Aggressive chicken behavior might sound funny, but a mean chicken is no joke. To reduce the tyranny these birds can impose upon us well-meaning humans and the overall flock, we need to take some defensive steps.
On a personal note, when we were young, my little sister rescued a bantam chick from certain demise. She named the bird Miss Peep and loved her immensely. But before long, it became apparent that Miss Peep was actually Mr. Peep, and beyond that, he was one mean rooster. He would watch for one of us to leave the house and come barreling out of the fencerow, head lowered, spurred legs at the ready. We had no idea why he was such a pill when all we’d ever done was take care of him. This was our first experience with aggressive chicken behavior.
If you’ve noticed the chickens ganging up on and attacking a single chicken you’re probably wondering why this is happening and what you can do to stop it. Chickens attacking one of their own flock members can be alarming but there are usually understandable reasons behind this aggressive behavior. In this article, we’ll explore the common causes of chicken attacks and effective solutions to end the pecking and restore peace in your coop.
Understanding Chicken Behavior
Before diving into the reasons for attacking, it helps to understand some basics of chicken social structures. Chickens live in groups called flocks and establish a “pecking order” or hierarchy within the flock. Through various aggressive behaviors like pecking chasing, and feather pulling chickens determine dominance and rank in the pecking order.
The lead chicken who reigns at the top is called the “alpha” chicken. Chickens lower down the pecking order submit to those above them by avoiding eye contact, moving out of the way, and not fighting back when pecked at. This pecking order maintains stability and reduces conflict once established.
When chickens challenge those above them, try to move up the ranks, or pick on those below them, trouble starts. The pecking order isn’t set in stone; it can change over time. When one chicken is attacked over and over, it’s usually because of re-negotiating rank.
6 Common Reasons for Chicken Attacks
Here are the most frequent triggers for chicken attacks:
1. Introducing New Chickens
When you add new chickens to an existing flock, the pecking order gets thrown off. When the other chickens show that they are in charge and put the new ones in their place, they will attack them. While they work out the new rankings, it’s normal for some pecking and feather pulling to happen.
2. Illness or Injury
Chickens instinctively pick on flockmates exhibiting weakness from illness or injury. By driving out the weak chicken, the health of the overall flock is protected in the wild. Predators also target weaker chickens, so the others are effectively sacrificing the sick bird for the survival of the group.
3. Limited Resources
When chickens don’t have enough food, water, roosting, or nesting space, they become aggressive and competitive. They will fight for access to these important resources. Bullying others away gives them greater access. There is conflict when there aren’t enough resources for the number of chickens.
4. Confinement and Boredom
Chickens that are kept in small spaces with little to do get bored and irritable. When chickens spend too much time together in a small coop, they get angry. Because they are bored and crowded, they peck and gang up on some victims too much.
5. Stress and Fear
Loud noises, harassment from humans or animals, severe weather, or sudden changes to their environment can stress chickens out. A stressed chicken releases hormones that make others want to attack it. Scared chickens also react aggressively and take their fear and stress out on each other through bullying.
6. Hormones and Reproductive Issues
When hens start laying eggs around 18-20 weeks of age, the shift in hormones can make some chickens more aggressive. Issues like egg-binding or vent prolapse also create targets for the others to pick on. Overly aggressive roosters will sometimes attack hens excessively when trying to mate.
Solutions for Preventing Chicken Attacks
Now that you know why chickens are aggressive, here are some tips on how to resolve these issues:
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Expand space: Add space and resources so there is enough for all chickens. Allow 10 square feet per bird inside the coop and 8-10 square feet per bird in the outdoor run.
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Reduce stress: Provide areas for chickens to get away from each other when needed. Give them dust bathing spots, roosts, and hiding places. Handle gently and quietly.
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Introduce new chickens carefully: Pen off new chickens for a few days so they can become familiar with each other before fully integrating. Supervise initial face-to-face meetings.
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Keep injured chickens separated: Use a dog crate or partitioned area to isolate sick, injured, or bullied chickens until they recover.
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Discourage bullying behavior: Place plastic pinless peepers over aggressive chickens’ eyes to block vision and pecking for a week. Use squash or melon rinds as distraction.
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Check for triggers: Rule out fear, stress, illness, hormones, boredom, and resource scarcity. Make any needed improvements to care and housing.
