We got chicks in early April. One was a rooster (These are red sexlink, by the way) so we replaced him with a slightly younger hen of the same variety in July. She is of course lowest on the pecking order, scared of the others. The rest of the hens are laying well, but this one is hardly seeming to mature. Her comb is virtually non existent. She is about a month younger than the others, I'd say, and they've been laying since early to late August. I"ve heard that hens are ready to lay when their comb is bright red. She hasn't one! Do some hens just not thrive? Maybe the other hens are taking all the feed from her. Anybody have this experience?

-- Christina (introibo2000@yahoo.com), October 01, 2001

Answers

Christina, Have you watched when feeding the chickens to see if the others let her eat. I almost never put just one chicken in with an established flock. It is just too hard for them to survive, much less thrive. I would feed her separate until you can figure out a way to integrate her into the flock. It is better to add several hens to a flock at the same time, that way they can hang out with each other and it gives the flock more than one to pick(or peck)on.

-- Karen in Kansas (kansasgoats@iwon.com), October 01, 2001.

Out of our 25 one is like that. For a long time she honked and shook her head instead of made usual hen noises. I 've come to the conclusion that she has some neurological problem. About a month ago she seemed really sick and I thought she was a goner. My other hens don't really peck her but they do try to get food from her if I throw t out in the pen. She started sleeping alone under the roost. But then two days ago there was a hen there with her under the roost-- I thought oh no, another one is sick. But next night all were on the roost! I guess her friend convinced her to come back. She seems better and doesn't bark anymore. But Anyhoo...she never grew a comb in the first place. She doesn't lay.

-- Ann Markson (tngreenacres@hotmail.com), October 01, 2001.