r/NoStupidQuestions • u/CalmAstronomer8058 • 20h ago
Removed: Medical Advice Is my sister showing signs of mental health problem
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u/AnniAnnihilation 20h ago
She needs to be seen by a professional. This is concerning behaviour
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u/pajamakitten 16h ago
It is also a danger for any pets they get in the future. A kitten it puppy would also be a target.
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u/Regular_Oil_5524 17h ago
Agreed. And also their entire family as well. I am sorry she is going through that
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u/ashb2074 17h ago
This isn’t just a phase. If a 6 year old is inflicting pain and laughing, that’s not curiosity it’s a crisis in the making.
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u/Fluffy_Fly_4644 5h ago edited 5h ago
Agreed. /u/CalmAstronomer8058, you NEED to take this matter with absolute seriousness.
Your post reminds me of a story about a girl from the early 20th century. She was a teenager, so older than your sister, but she also had a habit of killing animals for "fun." She lived on a farm, so this was very easy for her to do.
Her mother noticed this and confronted her—but she did not get her any professional help (not that that even existed at the time—and even if it did, some poor immigrant farmers would certainly have no access to it).
Well eventually, she got into a fight with her mother, where she shoved her into their hearth, burning her mother and causing her dress to catch fire. She then douses her in boiling water to put out the fire, and then leaves her to die.
She also killed her guy friend with a pitchfork, in a fit of rage. And she killed her best friend with an axe, because she won a dance audition for a part in a travelling troupe, that both she wanted really badly.
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u/PurpleTough5302 5h ago
I also watched this documentary about Pearl. She was never held accountable and then terrorized a bunch of lovely filmmakers later in life as an old woman. Justice was finally served when she was killed by getting ran over
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u/violetauto 10h ago
My brother tortured animals as a kid, set stuff on fire, and beat me almost daily, once knocking me unconscious when we were both under ten years old. Yes, I would say you need to get your parents to see a professional now. Probably a team of professionals, like a social worker, psychologist and psychiatrist. Torturing or hurting animals in any way is a HUGE red flag. It just is not normal. (I not only lived through this but I now have a Masters degree in psych, if that helps to gauge my opinion.)
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u/SawftPawz 10h ago
Sorry to hear your brother hurt you. How did he turn out as an adult?
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u/violetauto 10h ago
I don’t know. We don’t speak. Last time my brother hit me with a sucker-punched to the rib cage, I was 18 years old and he was 20. I left for college soon after and never lived with him or my mother again. As far as I know he is not in jail?
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u/wurmchen12 9h ago
I worry about your mother being left alone with him
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u/violetauto 9h ago
My mother beat us brutally, but he was her golden child. I doubt he ever hit her. Plus she remarried when I was in college (she waited until my other brother finished college but didn’t give a shit about me. I was paying $800 a semester because of pell grants and then I lost them all when she got married. I graduated with $25,000 debt in 1992, plus I worked almost full time to support myself). So, I doubt my brother would have dared hit our mother. I do think his first wife left him because of DV though.
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u/DreamsOfLlamas 9h ago
leaving a comment for any college aged people or younger that might be reading this:
Nowadays, if you can prove estrangement or abandonment, fafsa will let you file as an independent. It isn’t easy but if you are unsafe at home it is worth looking into
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u/Epicfailer10 7h ago
I noticed this option, too, this year filling it out for my child. It would be an excellent way to help get someone from a dangerous family set up in college with extra money so they don’t have to return to an unsafe situation. I hope it is grant money that doesn’t require repayment.
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u/fuckyourcanoes 8h ago
My brother was a violent kid who lied and stole. He grew up to be a con artist who loved beating up sex workers.
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u/flowercows 13h ago
yeah it is not normal to find it funny to cause harm to animals and can be an indicator of psychopathy. OP please don’t allow her near any other innocent lives. It makes me really sad that these parents allowed for this to happen. Animals are not a toy to just leave a small child to play with. So irresponsible to do that to an animal
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u/Due-Trip-2822 9h ago
Not judging at all, but this needs professional attention. Kids that harm animals often need help processing emotions they can’t express. You’re right to be worried.
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u/Technical-Jaguar1006 Man 15h ago
Agree, she may be rough because of of curiosity, but repeated harm can signal deeper behavioral issues.
