2008 Share Posted October 18, 2008 Not sure really what else to suggest, sorry you're having such a nightmare. It's still early days and I think you're doing the right thing seperating her, poor old ex-batts, talk about out of the frying pan and into the fire The other thing you could do is put some canes through the wire of the run so she can't actually get at them. If it really REALLy doesn't sort itself out in a week or so or show any sign of improving and if she's really being a complete thug, then maybe see about rehoming her - someone with more hens or hens who are even more dominant might put her in her place. I think you should give it a while longer, but if you end up feeling that you HAVE to rehouse her then do it, and don't feel bad about it. She'll be fine somewhere else. Welcome by the way Mrs B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted October 18, 2008 Share Posted October 18, 2008 Oh dear!! That must be really frustrating !!! you give her a taste of freedom and a loving home and she acts like that! I am no expert but it sounds like she is trying to excert her power over the others - probably a reaction to finally being let out!! You have to feel sorry for her really! But for the sake of the others you have to do something! Short of getting rid of her! You can hardly give her away ....."would you like my aggresive ratty hen"???????? who's going to want her? Maybe someone with a large flock where she can be taken down a peg or two and taught some manners????? Otherwise you are going to have to keep her apart from the others in her own house - which kinda defeats the object of rescue really doesn't it? Good luck! - keep us informed! Louise Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted October 19, 2008 Share Posted October 19, 2008 If you have an afternoon to spare you could supervise their ranging together and every time she attacks the others if you make her submit to you by putting your hand on her back so that she crouches, she might just cotton on to the fact that she is not the boss, you are. Or you could have the hosepipe ready and give her an icy blast every time she does it. It sometimes startles them out of nasty behaviour, but is time consuming. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pencilbeckett Posted October 19, 2008 Share Posted October 19, 2008 Hi There I got my two ex batt girls in June. Like you i had one poor bald one and one big feathered girl. It was awful My big hen was attacking my bald girl until her comb bled, not letting her eat and jumping on her back. Ithought i had really done the wrong thing. My poor bald girl spent the first night in my kitchen in a cat basket. The next day i went and got some purple spray from the country store for her comb and reintroduced her. The bullying went on for about a week and then calmed down. The purple spray really helped i think as it disguised the blood on her comb. Please dont give up my girls are inseperable now and never fight. If anything my little baldy who is now a feathered princess is in charge. Hope this helps and good luck with your new girls, rescuing ex batts is so rewarding when they start to thrive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alfred Posted October 19, 2008 Author Share Posted October 19, 2008 Your story is quite inspiring Jenni. Cleo (my bad hen) is definitely less intelligent than the other 2. She is a typical thicko bully i think! Today I had Cleo in the run and the other two (Ruby and Dawn) loose in the garden and they kept running around the run, going right up to the bars and peering in at Cleo, who kept trying to peck them through the bars. They obviously knew she couldn't get them and just stood there staring in a smug way. Cleo would then look embarrassed and pretend to be chewing her foot or something! Dawn and Ruby are getting more confident now, probably as they are getting used to having the run to themselves whilst Cleo is in her cat basket. When I do let her out and she chases them, they soon try to approach again rather than just crying in a corner like they did before. They all sleep together at night and seem to get on ok then. I think it is a bit like training a dominant dog. At least they are all laying eggs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pencilbeckett Posted October 20, 2008 Share Posted October 20, 2008 Hi I am glad your girls seem to be getting more confident. Hopefully given time they will be great friends. When i was having problems with the bullying i rang the BHWT and they said the more feathered girls are the ones who have really fought their corner in the battery farm to avoid having their feathers pecked out and it is not their fault they are agressive it is just survival of the fittest in that awful place. Fingers crossed they keep improving Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alfred Posted October 21, 2008 Author Share Posted October 21, 2008 Things are slightly improved today, they spent most of the day being quite harmonious. Dawn, the smallest, is getting pecked by the other two occasionally but they are all eating and drinking. Hoorah!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted October 21, 2008 Share Posted October 21, 2008 That is good news. Give it a couple of weeks and I'm sure things will settle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pistachio Posted October 29, 2008 Share Posted October 29, 2008 this is really encouraging - you have done such a great job and it's encouraging for those of us who are struggling with very aggressive chickens - well done I feel more hopeful aftre a day in tears after buying and building new runs and tending to a huge wound of a pecked chicken. Very complicated, time consuming and worrying. Great to hear about people who are helping their chickens all get through in one piece Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alfred Posted October 29, 2008 Author Share Posted October 29, 2008 That sounds awful! Mine are much better now after 2 weeks. It was amazing how quickly they settled down. I think free ranging helped a lot. I let them out on the 3rd day and having the extra space to explore helped distract them all. I also used bitter spray and confined the evil one for part of each day so the others got more confident. There is still the odd peck but they all eat and drink and there is no blood! Good luck with yours!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
