Birds at the top of the pecking order will normally have the best of everything: food, water, treats, nest box, place on the roost, room in the dust bath, and access to the rooster or hen of choice for mating... Others must take their place as defined by where they are in the hierarchy.
The pecking order is, literally, determined by pecking. Bigger, stronger, and more aggressive chickens bully their way to the top of the flock by pecking the others into submission with their pointy beaks. First they strut about, fluff their feathers, and squawk, but if that doesn't get the point across, they peck.
Chickens will establish their pecking order by charging at one another and literally bumping into their opponent in an attempt to put it in its place. Chooks also tend to peck, chase and create a bit of a scene on the roost to establish and keep the position as top chicken.
Feather pecking of other birds is the most common expression of dominance (hence 'pecking order') and birds usually grab at smaller, more down-like feathers which means birds that are slower to grow their adult feathers can be victimised more.
WHO IS YOUR BOSS ROOSTER? This may involve getting up at a very early hour to observe, or (easier) use a camera. The first rooster to crow each morning is always the dominant male.
Alpha simply means first or top chook. Where there's an alpha chicken there is also a beta chicken, or 2nd in line in the pecking order and so on down the line. Beta chickens may at times share the duties of top chook; however, a fine line exists between sharing duties and overstepping boundaries.
Such a hen will grow a larger comb, longer waddles, male-patterned plumage, and spurs. Moreover, this hen will also adopt aggressive rooster behaviors — such as a hen crowing.
The pecking order can seem quite mean to us humans. Our instinct is to intervene and stop the bossy behavior. But it is necessary and natural. The more you step in and remove birds, the longer you prolong the inevitable.
Adding birds to your existing flock will cause a shift in the pecking order. The older birds will be very suspicious of the new members and can be quite violent about it. If you do add new birds to your flock, it needs to be done slowly and cautiously. You should never add less than two birds to an established flock.
Hens have their own pecking order, separate from but within the flock pecking order as a whole. One of the hens is always the lead hen whether or not there is a rooster. If there is no rooster the lead hen sometimes takes over a roosters job to keep order in the flock and watch for predators.
You cannot change or eliminate the pecking order, all you can do is be the flock police and keep on top of bullying. The final thing you can do is manage the mix of hens and roosters. You have to think about the hen to rooster ratio.
If one of the low ranked chickens tries to feed before their leaders, they may get a nasty jab or peck to teach them a lesson. If a bird tries to go out of turn, she will earn glares, pecks and feather pulling from higher ranked hens. Establishing a pecking order can take anywhere from two days or up to two weeks.
Ideally you should have at least 10 hens for each rooster in your flock. Having a proper hen to rooster ratio in your flock will prevent rooster fights and keep the hens from becoming stressed out by too much rooster attention.
If you have other roosters in the flock, they'll take their natural places throughout the hierarchy. With no roosters in a flock, an older, stronger hen will take the role of alpha chicken. That said, hens tend to be less violent with their shows of dominance, leading to a calmer establishment of the pecking order.
It can take quite a long time – up to 3 weeks for new chickens to get to like each other. Be patient. There will be pecking orders established so some pecking is okay. Just watch to make sure they aren't fighting for more than 20-30 seconds, drawing blood.
Food and treats work very well for coaxing them in at night. Put the food in the coop so that they will want to go inside. Birdseed mixed with mealworms is a motivating treat.
Let The Birds Roam Free
A change of environment is often a great way to make your chickens happier. Providing free-range gives chickens the opportunity to flee when pursued by one another. Instead of quickly escalating to violence and pecking, free-range chickens can escape to safety in another part of their enclosure.
Give Everyone Their Space
In addition to adequate run space, it's also a good idea to create areas where a chicken who is being picked on can get away. Things like outdoor perches, logs or benches, swings or even ladders or chairs that the flock can hide under to get away from a bully are all good ideas.
Isolating the bully is a great way to modify her behavior. Separation from the rest of the flock while still in view is preferable. Chickens are social birds, and hopefully, after a few days, you can return her to the flock where she will have to go through the pecking order once again.
Roosters are completely separate from the hens' pecking order. If a rooster is present in a flock, he is automatically considered at the top of the entire flock's pecking order, however, amongst the hens, there will still be a head hen, middle hens, and a bottom hen.
It may sound mean, but an established pecking order keeps the peace until a new chicken joins the flock or it's time for an older bird to give up her status. Unless injuries are severe, don't intervene in this natural process.
They prefer males at the top of the pecking order, but other roosters with lower status will force the hens -- about half their size -- to mate. Rather than attempt to fight off the undesirable mates, hens appear to have developed a more subtle way to reject them.
You don't need a rooster for your hens to lay eggs, as hens will lay just as many eggs whether there's a rooster around or not. However, a rooster is needed to fertilize the eggs to hatch them into baby chicks.