I nearly emailed you back after me saying the chooks seem to peck at it only once then stop, but today, I put 2 pecked chicks back in with the thers straight after I'd sprayed them, and they wre still being pecked, so it was back in the hospital with them! But yours is a different case isn't it? So I hope you get it fixed soon.

We bought it at our local animal feed place, which is also a pet shop. 'horsey' shops sell it, but apparently it is safe for poultry too. Another one that was recommended to me from the Allotment Growing site, by someone who has kept chooks for many years is Gentian Violet.

I hope your chick will be okay. Its very worrying isn't it?? It doesn't seem to matter what I try, the chicks still do it. I found another 7 today with blood on their tails, so off they went to the cold frame hospital!!!! I keep them separate from the others for a couple of days until the wound heals a bit, but hubby said I probably needn't bother, but I hate to see them getting hurt, although it doesn't seem to bother them much. They squeal a bit and move away, and if they are lucky, the chicks find something else to do!!!

uphilldowndale

It's also made difficult because most of the research has been done on chickens kept in cages, with little or none done on free range poultry.

I mention this because we have free-range ISA Browns, as well as growing flock of Scots Greys. The ISA Browns are gradually reducing in numbers as the Scots Greys come on so we only have 10 ISA Brown hens in a hut that could take up to 50 hens and still have plenty of space.

The ISA Browns are free of mites and worms, roam around under trees, have a good diet, have plenty of grass and other greens, get their litter changed weekly, and are very relaxed hens. But they are inveterate feather peckers and look a right state.

As well as trying to remove any stressors, we've also used gentian violet, anti-peck spray and Ukadex spray (which is the most vile smelling stuff I've come across) but to no effect. It's not aggressive feather pecking, as you see when hens display dominance by pecking each other's heads, but more like a grooming action gone wrong.

They tend not to do it inside their hut, but only when they're out foraging. One hen walks past another and, in doing so, they both pull out a feather.

The only thing that works are anti-pecking bits, little plastic clips that keep their beaks slightly open. They can eat and drink but can't close their beaks enough to grasp a feather. The hens look quite funny as it looks like they're wearing nose rings.

I've had a bit of flak about using the bits as some animal welfare groups think they're cruel and inhumane. But they do no injury to the hen nor cause them pain (although they don't like having them fitted), and to my mind are much more humane than allowing the chickens to pluck each other bald.

What has amused me, though, is that when I post about the problem in poultry forums is that I'm continually told "hang up some lettuce or cabbage for the hens to peck at to relieve their boredom". Erm, but they're free range birds that roam under trees and in very long grass and weeds so I don't think boredom is the problem.

I suspect this won't help you any, but if you want a good starting point to work from with feather pecking, have a look at the British Free Range Egg Producers Association's backgrounder on the problem – http://www.theranger.co.uk/index.asp?show=newsArticle&id=432&country=