Outcast Chicken Problem

[tortoise]

I have a problem with a hen. The biggest part of the problem is she has a name and my kids and I like her. She's tame, eats out of our hands, and we carry her around while doing chores.

She has a significant breeding injury last year so DH pulled her out and kept her in a cage to give her a chance to heal. When she was ready to go back to the flock, she was picked on badly and we had to take her back out.

The flock has changed - 2 batches of hens hatched in 2017 have been added tot he hen pen so the flock has tripled in size. i accidentally put her into the hen pen and she flipped the heck out, even though none of the hens were interested in her or picking on her. She hopped up in a nest box so I could take her out. (Smart chicken!)

Our winters are cold and she won't have the benefit of a heat lamp if I can't get her back into the flock.

Any ideas?

 

[AnimalIAm]

I would keep her in a separate pen right next to the other chickens to allow her to adapt to the other chickens being around and the after a while put her in the other pen for a little while at I time that way she should get used to the other chickens

 

[frustratedearthmother]

I don't really know your set-up so don't know if you can do this. I've had luck by doing the opposite of putting a bird with an established group. I've been able to put the new bird (or bullied bird) in an area (close to the main area) and putting one of the calmer chickens from the established group with her. When they are calm together add another bird to their little group. Most of the time that works for me...

Good luck and hope you find something that works!

 

[tortoise]

I like both ideas! I'm not sure how to make either one work logistically, but I will brainstorm and try to find a way!

 

[NH Homesteader]

You have lucky chickens. None of ours have a heat lamp!

When you put her in with the flock, they'll be territorial. If you disorient the flock by moving them in with her, they'll be better. You can even try to confuse them a bit by moving things around in their pen and changing shavings, things like that and you might be able to put her in with them. Otherwise I would try what FEM suggested.

 

[AnimalIAm]

I would trust them I'm only 13 after all.

 

[baymule]

I would trust them I'm only 13 after all.

But you have good ideas too. Welcome to the forum!

 

[Hinotori]

All good ideas that I have used successfully to integrate birds.

I have multiple pens and if I need to move one to another breeding group, sometimes I just move 2 or 3 birds around from other pens into that pen as well to confuse the resident hens. I can normally move the others back without issue a couple days later.

 

[Beekissed]

All good solutions! Let us know if they work?

If everything else fails, I've done some one on one flock training that has aided an outsider/loner to be able to eat at the feeder and be more accepted within the flock that may work.

 

[Mini Horses]

Yep, giving her a couple hens to bond with from the group will generally make a better acceptance level when they are put together in a flock. The best time to re-into is to put them on the roost at night and they all wake up together. Watch for results.