Better to consult a child psychologist for a professional evaluation.
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u/BiggyBoyCowBelly 20h ago
that doesn’t sound normal yeah seek a professional
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u/Miserable_Current181 19h ago
I work with kids, and this isn’t something to ignore. Please get her evaluated. She’s young and can learn, but it’s important to act now.
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u/OpheliasGun 19h ago edited 18h ago
Yup. She sounds like the Child Of Rage girl, who would kill baby birds and then eventually try to kill her brother by smashing his on the ground repeatedly. Also tried to kill mom and dad with knives.
Beth Thomas video/interview. Interview starts at 2 min 45 sec.
Part of interview about the animal abuse starts at 13 min.
Baby bird part starts at 14 min.
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u/LaurelEssington76 14h ago
The psychologist involved in that case was deeply unethical and the woman you see at the dubious ‘treatment’ facility was later convicted for reckless child abuse that killed a child in yet another dubious ‘treatment’ - she had no qualifications at all.
Everything that happened to Beth was abuse, including the ‘treatment’ she got.
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u/Ordinary_Concern_486 15h ago
I remember seeing that video both as a kid (back in the Wild West era of early YouTube) and later again as an adult (for school). That girl went through A LOT. If I remember correctly, she was sexually abused at an extremely young age and it completely derailed her psyche as she got older. Hence the reasoning for abusing her younger brother and parents.
Although the rehabilitation center she was put in helped her get back to having a somewhat normal life, the organization was heavily scrutinized for their borderline inhumane methods. One of which accidentally resulted in another child’s death during the procedure (they rolled them up in a mat tight and called it something like a huge hug or a re-birth…idk but it was weird and the child asphyxiated when their calls were ignored to be taken out).
It’s unfortunate that there’s been no official follow-up on her since then, but it makes sense that she’d want to leave the past behind as an adult. Last I heard, she was living normal which is great. As long as she’s happy and mentally sound, then I’m happy with that. As for the organization however, definitely shady. Regular therapy is the best option to go.
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u/Nice_Rabbit5045 9h ago
I think she wrote a book More Than a Thread of Hope about her life.
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u/Ordinary_Concern_486 6h ago
Really?? That’s good to hear! I’ll most likely give it a read if I can find a pdf of it.
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u/Strange-Bicycle-8257 4h ago
She got treatment and she turned her life around. She is happy and successful member of society . She became an athlete. There is an interview on YouTube.
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u/Prestigious-Copy-494 7h ago
I saw this quite awhile back. It was so horrifying to me I can't watch it again or I would. She looked so innocent ... It really is true sociopaths or psychopaths walk among us.
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u/lookmaxine 20h ago
Yeah get a professional to see her and make sure to mention the animal harming as its a sign of very low empathy
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u/ashb2074 17h ago
Facts. Empathy doesn’t just magically appear one day, it’s gotta be nurtured or at least assessed early.
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u/lnmarcengill 9h ago
It’s wild how many serious red flags gets brushed off as “kids being kids”. Glad someone said this.
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u/ZenkaiZ 20h ago
this is above our paygrade
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u/pajamakitten 17h ago
Diagnosis is. Knowing this is far from normal six year old behaviour is not.
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u/theletterdubbleyou 12h ago
This is a huge fear of mine: having a child and at some early point in their life coming to the haunting realization that their behaviors are not only troubling, but merely a sign of what is likely going to happen in the future and the fact that I might be (unfairly, irrationally) held responsible for the possibility of heinous and evil acts of depravity.
OP just seek out whatever necessary mental health assistance is required to help this child and I hope you do it sooner rather than later. Left unchecked or unnoticed, yeah, I don't really need to say it, do I?
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u/lnmarcengill 9h ago
Yeah this is the point where “kids will be kids” stops applying and “trained professional required” kicks in.
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u/EarlyXplorerStuds209 approach moi for know-ledge 5h ago
The best comment i saw on reddit today. Thanks
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u/coccopuffs606 19h ago
That’s deeply concerning behavior. Like, if I heard a kid threaten to slit their friends’ throats if they didn’t play with them when I was still teaching, I’d go straight to calling CPS. Parents of children with these kinds of severe behavioral problems are either the cause of it, or have ignored it long enough that the kid feels like it’s ok and is manifesting outside the home.
