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

[cluckingmad]

I give up - Esme and Pepper were bumper bit'ed again yesterday, as Esme is the only one with a decent tail amongst the hybrid girls (hence prime suspect as feather plucker extraordinaire) and Pepper if an aggressive little madam... out came the circlips, on with the bits, lasted about 5 seconds before they were off again

 

We've confirmed that they were put on properly, they were well inserted in the nostrils but my hens seem to have learnt how to remove them by hooking their talons under the bit where it enters a nostril, then they just scratch and pull and the bits are removed in record time. When we got the bits we checked the size and they are the ones suitable for medium sized girls such as ours, sop am at a loss as to what to try next..

 

I should also add that squirting EVERYONE (including me and OH) with anti-peck spray did absolutely nowt, they are a pair of tenacious little minxes who don't seem to be put off!

 

Help?! My poor girls are looking distinctly bare in the undercarriage region and tails have obviously been pecked at, they've looked this way for months so it isn't just moulting and as my babies currently have loverrrrly tails I'd like to keep them that way

Edited November 1, 2009 by Guest

[Jools]

I'm guessing that separate accommodation isn't an option?

 

This is something else I have no experience of, but I'm wondering what's causing the behaviour because I don't think it's run of the mill bullying. Are they pecking because they're missing something in the diet, or because they're bored or because it's just become a habit? I don't know if there's a way of addressing the cause instead?

 

Sorry, thinking out loud but maybe it'll prompt some more useful responses! Good luck.

[cluckingmad]

Not really... we already have two separate accomodations on the go in addition to the cube+WIR

 

Suspect it could be boredom... we didn't notice it till they moved into the WIR earlier this year, until then they had the cube and run on grass, now they're on aubiose so no bugs to scratch up.. at first we wondered if they were getting too hot as it was the little bit of summer we had and it got really warm in the WIR as it has a coprrugated plastic roof, although its meshed on all 4 sides the heat tends to stay in (great for winter mind), aske edthe vet about it and he thought it was due to them rubbing up against something?

 

It almost looks like the kind of thing yuo see if you have a rooster paying alot of attention to the girls - their longer tail feathers are fine, but the ones towards their backs at the base of the tail look as if they've been snapped half way down so look, well, shabby for want of a better word!

 

We're adding some platforms to the WIR this week along with perches, CD mobiles and a swing (sad but true) to hopefully curb the behaviour. Pepper is most definately a bully - she's attacked all the newbies over the past couple of weeks, almost as if she's thrilledc that there's someone smaller than her to push around, so hopefully she'll calm down once they've been fully integrated (it's early days yet).

 

Also have a peckablock to pop in the WIR this week - they demolished their last one, oh and picked up two parge pumpkins for free today too - OH's insisting we take at least SOME of the flesh out for cooking with, but the girls get the rest!

 

Sorry about the long post btw I think I probably worry about the girls more than any of my other animals/family!

 

 

Carolyn x

[Patricia W]

What about a poultry saddle - the kind you get to protect the girls from an over enthusiastic cockerel?

 

Tricia

[cluckingmad]

already got! Jemima (the girl worst affected) has one covering her back, although she's still bare in the undercarriage region, and has been for months she's been treted for mites including depluming mite on advice of vet, her feathers start to regrow then are removed - tried one on maggie too but she removed it in minutes (it was a bit big for her, so will need to do some modifying later on)..