Sireewiree Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 Hi all. I have a bully in the flock of 4. Have left them to get on with it for a while, but now she's drawing blood and I fear it's becoming a habit which will continue unless I break the cycle. Am pretty new to this but am doing the following: A. She's separated but I'm putting her back overnight and taking her out at sunrise (am knackered!). B. Have ordered bumpa bits (as recommended here). Any further opinions as I think they seem ok if nothing else works. C. As bully is eating the feathers she pecks off, am giving spice and tonic and occasional cat food treat. Also, I think the main victim has been laying some soft shells. Is this stress or just not enough calcium? Have put extra baked eggshells and normal grit in. Any advice? Particularly on bumpa bit option ( I have the omlet link) Thanks T (can't figure out how to do the signature block!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patricia W Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 We had this with an ex-bat and two Aracaunas who were " eating" the lovely flowing locks of Phillip the Polish cockeral and drawing blood. After trying everything we resorted to bumpa bits. It's a fiddle to fit them the first time, but they do work. After 5 minutes they forgot about them. I don't like the idea of them, but its the health of the whole flock you need to think about Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KimmyCustard Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 I have 5 girls and one has been pecking the feathers from nearly all the others bums! She is about middle of the pecking order, she's not a bully at all, in fact she seems quite clever and switched on! I think she needs a bit more stimulation than the others and when she's bored, she starts feather pulling. I'm currently trying the anti-peck spray and have had duct tape across 2 of the girls tails, as recommended by a chicken keeper friend. That has worked, the feathers have started to grow back underneath but Marge is still tugging. If the spray doesnt work, then the bumper bit kindly sent to me by Cinnamon will be put on! DH will wrap Marge in a towel and I will pop it on! We will see....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sireewiree Posted July 1, 2011 Author Share Posted July 1, 2011 Thanks both. Reassuring! Mrs Chicken (pecker) is actually really sweet, so boredom may be an issue. Bumpa bits arrive tomorrow, so guess what we'll be spending our Saturday evening doing! Will keep you posted! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jess1merlin Posted July 2, 2011 Share Posted July 2, 2011 I had the same problem as you - 4 hens and 1 bully. I tried various things but in the end found bumper bits the best option. She would still try and peck the others sometimes but they seemed to know she couldn't do any damage and just ignored her in the end. It was also a lot less stressful for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olly Posted July 2, 2011 Share Posted July 2, 2011 Ooh, duct tape - that's a new one on me, sounds interesting! Do you just stick it over the bare patch? Bumper bits are a last resort, but if you have a persistent pecker then they can bring instant relief, and as said above, you have to consider the whole flock - it may be a bit uncomfortable for the hen at first, they usually adapt quite quickly to it, but it stops the other poor hens constantly being de-feathered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercedes55 Posted July 2, 2011 Share Posted July 2, 2011 I am struggling with the same dilemma right now. One of our ex batts has been plucking feathers out of our Araucana and our Favorelle, to the point where our Araucana had no feathers at all on her head. Took us some time to work out who the culprit was but once we realised it was one of the ex batts we separated them from the pure breeds and slowly but surely their feathers are growing back. I'm really not too sure about using those bumpa bits, people on other forums have told me that they are cruel and that our ex batts has been through enough without having to have those put on them too. Also I have absolutely no idea how to put them on or where to get them from. However at some point I am going to have to reintroduce the ex batts as I want to get some more girls and I will need to keep them separate and I can't do that while my ex batts are in the Eglu. So we are thinking of putting two of the ex batts with the pure breeds first and if everything seems fine we will put the bully back last in the hope that she will then be at the bottom of the pecking order. Have no idea at all if that will work or what we will do if it doesn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cluckynikki Posted July 3, 2011 Share Posted July 3, 2011 I resorted to a bumper bit on my black rockTilly when she was pecking Coffee's vent (after an episode of soft shelled eggs strangely enough) and drawing blood. The pecking stopped immediately, which gave Coffee time to heal up, Tilly seemded to forget, and peace was