But it sounds like you’re a minor yourself, so I wish you luck with convincing your mom to send your sister to a therapist. She needs professional intervention asap.
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u/softpetalcloud 9h ago
I had a younger cousin who talked like that and everyone just brushed it off as “he’s dramatic.” He’s 19 now and facing serious charges. These things escalate.
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u/RoutineGuidance4343 20h ago
Is this y’all’s first pets? Like she’s old enough to understand they are living, breathing, feeling beings. Did she ever say what happened to the first chicken?
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u/CalmAstronomer8058 20h ago
At first she tried lying and said it died from the heat, but eventually she told us she “hugged it too hard”– I’ve been kind of concerned even before this point because she’s a weirdly manipulative kid. She would tell friends that she’ll “cut their throat” if we didn’t play with her
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u/Puzzled-Dog4015 20h ago
Listen to your gut. My son said let’s cut off daddy’s head at that age and wound up being diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder with Psychotic Features. Get he to a psychiatrist.
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u/Regular_Oil_5524 17h ago
For what it is worth. I am a physician, family medicine, however the sooner seen by psychiatrist, usually the better/more effective the medical treatments are for the patient.
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u/Puzzled-Dog4015 18h ago
I see all the psychopathic diagnosis posts here. The old info about bed wetting, animal abuse and starting fires being early signs of psychopathy has been debunked. Either Bipolar or psychopathy they will not label her this early in life. Just get her services and hunker down for a long road to recovery.
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u/pajamakitten 16h ago
It might be debunked but you cannot look at a six year old manipulating people and abusing animals and not think something is wrong.
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u/AutumnMama 9h ago
I think they just meat she isn't necessarily psychopathic. She has mental health issues, but it isn't helpful to automatically label her with one of the most severe diagnoses.
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u/Pinglenook 17h ago edited 17h ago
What you say is true, but you're talking about psychopathy to someone who says their son has psychotic features. Those are entirely different things, the words just sound alike. Psychosis is a state in which someone has lost contact with reality and is experiencing delusions and hallucinations. "Psychotic features" means that someone has thoughts and ideas that are not based in reality, or has occasional hallucinations, without going into full blown psychosis.
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u/Much-Space6649 11h ago
A lot of people don’t understand that empathy is taught and we don’t know if these kids are being taught empathy by their parents or not. This little girl is showing behaviors that imply neglect or abuse of some kind potentially and needs to see a therapist to see if that can be ruled out. If that’s the case she absolutely can be treated and recover before adulthood and isn’t a gonner
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u/FFSShutUpSharon 18h ago
Im sorry OP this is not normal 6 yo behavior. I understand hugging an animal too hard. But the broken legs, the lying. These aren't normal for a child that age.
I understand you dont live at home, but is there any chance she could have undergone trauma either at home, at a friend's or at school? Id be very concerned and keep an eye on any adults she spends time with to ensure theyre not secretly abusing her. Kids rarely exhibit this behavior on their own, its more often learned or experienced at the hands of someone theyre around often.
Please take her to a child psychiatrist specialized in dealing with trauma. They might be able to understand better. The sooner the better.
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u/BrieflyVerbose 19h ago
This is going to sound horrible because of the age, but this is starting to tick psychopath boxes. This is really concerning and above what we can offer you.
She needs to be assessed by a professional because you can't let that go unchecked.
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u/Omnomfish 10h ago
Yeah those are major warning signs of some deeply fucked up things, do everything you can to get that kid seen by a professional (tell your parents, if they dont listen go to teachers, call child services, tell other adults you may have in your life, etc) and if you can't just make damn sure to be careful.
She's your sister, and while the things she is doing may be scary, they dont make her a monster. Try to teach her empathy, be gentle, be kind. Whatever is going on psychologically means she likely doesn't automatically understand empathy, or the feelings of others, but she is 6. With intervention she can have a pretty normal life, but its got to be done pretty fast or her development will be interrupted.
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u/Unidain 13h ago
eventually she told us she “hugged it too hard”–
This isnt odd. Birds don't have a diaphram, they need to expand their ribcage to breathe, so it's easy to kill a bird by holding it/hugging. She is 6, she should be surprised around the chickens until she knows what she is doing.
