Bumper bits

[Pony Girl]

We have x2 brown rangers (Clover and Sage got at 16 wks of age in March 2012) and 1 favorelle (Bella just over a year old). About a month ago we moved house and they went to a farm that does chicken boarding for a couple of weeks, whilst their state of the art new home was being erected.

I wanted to get two more POL hens and we were advised it was as good a time as any to try and introduce new stock as it would be a new territory for everyone. We introduced them gradually, seperating the new ones (Blossom - Skyline and Pickles - black copper maran hybrid) during the day in a coop inside the main run and letting them all go in together at night (I've been getting up at dawn to seperate them).

Bella now fully accepts the new ones but Clover and Sage have been evil and are still trying to attack the young ones. I spend time in the coop with them all every day, to monitor them and check if they are ready to be integrated but even a month on they are still persistently trying to attack them. They are also now feather plucking Bella. I put purple spray and anti peck spray on her round her vent, but they are now trying to peck her feet and making them bleed so I've had to seperate her as well and put them in with the other two.

I have also noticed Blossom now eats the little feathers she finds in the run.

The new run is much bigger than the old one and they have plenty of things to keep them occupied. They are on good quality organic layers crumb (for adult hens) and have plenty of greens. I was feeding them corn in the afternoons but have stopped this as I heard it can be like oats and make hens more energetic and aggressive.

I can't keep them seperated indefinitely but feel if this carries on I'm going to have to get rid of Clover and Sage. I'm now considering bumpa bits for the bullies. Has anyone had an experience of these?

Please help!

 

[valeriebutterley]

Hello,
I'm replying because I know how rotten it is when nobody replies for one's problem.
My problem eventually solved itself. I had a feather eating Whitestar, who also harrried a few bantams to death, a Rhode Island Red so injured she did not recover, and my granddaughter's beloved Bluebell as well as a few others.
In retrospect I should have given her the chop, but I did'nt, I persevered with her, despite the enormity of what I allowed her to do.
In the end I put her in an ark by herself.
Nothing fazed her, her huge white eggs continued daily, and feather eating continued when in contact with the others, who gradually learned to avoid her completely - word spread!
I then completely changed my system of keeping chickens, as I had always intended to, huts within an open enclosure, but secure, and simply threw her in with the rest of them again. Stood back and waited and watched for the fireworks. They didn't happen.
She is now my second to oldest hen, she is still busy, tatty, grey instead of white, still has not moulted, I know because she still has the original clipped wing which she came with nearly two years ago, and has hardly had a day off from constant large white eggs, which must be some sort of record!.
I don't know if this helps or gives you an insight how to deal with feather peckers, mine seemed to cure herself with new friends - she had killed off all the old ones - not at all funny, just plain heartbreaking at the time.
Having torn her character to pieces, Summer is a great girl now, skinny, leggy and scraggy, will never be a beauty, but delivers wondrous eggs.
Someone on the forum very kindly send me a couple of bits, tried them for a little while, then decided to separate her eventually.

 

[Marigold]

Hi Pony Girl, sorry to hear of your problems. I haven't any personal experience of using bumper bits, but I know lots of people have found them very effective, and hey, what have you got to lose, if the alternative is getting rid of two young hens? I'd give them a try, and see of they solve your problem.
I think it's normal for Blossom to eat little feathers she finds around as these are tasty to chickens and a source of protein, so long as they are not attached to anybody else at the time!

 

[Pony Girl]

Thanks both. I think I may try the bits as I couldn't bear for anyone to be pecked to death. As you say I can always take them out again if they don't work and it is a last resort after trying everything else. I'd rather take action now than for the behaviour to become too ingrained. Wish us luck!

 

[foxy]

Well you could just put the hybrids in together and see what happens, if they have only been partially integrated then until they are fully together they won't establish a hierarchy. Bumpa bits do work, be mindful however of the fact they will just be masking a problem.

The one bird I would be concerned about is your little faverolles, they do not do well in a mixed flock, and most certainly not hybrids. I would only put faverolles with other soft heavy breeds.

They may be moulting if they were POL in March, so this can lead to the start of feather pecking especially if they are feeling a bit under par and as you have moved recently still getting used to unfamiliar surroundings.

Finally do they have enough room in their run? 5 birds equates to at least 1metre sq per bird, ideally 2metre sq to alleviate any behavioural issues. Saying that did they have enough room where they were boarded? It doesn't take long for these pecking habits to develop especially under stress and in more confinement then they were used too.

Good luck with them, pecking is a frustrating habit and so hard to break!

 

[Pony Girl]

Well you could just put the hybrids in together and see what happens, if they have only been partially integrated then until they are fully together they won't establish a hierarchy. Bumpa bits do work, be mindful however of the fact they will just be masking a problem.

The one bird I would be concerned about is your little faverolles, they do not do well in a mixed flock, and most certainly not hybrids. I would only put faverolles with other soft heavy breeds.

They may be moulting if they were POL in March, so this can lead to the start of feather pecking especially if they are feeling a bit under par and as you have moved recently still getting used to unfamiliar surroundings.

Finally do they have enough room in their run? 5 birds equates to at least 1metre sq per bird, ideally 2metre sq to alleviate any behavioural issues. Saying that did they have enough room where they were boarded? It doesn't take long for these pecking habits to develop especially under stress and in more confinement then they were used too.

Good luck with them, pecking is a frustrating habit and so hard to break!

Hi Foxy. I've tried letting them all in together for a couple of hours at a time but the two youngsters are petrified and when I come back to see how they're getting on have been up on top of the roof out of harm's way.

They don't seem to be moulting yet and are laying as usual. I wonder if it was the boarding place that started the problem as they didn't have as much space there as at home and Bella was very pale when I collected them. They have always been fine with the favorelle in the past, who was top of the pecking order when I first got Clover and Sage but I think they've realised she's an easy victim and that the stress of the move started it all.

They are certainly not easy pets but I still love them!