restored. However, over time in the winter when they are kept off the grass she started plucking the feathers off Coffee and eating them, so the bumper bit didn't stop that. It did mean she had to yank them out, almost pulling poor Coffee off her feet, but at least it seemed to stop her breaking and damaging the skin. The way Coffee just stood there and let her do it made me think Coffee wasn't as bothered about it as I was, so I do not let myself get so worked up about it now. The bumper bits fall off after a few months and she has had three on over the last year, but after the last fell off I have not put a new one on at the moment. It is summer and they are out free ranging all the time so the feather pulling doesn't seem to be a problem. As far as putting them on goes, I have always had to do it single-handedly, so I have the hen wrapped in a towel gripped between my knees as I kneel on the floor. I have to say that the first time was the easiest of the three as then Tilly didn't realise what was happening. Now she really struggles as she realises what is coming and I am worried about stressing her. You have to have grim determination as you set upon the task - say to yourself "I am going to do this because the hen does not have the right to injure the other(s) - and cause me all the stress and upset that goes with it"! I have found the tip of soaking the nostril prongs in hot water first to soften them works well. Good luck. I hope it works for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KimmyCustard Posted July 3, 2011 Share Posted July 3, 2011 I dont think the bits are cruel, otherwise they wouldnt be made and sold to help poultry with feather pulling. They are little plastic rings with smooth edges so they dont dig into the hen's beak/nostrils and they can scoff their way round the garden still, which is basically their favourite pastime! Olly - yes you stick the duct tape over the baldy patch, which hides the red skin and the part that's being plucked! The tape loses its sticky (prob over about 2 weeks) and falls off. You can see the new quills coming through underneath, I replaced one lot on Pixie as she was still lacking some thickness and I didnt want Marge to start again. Am going to see what happens this week and Marge will be 'bumpered' if she carries on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redwing Posted July 3, 2011 Share Posted July 3, 2011 I guess they are ok as a last resort but I wouldnt use them personally - but I dont think they are cruel as such and dont want to pass judgement on people that use them as we all do what we think is best Athough you do get the odd die hard bully in some flocks most pecking problems are caused by something so personally I'd find the source of the problems rather than apply a quick fix If that means rehoming a bully to a bigger flock with more space where it may be happier then I'd do it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercedes55 Posted July 3, 2011 Share Posted July 3, 2011 I guess they are ok as a last resort but I wouldnt use them personally - but I dont think they are cruel as such and dont want to pass judgement on people that use them as we all do what we think is best Athough you do get the odd die hard bully in some flocks most pecking problems are caused by something so personally I'd find the source of the problems rather than apply a quick fix If that means rehoming a bully to a bigger flock with more space where it may be happier then I'd do it Well I think that is the way we would go if we can't stop our ex batt bullying. I know a lot of people don't mind if their hens get their feathers plucked out, but I find it quite upsetting to look at my once beautiful girls and see them look so awful. I'm sure it can't be good for my Araucana to have a bald head when it's so hot and when the weather gets cold it would be awful again to have no feathers on her head in the freezing cold weather. Funny thing now is that the bullying hen isn't doing anything to the other 2 ex batts she is with, it's just the pure breeds she seems to have a problem with Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sireewiree Posted July 4, 2011 Author Share Posted July 4, 2011 Been good to read everyone's comments. Bumpa bits arrived Saturday, so after a couple of days of isolation I put mrs chicken (columbian blackmail bully!) back in with the flock to watch. She actually seems to have settled down a little, and the others have done a little bit of scolding her! So am hanging on to the bits for now. Will monitor and use if necessary (comments have reassured me). Am sure peace won't last so will keep them handy! I love having the chickens, but wish they'd read the ideal chicken handbook (am sure you'll all tell me there isn't such a thing...). Happy bokking.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christian Posted July 5, 2011 Share Posted July 5, 2011 Worth trying a peckablock or a raw cabbage hung up in the run is pecking is a problem. Boredom is a major cause of feather pulling.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