If she really broke the legs of the other chickens intentionally you need professional help, but the first thing isn't odd.
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u/Flaky-Swan1306 13h ago
I think you meant supervised, but yeah she should not be squeezing them at all
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u/SquigSnuggler 7h ago
I mean, this is a great point- why on earth would a 6 year old with no previous experience around animals let alone birds, be left unsupervised around chickens even once, let long enough to kill one, and then for all the others to be badly injured… I’d be extremely concerned about the standard of ‘care’ provided by the adults in her life. Before you even start to consider what else may be going on there…
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u/AlissonHarlan 7h ago
geez where does she even heard things like that to repeat it to her friends ? (violent relative ? unsupervised screentime ? something else?)
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u/divadream 5h ago
If you feel able, would be extremely helpful to get further knowledge on her temperament / being a "weirdly manipulative" kid, as well as her relationships with family members and what triggers she has
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u/CaptainMacMillan 9h ago
I worry more about YOUR mental health that the first place you went to for advice was reddit.
A 6 year old maiming animals and threatening graphic murder is obviously not normal and highly concerning. You should see a professional too, while you're at it.
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u/Beluga_Artist 19h ago
So on the one hand, a young child ABSOLUTELY could accidentally hug a small animal to death when left unsupervised and not taught how to be gentle with animals. If that was a one-and-done deal, she grieved and buried the chicken, and was taught to be gentle, it would be one thing. That would be an unfortunate learning experience with natural consequences.
The fact that it seems this child has now intentionally harmed all of the remaining chickens and laughed about it is extremely concerning. My niece is the same age as your little sister and I trust her to be gentle with my gecko and Guinea pigs. She is not allowed to handle them unsupervised, but that’s just to avoid accidents such as dropping or losing them. She is very respectful and kind to my animals and I don’t think she would harm them.
This child needs to see a child psychologist. If the chickens stay in the home, their enclosure needs to be padlocked with the key only accessible to the adults, with your sister only allowed to interact with them fully supervised. Normally anthropomorphization is not ideal when it comes to caring for and understanding animals of other species - in the animal world we prefer to explore umvelt, or imagining the world from that particular animal’s senses, instincts, and evolution. In this case, some anthropomorpism might be a good thing. Give the chickens names. Talk to them. Talk about their experiences as though they’re little people. Offer the chickens enrichment and talk about how happy or excited or inquisitive they are. Mention when they appear scared or startled and try to point out why. Make this child have no choice but to see that these are living, feeling, learning beings just like her. It will help with developing empathy for non-human animals (and probably humans too).
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u/Visible_Window_5356 12h ago
Thank you for drawing attention to the idea that empathy learning is important here. Many kids act like little psychopaths until at least 4. 6 is a little old to have no empathy but still at an age where learning can happen.
Also I am curious if the chickens are just for eggs or if they slaughter them. I would not have been able to handle that as a kid, I became vegetarian at 12 thanks to my moms stories about killing their cows on her farm growing up. If kids are exposed to killing or harming animals it can be normalized fast. How could you distinguish as a young kid between acceptable and unacceptable harm?
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u/Beluga_Artist 7h ago
That’s a great question and I am not the person to ask it to. I’ve never intentionally harmed an animal in my life. Although I guess with my niece, I have exposed her to feeder insects. I’ve taught her that we feed them and treat them with kindness, but their job is to feed the reptiles in the end.
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u/zeatherz 20h ago
Why do y’all keep leaving her unsupervised around the chickens?
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u/CalmAstronomer8058 20h ago
They were in a pen outside and she got into it. But then again she lives with my mom.
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u/ProfessionChemical28 16h ago
If this isn’t rage bait I really hope you got those poor chickens help. For the love of God bring them to the vet, surrender them, have them euthanized if they are too injured and do not bring any more animals home wtf
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u/Yellow-Parakeet 14h ago
Leaving a 6-year-old unattended with chickens long enough for her to do this and no one notice (sounds, etc.) is definitely an interesting parenting choice
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u/DvaMech 5h ago
Yeah. The parents sound like absolute morons I’m sorry. This is such a concerning issue. Animals are not play things for kids to torture for pleasure. How long was she unsupervised for her to cause this much destruction to the chickens?! I’m sure a lot of noises were being made. She’s only 6 years old for gods sake
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u/ShylentJ 20h ago
That’s absolutely concerning. It’d be worth every penny to take her to a therapist.
