Aggressive Hens Toward Rooster

[lian_kugler6]

Help! This is kind of urgent. So I have a Rhode Island Red hen who is fully grown, and just raised up 2 Silkies. One Silkie is a rooster and the other is a hen. NOTE: my RIR is very friendly and kind and I’ve never noticed any aggressive behavior from her. I decided to finally merge the two after lots of introductions and keeping them together in an open space, etc… They did fine the first day and night, but then for some reason my RIR got aggressive towards the two and even drew a fair amount of blood from my rooster. I moved my Silkies back to the original pen they were in and now I’m noticing my Silkie hen is attacking my rooster. I don’t think this was happening before either. I’ve checked him for serious injuries and he seems fine, but she keeps pecking at him and causing him to scream and be scared. There’s no blood and she doesn’t seem super aggressive but is definitely attacking him. Also, she seems to only peck at his neck area? He’s also not doing anything towards her btw. If anyone knows what’s going on and how I can stop them from fighting I’d be happy to try anything. I hate seeing my babies get hurt and I know the pecking order is going to happen but I don’t want them to die

 

[azygous]

What is the age of the Silkies?

By "raised up" do you mean she cared and nurtured them after hatch? If so, why were they being kept separate? At what age were they taken from the hen?

All of the above has an effect on why they are behaving the way they are. If I have the answers to my questions, I might be able to figure out what to do the get the flock happy again.

 

[Mrs. K]

I think the OP raised up the silkies, and then is trying to add them to the RI hen.

I would not expect this to work, RI's are a full size bird, and size has a lot to do with chickens. Often times, it is very difficult to get full size birds and bantams to integrate together.

I too have questions: Would you post pictures of your set up? I think the most common cause of bullying behavior is the amount of space, and how that space is set up.

Too small of areas cause a lot of problems, and just open rectangles where as the birds can see all the birds all the time - causes more problems.

Mrs K

 

[lian_kugler6]

What is the age of the Silkies?

By "raised up" do you mean she cared and nurtured them after hatch? If so, why were they being kept separate? At what age were they taken from the hen?

All of the above has an effect on why they are behaving the way they are. If I have the answers to my questions, I might be able to figure out what to do the get the flock happy again.

So I had my RIR with two Polish Bantams but sadly the two Polishes passed away this year due to a predator. One of my Polishes was a rooster as well and they did just fine together. Then after a while I decided to get a few Silkies. So they’re about a year younger than my RIR. And yes I have cared for all of my hens since they were a couple weeks old.

 

[lian_kugler6]

I think the OP raised up the silkies, and then is trying to add them to the RI hen.

I would not expect this to work, RI's are a full size bird, and size has a lot to do with chickens. Often times, it is very difficult to get full size birds and bantams to integrate together.

I too have questions: Would you post pictures of your set up? I think the most common cause of bullying behavior is the amount of space, and how that space is set up.

Too small of areas cause a lot of problems, and just open rectangles where as the birds can see all the birds all the time - causes more problems.

Mrs K

You are right, they are smaller than my RIR, but she also shared her pen with 2 Bantams (I think they were polish) but they were definitely smaller. Nothing ever happened between the three of them either, the 2 polishes passed away due to a predator. I decided to get silkies after some research which told me that both RIR and Silkies are kind and usually not aggressive.
That is a great idea! I never thought about making a curved or cornered run rather than a straight one. Sadly, I’m a bit too young to be building by myself and usually my dad has to help me. But thank you and I’ll definitely share the idea with him, we were thinking of rebuilding our pen anyway!

I don’t have a picture but it is a pen made for 4 chickens I assume. And I let them free roam a lot during summer.

Do you have any other ideas that might not require building anything?

Thank you for your advice! I’m still figuring things out and learning.

 

[babyratt]

Help! This is kind of urgent. So I have a Rhode Island Red hen who is fully grown, and just raised up 2 Silkies. One Silkie is a rooster and the other is a hen. NOTE: my RIR is very friendly and kind and I’ve never noticed any aggressive behavior from her. I decided to finally merge the two after lots of introductions and keeping them together in an open space, etc… They did fine the first day and night, but then for some reason my RIR got aggressive towards the two and even drew a fair amount of blood from my rooster. I moved my Silkies back to the original pen they were in and now I’m noticing my Silkie hen is attacking my rooster. I don’t think this was happening before either. I’ve checked him for serious injuries and he seems fine, but she keeps pecking at him and causing him to scream and be scared. There’s no blood and she doesn’t seem super aggressive but is definitely attacking him. Also, she seems to only peck at his neck area? He’s also not doing anything towards her btw. If anyone knows what’s going on and how I can stop them from fighting I’d be happy to try anything. I hate seeing my babies get hurt and I know the pecking order is going to happen but I don’t want them to die

I had 3 chicks. 2 hens 1 rooster.

Help! This is kind of urgent. So I have a Rhode Island Red hen who is fully grown, and just raised up 2 Silkies. One Silkie is a rooster and the other is a hen. NOTE: my RIR is very friendly and kind and I’ve never noticed any aggressive behavior from her. I decided to finally merge the two after lots of introductions and keeping them together in an open space, etc… They did fine the first day and night, but then for some reason my RIR got aggressive towards the two and even drew a fair amount of blood from my rooster. I moved my Silkies back to the original pen they were in and now I’m noticing my Silkie hen is attacking my rooster. I don’t think this was happening before either. I’ve checked him for serious injuries and he seems fine, but she keeps pecking at him and causing him to scream and be scared. There’s no blood and she doesn’t seem super aggressive but is definitely attacking him. Also, she seems to only peck at his neck area? He’s also not doing anything towards her btw. If anyone knows what’s going on and how I can stop them from fighting I’d be happy to try anything. I hate seeing my babies get hurt and I know the pecking order is going to happen but I don’t want them to die

I had a problem with a hen attacking a rooster. I found her a good home with other chickens and more room to range.

 

[lian_kugler6]

I had 3 chicks. 2 hens 1 rooster.

I had a problem with a hen attacking a rooster. I found her a good home with other chickens and more room to range.

Well, that is an option but I don’t think I could. I love all my hens, and I couldn’t give any of them away since I am so attached to them. Thank you though!

 

[babyratt]

Well, that is an option but I don’t think I could. I love all my hens, and I couldn’t give any of them away since I am so attached to them. Thank you though!

It wasn't easy but I met the people at their place. I saw the other chickens roaming the property. I truly believe that she is better off. Good luck with your ordeal. PS Fancy and Blaze don't miss her.

 

[lian_kugler6]

It wasn't easy but I met the people at their place. I saw the other chickens roaming the property. I truly believe that she is better off. Good luck with your ordeal. PS Fancy and Blaze don't miss her.

That’s true, I know a few people who’d be very good owners. Thank you! And lol I have a naughty chicken (not the one in this post) who would not be missed by the others either!

 

[babyratt]

Well, that is an option but I don’t think I could. I love all my hens, and I couldn’t give any of them away since I am so attached to them. Thank you though!