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Tastes like Chicken

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Mike

12-13-2000 09:48:06




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I know this is off topic but I am having a problem
with my chickens attacking each other. They start by picking at the tail feathers until they draw blood, continue picking pieces until they kill it. It's happened several times in the past month, the last was to the rooster, think he would be able to protect himself. I walked in just in time to save him, he's now off by himself healing. Anyone know what the problem is? Have about 30 or so that was bought from CT farm back in the spring. I have hanging feeders I keep full of ground corn and barley, sometimes a mix. Any comments appreciated.

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John

12-16-2000 12:49:56




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 Re: Tastes like Chicken in reply to Mike, 12-13-2000 09:48:06  
A few years ago I had feed custom ground at local mill. An old timer working there suggested puting a meat protein in the feed, He said it would keep them from pecking at each other, I took his advice and never had a problem!



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Tom from Ontario

12-15-2000 18:28:55




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 Re: Tastes like Chicken in reply to Mike, 12-13-2000 09:48:06  
Same as tail biting in pigs. It can be stopped by jacking up protein and calcium in the feed. It used to happen to our yard flock every winter when they were confined to the coop. Change the feed, get a shovelful of clean dirt into their pen, take a forkful or two of manure of another species and let them work it over. Give them something to pick at other than each other. Good luck.



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Tinker

12-13-2000 19:50:15




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 Re: Tastes like Chicken in reply to Mike, 12-13-2000 09:48:06  
This was a problem with the commercial operations in the past, and the remedy at that time was "chicken glasses". No, I'm not being cute, this is true. The "glasses" were a piece of plastic which fit over the chicken's beak and limited the chicken's vision, much like the blinders on a horse, or mule. The "glasses" were solid, and blocked the chicken's vision of what was in front of it. The chicken's field of vision was limited to each side. A small piece of wire passed through the chicken's nostrils and held the glasses in place. This is all true, and I even had a pair of the glasses many years ago, as a curiousity piece. I don't know where they got to.

I'm sure that de-beaking is a much simpler solution. It's been years since I have heard of the "chicken glasses", and I doubt that they have been used in many years.

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Keewaydin

12-14-2000 14:57:57




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 Re: Re: Tastes like Chicken in reply to Tinker, 12-13-2000 19:50:15  
I remember spectacles for chickens just like the ones you described except ours were made out of transparent red plastic. Everything looked red to the chickens so they couldn't tell where the blood was. Worked pretty well but were a nuisance to put on the birds.



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RayP

12-13-2000 17:53:25




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 Re: Tastes like Chicken in reply to Mike, 12-13-2000 09:48:06  
Cause is indeed canabalism - soon's blood is drawn, others are drawn to peck at the victim. Years ago, we had that problem in our chicken operation. We were able to get a medicated grease, the consistancy of vaseline, which was red like blood, tasted like heck to the chickens, and stopped the practice in short order. We'd doctor the wounds with it, put a dab or two on the wings of several decoys, and let them loose. Unfortunately, I've forgotten the name of the stuff, check with a supplier of farm medications, or a veterinarian.

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F14

12-13-2000 12:07:13




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 Re: Tastes like Chicken in reply to Mike, 12-13-2000 09:48:06  
I have heard that a little vinegar in their drinking water will stop that. About two or three capfulls per gallon. Haven't had the problem, so haven't tried it.



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Frank

12-13-2000 10:24:17




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 Re: Tastes like Chicken in reply to Mike, 12-13-2000 09:48:06  
I'm no expert but I suspect they might have lice or fleas. The chickens are eating the bugs. Someone else might have other ideas.



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Burrhead

12-13-2000 11:18:12




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 Re: Re: Tastes like Chicken in reply to Frank, 12-13-2000 10:24:17  
The cause is cannabalism. It happens on it's own when chickens are penned or cooped up. I think the main cause is boredom but I never saw any test data for it. Most times when they can free range it does'nt happen to healthy chickens because the pecked chicken can run away.

Once blood is drawn on a chicken in pens the rest will gang peck the injured one to death.

The only way I have ever stopped this is to clip their beaks. If you clip about 1/2" off the length of the top of their beaks they cannot peck each other and they will still be able to eat.

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Alan Farley

12-13-2000 12:00:26




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 Re: Re: Re: Tastes like Chicken in reply to Burrhead, 12-13-2000 11:18:12  
Might be too crowded in the coop, like Burrhead said clip the beaks back. By the way Burrhead, any luck with using a pair of sidecuts to clip the beaks? Used them for clipping newborn piglet's teeth. We have just 7 hens now days, enough for my family and sometimes a dozen goes to a neighbor. The Hens are Golden Comets, lay nice size eggs, last week we got one the size of a goose egg! Cannabolism isn't much of a problem these "comets" ain't that aggressive towards each other as some breeds I used to have.

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John

12-14-2000 20:50:49




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 Re: Re: Re: Re: Tastes like Chicken in reply to Alan Farley, 12-13-2000 12:00:26  
Don't no much about chickens but my mother did.she would thow a colored catalog in the hen house when they started picking and they shredded that instead of each other.There was a spray from a feed store i used on hogs for that ,seamed to help,sprayed the tail and ears



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Burrhead

12-13-2000 13:29:02




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 Re: Re: Re: Re: Tastes like Chicken in reply to Alan Farley, 12-13-2000 12:00:26  
Yep the sidecutters work good. I can't ever find mine when I need them so I use my pocket knife alot.

I don't know the Golden Comets. The large eggs sounds good. All I can find around here for laying hens is gray domineckers and R.I. Reds and the likes.

We keep some games and Hawaians around here but not for eggs. Anytime there is over 1 of them in the pen no matter what size the pen is we have a problem with pecking. I've tried the powder the vet reccomended and pine tar and turpentine but the beak nip is all that's worked good here.

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