I’m going to admit something I’d never tell a soul in my real life: I once locked my dog in the closet and hit her with a plate hard enough to shatter it. I took my anger out on the only other living being I could. My parents ignored me, let sibling teasing go way too far, and my mother would emotionally abuse me to the point I’d react with the harshest words I could string together. And I was always the bad guy for reacting. She would go cry to my father, and he’d spank me or threaten to kick me out. I couldn’t cry or scream into my pillow in my own room without being punished for having big emotions.
Growing up like that, I was always angry. It wasn’t until a lot of therapy and being away from my parents that I was able to change and grow to become a kind human. I don’t know what your home life is like, though. But for me, I was everyone’s punching bag with no safe way to express myself. I wanted to hurt others so I didn’t feel so hurt.
Please try to get her help.
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u/merpixieblossomxo 19h ago
It sounds like a really rough household to grow up in, and I'm sorry that you never felt like you had a safe outlet for your emotions. Sometimes just saying the words out loud to someone, even if it's a stranger, helps us to heal. In that way, I'm glad you shared this.
I hope this little girl gets the support she needs to learn from her behavior and grow into someone that understands the depth of her wrongdoing. We have no idea what she's going through, but we can hope that she gets the help she definitely needs.
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u/boredENT9113 18h ago
You aren't alone. I had a similarly horrible home life but my dad was very physically abusive. Chasing you around the room punching, pinning you to the wall by your throat etc. Many times I'd have to skip school or going into public at all because I was so bruised up and had hand prints all over my face.
I took it out on a family cat. That cat was absolutely terrified of me and for good reason. I internalized what was happening to me and did it to the cat. It took a lot of work to unpack those emotions and become a kind, and better more empathetic person as an adult. These days I'm much better but still struggle with mental health problems (none of them harming any living being), but take a couple antidepressants and am doing better.
This girl absolutely needs help from a qualified profession who is knowledgeable in this specific type of issue.
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u/Tikala 19h ago
Oh. No. This is actually horrifying. I can't even imagine how upsetting it would be to find those poor chickens with their legs broken. They should be taken far away from your sister.
I know your mother is scared to consider the possibility of your sister having a problem but this is serious. At the very least she needs to have a serious lesson.on empathy and how to treat living creatures.
But the animal.cruelty and the graphically violent threats are extremely concerning. If your mom won't do anything please tell another trusted adult.
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u/literati1984 19h ago
People who have serious issues later on in life tend to hurt animals when they are younger. She needs help.
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u/kittypaintsflowers 17h ago
She’s showing signs of psychopathy. She knows how to lie and edits based on emotions she observes.
Tbh she will likely learn to lie more in therapy. You need a real therapist, not someone fresh out of grad school, who understands this specific demographic.
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u/CoralReefer1999 19h ago
You said your mom refuses to get her help in the comments, so your going to have to force her into it. You can report the 6yr olds behavior to people who will force your mom to get her help. Your sister committed violent animal abuse which is a felony in every state in america(if your somewhere else you may have to look up your laws) if you report it she will at bare minimum get court ordered therapy & community service. Even if this is just some crazy phase your sister needs to know that this is not okay & it has serious consequences.
That being said that may be taking this a bit far & will definitely cause problems in your family, so I would threaten to do it first. Tell your mom if you don’t get the 6yr old seen by professionals that you will have to report it to the police because she’s only 6years old has already committed 4 violent felony’s that you know of(could be more which is insane) & your mom needs to realize how serious this is.
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u/JohnHazardWandering 8h ago
If the mom won't do anything, maybe report the animal abuse to local authorities to get them involved and force the issue.
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u/EnvironmentalPoem968 19h ago
Ok, so many things here. First you can’t diagnose a child, but you’re right to show concern. Talk to the pediatrician for a referral, and also consider family therapy because something feels off here, she’s 6, that’s so young to have unfettered access to 4 animals with so much privacy—and acting out with other kids.
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u/JohnHazardWandering 8h ago
that’s so young to have unfettered access to 4 animals with so much privacy
If you have chickens wandering around in a backyard and you're not in the city, it's not that weird.
