Chickens are usually free, happy-go-lucky birds who will roam around as they please, so, if your bird is suddenly becoming antisocial, if the bird is hiding in the corner you’d be right to be concerned.
This article looks into why your chicken is hiding in a corner
Table of Contents
Chicken hiding in a corner:
If you’ve ever raised any birds you’ll know that a bird’s body language can tell you a lot about what the bird is thinking and how the bird is feeling even if the bird itself cannot.
Here is why your chicken may be hiding in a corner and being antisocial:
Illnesses:
One of the first things that come to mind when a chicken is being odd is that the bird is suffering from an illness, this may be why your bird is hiding in a corner.
There are a variety of illnesses that can cause your bird to want to isolate itself away from the rest of the flock and go into a corner. Illnesses like infectious bronchitis, impacted crop or the bird may be egg bound.
All these conditions will come with their own set of symptoms, in addition to the bird hiding in a corner.
The bird may also be hiding in the corner because of its instinct to isolate itself when sick or weak.
If a predator notices that a bird is sick and weak it will target the sick and weak bird.
If the other flock members notice that a bird is sick and weak then the other flock members will target and kill the sick bird to keep it from attracting predators.
The bird will only show its symptoms when the symptoms are quite advanced, you’d need to quickly get the bird to the vet for treatment if this is the case.
What to do:
If you see this happening with your bird then it is recommended that you take your bird to the vet. Some chicken ailments can be diagnosed and treated by you but others cannot.
It would be best to get your vet to quickly diagnose and treat your bird.
Pecking order:
Another reason why your bird may be hiding out in a corner is because the bird is scared of the other birds in the flock.
Your chickens have a social hierarchy called the pecking order, the strongest bigger birds are at the top, and the weaker and smaller birds are at the bottom.
The bigger birds will bully the smaller birds in the pecking order and this may make the small bird so fearful that it hides in the corner.
What to do:
You as a chicken keeper should only do something if the pecked bird is injured to the point where blood is drawn.
If your bird is bleeding then get it away from the other birds and keep it isolated until the bird has recovered from its injuries.
When adding new birds to the flock make sure to add at least two birds into the flock at a time and keep these birds in a separate pen before fully introducing them into the flock.
The separate pen is a pen that the other flock members can’t get into, somewhere that the new birds can run to when the other flock members start to peck them.
If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other bird related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: Why Is My Chicken Hiding During The Day?, Why Is My Chicken Hiding Her Head?, Why Do Chickens Jump On Your Back?, Why Do Chickens Jump On Each Other?, Why Is My Chicken Hanging Her Head?, Chicken Standing Still With Eyes Closed