pecking order

So my rooster was over mating with a few hens in the flock to the point that they perpetually had bareback and 2 of them had major feather loss around their heads and necks. He ended up bullying one of the hens to the point that she wouldn’t leave the coop so I culled him. I have 8 hens...

Hello all. I am fairly new to chicken raising and could really use some advice. The other night, Saturday, while I was getting my chickens ready to go in their coop for the night, one (or possibly two) of my hens viciously attacked another one of my hens. I have two chicken species, Rhode Island...

I am redoing this stupid post because I can't figure out how to delete it and it won't let me upload pics highly angry right now I have three sister hens Jade Onyx, Peppercorn Chip, and Princess Sugar Cube. They are Ayam Cemani. there is a Roo, named Prince Branch Gristle and their niece...

Hello BYC! There is a behavioral issue with my two roosters. To put it simple, one rooster is much more authoritative than the other. It started with our three roosters Dom, Jade, and Little Red. Jade was “The Man of the House”, but we culled him after he became increasingly more aggressive to...

I just got five new hens from someone today and he warned me that one (Jessica) is the lowest in the pecking order. Jessica has been bullied and pecked at all day, I even brought her inside for a bit to give her a break. She hasn’t eaten or drank and just lays down and takes whatever pecking...

Hi all! I need some tips on integrating 3 young pullets (5 weeks old) into my existing flock (13 weeks). My existing flock consists of 1 hen and possibly 4 roosters...accidentally. I plan to re-home 3 of the roos once I know for sure if they are rosters. I currently have the 5 week old...

Hi all! I am a chicken newbie and could use some advice from those with more experience. I have five 6 month old buff Orpington hens that have been together since they were a week old. I didn't see much aggressive pecking order behavior until about a month or two ago when they really started...

Hello, second ever post here. I’ve got three chickens, and they’re about 9 weeks old. After realizing I had a cockerel, I wanted to make sure neither of my other ones were as well. Now comes the issue of swapping him (he seems to be the top of the pecking order, considering my hens follow him...

Hi All, I am new to having chickens and a bit concerned right now. I have 5 buff Orpington pullets that are 5 months old and all just started laying about a month ago. They have been together since they were chicks. In the past couple of weeks I've seen them being aggressive with each other in...

Hello all! I have a bit of an issue. Obviously, all flocks have a pecking order, and in mine the head chook is my BSL, Pinguino. She usually picks on Brigid, our biggest chicken (literally, and figuratively) who is supposed to be a Jersey Giant. Well, I've noticed a few bloody combs in the last...

Hey y’all. I have one Australorp hen, 2 years old, that used to be at the bottom of the pecking order (1 of 3, then 2 until I had to put my other hen down a few weeks ago). I have one small flock of 3 pullets, 3 months old, that I’ve been trying to integrate with her for a month—did the side by...

I currently have 9 Easter eggers that are a little over 3 years old, among them a hen named "Z," who has been having difficulty laying eggs with fragile shells or no shells at all. Recently, I've noticed that Z is developing waddles, which could be a sign of transitioning into a rooster...

I have 2 hens (Blackie and Whitey). Blackie is the top of the pecking order and is quite aggressive to Whitey especially at feeding times. A feral Rooster made its way into my yard and mated with them both. Whitey went broody and hatched one of the fertilized eggs, she then lost interest in...

I am new to this. I have a group of 6 Rhode Island Reds. 3 of those are RIR Mixes. The group has one Rooster, he is full RIR. They are 14 weeks old. I hadn't intended to keep a rooster but really loved him. He is becoming a little bit of an A$$hole though. He pecks the ladies when they try to...

Hello! This is long, I’m sorry, but I need help! The picture is of my babies, this post is about the adults. I’m having issues with my roosters. Before now, everyone got along, everyone knew the pecking order and was great. My littlest rooster (ayam cemani) was alpha, he was an adult when I...

Hi all. Was around chickens when little (grew up in MT) but just started a backyard mixed flock in SW WA where we have 3 acres. (But also giant hawks, eagles, coyotes, wild dog packs, weasels, coons, etc so a larger run and a coop more than open free range unless we are out with them.) Focused...

I have 6 lovely black astrolorps a called the Fockers, this 1 has no feathers on her back and it’s been like this for awhile. The others peck at her new feathers trying to grow, but now it’s seems like they’re not even appearing anymore. I’m not sure what I can do, all my other chickens have...

Hey all, was hoping you more seasoned chicken owners could help. I have 4 hens and my biggest girl is a Lavendar Ameraucana and clearly seems the top of the pecking order (ironically she used to be the runt!). She seems like a bully (though she is a favorite and super sweet with us… so please...

So to start this post it needs to be clear that this is my first time owning chickens, and although i’ve had them for over a year i’m still learning. So i have three hens, and two female ducks who are peas in a pod(?). for the last year that i’ve had my chickens and the last 5 months i’ve had...

So I have a hen who is very clearly the bottom of the pecking order and missing quite a few of her wing and tail feathers although otherwise she’s not badly injured but she’s been in the flock over a year and still is pretty badly picked on my question is would it do any good to separate her so...