Hen eating feathers

[PLUMPUDDING]

Has anyone any suggestions how I can stop one of my hens eating the feathers of which ever hen sits next to her on the perch? When outside she even walks up behind the other hens and plucks out their feathers.

It seems to be a dominance thing rather than stress, and she can't be deficient in anything as they get a very good mixed diet.

At the moment I've got her isolated in a separate pen. I thought if I keep her on her own for a couple of weeks she may get out of the habit.

I can't put anti pecking spray on them all as it smells like tar and would spoil the eggs, and anyway it wouldn't be practical to spray all the other hens all over, as she mainly goes for the soft feathers on their bottoms and necks.

This is her last chance anyway, and if she doesn't stop she'll be chicken pie, which is a shame as she is in lovely condition and lays well too.

They are free range, so she shouldn't be short of protein as they dig for worms etc, and give them a tin of Butcher's Tripe every couple of weeks. I started this in case she was doing it because of a deficiency, but it made no difference.

I've even thought of putting a rubber band on her beak, but haven't tried it.

Is beak clipping supposed to stop this? If so how do you do it and has anyone tried it?

Help!

[Johnboy]

Hi Plumpudding,
I haven't kept any poultry for years now but when I did I found the Chicken Pie to be about the only remedy for a hen that continually bullies the others.
I remember that I had one hen that was such a bully she actually put all the others off laying.
I somehow feel that a period of isolation will work for a short time but within about a fortnight she will begin pecking feathers again.
JB.

[Chantal]

You can get spectacles for chickens which apparently stop feather pecking. The birds can no longer see staight ahead, only periferal vision and when they turn their head, the "victim" disappears again.

http://www.ascott.biz/acatalog/Feather_Pecking.html

[Pottyaboutveg]

What I did once was put tea tree on the bottom area (where the hen tends to pluck) they do not like the taste so they stop (WELL THEY DO FOR A WHILE) but it could work.

PaV

[PLUMPUDDING]

Thanks,

The spectacles look interesting. It would confuse it and probably embarrass it too. It would have something else to think about anyway.

I've tried putting a cream on them with tea tree added, but it didn't make any difference, and tea tree on its own seemed to make their skin sting. They wouldn't keep still for me to put it on!

On the Ascot site with the spectacles was also a wall mounted humane dispatcher, so that might be another option.

Thanks anyway. I'll let you know if the isolation works. The trouble is when one starts doing something stupid sometimes the others start copying it, so I'm keeping an eye on them to make sure their feathers are growing back again before I do anything drastic.

[Diane]

Beak bits work very well too.

[PLUMPUDDING]

Just thought I'd let you know that I've let Ginger out of her three-week isolation and she hasn't tried to eat any feathers so far.

The other hens seem to have sent her to Coventry and won't go near her or sit on the same perch at night. I feel quite sorry for her and am now wondering whether to buy another Warren to keep her company and risk her taking it out on the new one.

[PLUMPUDDING]

Ginger is now accepted back into the flock but has been demoted in the pecking order. She has made friends with the two youngest Cream Legbars which she had been bullying before, and best of all she is laying every day.

I'm glad I was patient - she came very close to being the Sunday roast.

[Gilly C]

I give mine a green cabbage in a wire hanging basket when confined as feather pecking/eating can be a boredom thing worth a try to save it starting up again

[oldherbaceous]

Morning Plumpudding, i do love a happy ending.

[Chantal]

Brilliant news, well done.