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Consider re-homing: If one chicken continues to get severely bullied, it may be safest to re-home her permanently for her wellbeing.
Taking Action Against Excessive Chicken Bullying
If you notice the attacks focused on one chicken becoming extreme, don’t delay taking action. Severe feather loss, wounds, and keeping the victim from food and water requires an immediate solution.
Start by identifying the aggressors and isolating them temporarily. Check the pecking order to see if one chicken is the main bully. Place plastic poultry saddles, eye covers, or beak bits over them to curb attacks.
Monitor the victim chicken and care for any injuries. Keep her separated until she recovers and the bullies calm down. Make sure she has a safe space of her own with food, water, and housing while regaining health and confidence.
Sometimes no amount of effort resolves the problem within a flock. If removing the bullies doesn’t stop the attacks, it may be kindest to re-home the outcast chicken to a new flock where she isn’t so persecuted. This gives her the chance to live in peace.
With some observations of your flock dynamics, adjustments to care, and protections for victim chickens, the bullying and pecking should subside. A few scuffles now and then are perfectly natural in the chicken world. But ongoing torment of one flock member requires intervention. I hope these tips help you resolve the chicken discord and maintain a harmonious flock. Let those eggs keep rolling in!
Defense # 4: Go On The Offensive
Regardless of the method, establishing yourself at the top of the pecking order seems to be the best way to deal with aggressive chickens. Perhaps the most humane way to do this is to show dominance similarly to how you’d train a dog.
For chicken domination, at first sign of attack, reach down, grab the bird by the feet, turn it upside down—ignore the squawking—and tuck it under your arm like a football. If you know this kind of fight is going to happen, you can wear gloves and clothes that you don’t mind getting chicken feet and feathers on. Then go about your business and hold it until it stops fighting and hollering to show that it knows you’re in charge. This usually only takes a minute or two.
Once it does, release it, but watch out. At first, it might come right back at you. Every time it attacks, give it more of the same. Ultimately, the aggressive bird might learn to leave you alone, though some just never give up.
Defense # 1: Understand Meanness
To begin with, “mean” is a bit of a misnomer. In the chicken’s tiny brain, there is no room for meanness as we understand it. Aggressive chickens, however, might adopt behaviors that humans perceive as mean: pecking the hand that feeds; beating at its opponent or keeper with its wings (called “flogging”); spurring people, animals or other chickens; and basically terrorizing anything that moves. So defense Number One is to recognize that it’s nothing personal.
While chickens’ aggression is annoying, scary, and sometimes even disturbing, it can be comforting to know that they are not intentionally doing what they are doing. When we understand that, we’re less likely to personify aggressive chickens, assigning them ulterior emotion-based motives they are incapable of and viewing them as enemies.
Aggressiveness in chickens can be hormonal, genetic, instinctive or behaviorally reinforced. Some breeds are naturally more aggressive, just as some are better foragers, layers or mothers. (See “Read Your Breed” below.) Within a breed itself, there will be variations. Bantams tend to be gentle, but Mr. Peep was obviously not a good representative of his tiny breed. Roosters can also perceive people as threats to the flock and react protectively.
Why Some Chickens are BULLIES & how to CHANGE THEM
FAQ
How do I stop my chickens from attacking other chickens?
These tips work: Give Your Chickens Enough Room: Give your chickens enough room to run around and set up their own standing order. Overcrowding can lead to stress and aggression. Create Multiple Feeding Areas: Establish several feeding and watering stations to prevent competition for resources.
Why are chickens attacking one chicken?
Once established, social structure within a flock will remain stable until it is disrupted. Other possible causes of bullying could include introducing a new hen or hens; stress; boredom; overcrowding or illness.
Will chickens attack a sick chicken?
Sickness or Weakness: Chickens can instinctively sense when a bird is sick or weak. They may ostracize or attack the weaker chicken, believing it poses a threat to the flock’s overall health. Resource Competition: Competition for food, water, or nesting sites can lead to aggression.
Why does one chicken get pecked more than the others?
Pecking order is a result of unhappy, overcrowded, unsanitary or inadequate space/shelter. It can also result when a chicken is ill or otherwise is rejected by the rest of the flock, or when you have a particularly bullyish chicken in the flock.