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Chicken keepers

Meet others keeping chickens on our Mumsnet Chicken forum.

Never knew how nasty they were!

8 replies

Chick3216 · 22/06/2024 04:01

I started with three bantam silkies; no problems. I then got 3 full sized chickens in a separate run and no issues. I then got 3 more point of lay. Tried to integrate them and they have broke one of their wings and killed another. I did not realise they would be like this. Needless to say I have now separated them!

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Chick3216 · 22/06/2024 04:02

Any advice welcome 😃

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DeadsoulsAngel · 22/06/2024 04:51

Yup, they’re cannibals too under the right circumstances.

When we first got chickens (I now have a couple of dozen and the same in ducks) we worried they’d be scared of our dogs…. Nah the dogs are scared of the chickens!

I’d recommend keeping them separate if it’s causing problems, sounds like you have two runs and coops? You sometimes find you have one hen who is aggressive and causes issues, I’d try and identify that one and isolate her.

Any new birds will need to find their place in the ‘pecking order’ and there will be scuffles while that’s identified but I’ve never had any bird actually injured or killed (in a great many years of breeding and keeping poultry). I strongly feel you need to find the aggressor and isolate or rehome that bird.

One final thing, they do have enough space, right? I have about 1/3 of an acre per two dozen birds and they rotate through a full acre (so a week in each area with one area empty). This is enough for them to free range nicely, eat bugs and insects and get away from each other if needs be. Coop wise, each run has a 10 x 8” shed with roosting bars, egg boxes etc. chickens need A LOT more space than small commercial coops and runs provide and aggression will be worse if they’re crammed together.

Hope it goes well, chickens are honestly fantastic pets when you get to grips with them

Chick3216 · 22/06/2024 05:07

I actually have three separate runs. They have plenty of free range space and go out every day. It’s the three large chickens who are the problem. They bullied one of the younger ones and she ended up with a broken wing and is now in with my bantams and doing great, but the one they killed; they just pinned down and pecked her head. Was so sad. I do love them and their individual personalities but this is stressful. Thank you for you help

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Chick3216 · 22/06/2024 05:09

It’s not just one of them, it’s all three of the larrge hens x

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FabricPattern · 22/06/2024 05:15

How well do they know each other? You could try putting them in runs next to each other so they see each other but can't attack each other. You could try letting one big hen out to free range with all the little hens to mix and rotate it each day to see if 1 Vs 3 makes a difference. Obviously watch and intervene if necessary. You could get a rooster to meditate the peace - definitely they don't like their girls fighting, and will intervene. They arent always completely effective but they definitely adjust the pecking order

Chick3216 · 22/06/2024 05:18

They free range totally fine together. Their runs are directly next to each other, it’s just when they are in the run/ . I just have one on her own but I don’t want to risk her after what happened with the other two

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Chick3216 · 22/06/2024 05:19

The one on her own is a lovely gentle soul but very submissive x

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Lengokengo · 22/06/2024 06:27

The phrase pecking order comes from chickens pecking each other ! This is their nature.

My MIL had a set of 4 chickens. 3 were got at by foxes so she bought in another set of 4. They were absolute b*stards to the remaining chicken who was pecked nearly to the point of death. Fortunately she decided to move next door, and so lived her best life over the fence.

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