Rosie is balding. She’s been been getting the feathers picked off her head for some time now. Poor Rosie. She is at the bottom of the pecking order. She is also an annoying glutton, grabbing the tastiest of treats, ducking, and running away with them. See “Rosie” on Six Hens. In frustration, the other hens will peck her head, but Rosie stands her ground, treat in beak, and an absence of feathers on her head.

Chickens can be vicious. They eat meat when it is available and will practice cannibalism at times. When a flockmate is injured, other chickens will continously pick at the wound. So far, they have not drawn blood on Rosie’s head so I’ve been able to ignore the behavior.

"Pick-No-More Lotion"

In Farm Supply they sell “Rooster Booster, Pick-No-More Lotion” for $12.99. “Gads,” I thought when I picked it up, “Rosie is only worth about $20 as a laying hen! Am I really going to spend $12.99 for an ointment made to keep chickens from eating each other alive? Of course I am.”

Ointment being applied to Rosie's head

“Rooster Booster” has aloe vera and calendula for healing, and coal tar to discourage roosters from pecking the heads of their “victims”. Growing up, the old neighbor, Mr. Light, just put a glob of hot tar on the head of  chickens with peck wounds. On the label of “Rooster Booster” it says, “Not for human Use”. What are they talking about? I can’t think of any situation that would warrant “Rooster Booster”  being applied to a human!

Rosie has had two applications applied to her head thus far. I’m hoping that if the others hens will stop picking at her, the feathers on her head will grow back. I have no hope for her gluttonous behavior. That’s just Rosie.
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Tulip Sees Leaf Outside Gate

Because I have six hens and love to garden, people often ask,”Are chickens and gardens compatible?” My answer is, except for cleaning up bugs and providing manure for soil enrichment, they are definitely not! Chickens eat about every vegetation they can get their beaks on. If the hens “free-ranged” in my garden, there wouldn’t be a leaf or flower left.

Tulip Grabs Leaf

The hens also disrupt the garden by dust batheing between the roses, pooping on the walks, scratching up seeds, and, in general, doing what comes naturally in the world of poultry. The hens are confined to the coop run during the day and the henhouse at night.

Tulip Eats Leaf. Yummmmmm.

Once in a while, the hens will escape their enclosure. Something will startle them (after all, they are “chickens”) and one or two of them will run out the gate that I’ve left ajar as I go about my clean-up chores. The excitement in their eyes quickly turns to concern. “Am I really out here under an apple tree all alone?”

To their great relief, I pick them up or shoooo them back inside the run where they rejoin their sisters, clucking and sharing the story of their brief adventure with their flockmates.

I would love to let the hens free-range.  They would be so happy running around in a large area. But we have foxes and hawks that visit our yard regularly and our hens are virtually defenseless against these predators. Someday, perhaps, when I want to garden less, we’ll extend the run and turn over more of the landscape to the “girls”. Until then, they’ll have to stay in their yard, and I’ll stay in mine.
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Brooke Petting Daily

It’s really heart-warming to see folks visiting our chickens for the first time. Some have never seen a hen close-up. Some have never touched or held a chicken. People are amazed that the hens are “pretty”, that they have such distinct personalities, that some are shy and some are friendly, and that some are quiet and some rather loud and demanding.

Move slowly around chickens.

Chickens are prey animals and always on the lookout for a predator that may snatch them up with jaws or claws. Survival instincts are sharp in chickens. They are alert to sounds coming from the nearby woods that I hardly notice. A vulture, hawk, crow, or noisy bluejay flying overhead has them running for cover. The term “he’s chicken” comes from the fact that hens have no defense except to run and hide. “Move slowly around the hens,” I tell first-time visiting children. As long as we move slowly among them, they enjoy our company.
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It has been fun observing the development of our hens, and yes, it appears a pecking order has been established. The one we used to call the “mean one”, Poppy, has settled down into a really rather pleasant hen. She would probably be considered the dominate one in our little flock. See her story: Poppy-A Problem Chicken. She was such a trouble-maker in the beginning. We  almost culled her from the flock. She is no longer a “pecker” now and was the first to bravely confront the two small dogs that came into our yard the other day. Although she was safely behind a fence, she came out scolding and cackling, ready to fight. Since there is no rooster in the henhouse to protect the girls, often the dominate hen will fill the role.

Rosie has a piece missing from her comb.

At the bottom of the pecking order is Rosie. She is chased away from food and is pecked when she gets too close to one of her flockmates. Rosie loves to sit on our laps but when another hen wants to join her, she is chased off. Every night when the hens go inside to roost, the others get on the top roost first (the most desirable location) then try to keep Rosie from finding a place next to them. It is painful for us to watch as she desperately tries to fit in. As you can see, her comb shows evidence of her abuse. A piece is missing.

Now, in defense of Poppy, Daisy, Tulip, Sweetpea, and Petunia, Rosie can be very annoying!  She is an absolute glutton! She runs to the treats first and hogs whatever is in the bowl before the others get their fair share. If I find a snail in the garden and throw it into the run, she ALWAYS gets it first. If I have something in my hand and she thinks it might be something to eat, she will fly (I do mean fly) 4 feet into the air to get it. I’ve had more than one welt on my hand inflicted by Rosie’s beak in search of a treat.

There doesn’t seem to be any physical characteristics that establish the pecking order in our six hens. It’s all in their personality.