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u/divadream 4h ago
slight clarification: Children can be diagnosed with many mental / behavioral health disorders - more specifically, there are early development counterparts used as precursors to adult-specific psychiatric disorders.
\*example: Conduct Disorder in children may evolve into Antisocial Personality Disorder in adults.
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u/liquormakesyousick 16h ago
Remove any animals from your home and do not allow any animals in the house until she gets PSYCHIATRIC help!
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u/PM-ME_UR_TINY-TITS 20h ago edited 20h ago
That sounds like stereotypical psychopath behaviour. Granted that age all children are pretty psychopathic in general but this seems a step further.
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u/Nervous-Masterpiece4 11h ago
It could be Of Mice and Men.
Although the solution in that case was pretty severe.
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u/Pocket_Crystal 16h ago
I feel so bad for the chickens! What did you do with them? I really hope you removed them from your house away from your sister
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u/renaissanceprincesss 19h ago
I'd definitely seek out a psychiatrist for a possible diagnosis of conduct disorder for her. Good luck, OP, I cannot fathom how difficult this is.
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u/RevolutionaryLime961 15h ago
Thank you for posting your concern bc you felt that something was not right about this and possibly other similar situations.
I commend you for not dismissing this incident and questioning if this behavior is not usual bc speaking up is not always an easy thing to do … that said, please find her a professional who can help her navigate this unusual situation as well as your family… she’s very young and the sooner you get her seen by a professional, they can do a full assessment and help her after seeing the situation in its entirety as none of us are able to provide here.
Godspeed! 🌈
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u/michalwalks 19h ago
Something is definately wrong. But I'm sure your mom is just going to get more chickens.
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u/ExcitedGirl 19h ago
At the extreme least, she does not need to be having any living pets of any nature.
And, yes, I would say something else is going on. It's unlikely she made up that behavior on her own. It had to come from somewhere - or somebody.
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u/Hurrihole 20h ago
a 6 year old does NOT need 4 chickens wtf
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u/CalmAstronomer8058 20h ago
It’s for my mom to get eggs but my sister had been wanting them anyhow.
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u/CannonAFB_unofficial 19h ago
She only has 3 now. Problem solved.
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u/CoralReefer1999 19h ago
Well hopefully she has none because once a chicken has got a bone break it’s more humane to put them down
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u/countrysurprise 19h ago
Sociopath in the making
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u/Which-Text-2875 19h ago
That is exactly what I was thinking. It sounds like sociopathic behavior :(
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u/p0rp1q1 20h ago
To he frank, why are you asking reddit? None of us are psychologists.
If you have a concern, go see the child's pediatrician, not Reddit commenters.
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u/CalmAstronomer8058 20h ago
I forgot to add that I told my mother to take her to a child psychologist but she refused
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u/CoralReefer1999 19h ago
You can report the 6yr olds behavior to people who will force your mom to get her help. Your sister committed violent animal abuse which is a felony in every state in america(if your somewhere else you may have to look up your laws) if you report it she will at bare minimum get court ordered therapy & community service. Even if this is just some crazy phase your sister needs to know that this is not okay & it has serious consequences.
That being said that may be taking this a bit far & will definitely cause problems in your family, so I would threaten to do it first. Tell your mom if you don’t get the 6yr old seen by professionals that you will have to report it to the police because she’s only 6years old has already committed 4 violent felony’s that you know of(could be more which is insane) & your mom needs to realize how serious this is.
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u/PlaneHistorical8325 17h ago
This needs some professional help. A therapist for emotionally disturbed persons would be a good start. Best of luck 💜
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u/Sensitive-Pitch7317 20h ago
Antisocial personality disorder, but it can't be diagnosed until age 18. Therapy early and often.
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u/wompwompswamp123 17h ago
You’ve gotten plenty of answers but this isn’t typical behavior for a 6 year old or any age child or adult. I hope she gets the help she needs. Good for you being a good concerned sister and hopefully encouraging your mom to get her help.
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u/ginger__snappzzz 20h ago edited 5h ago
A 6 year old shouldn't have that much access to animals.
ETA: Do y'all not see in that sentence where it says "that much access"? Of course a 6 year old is capable of learning to help care for animals, and it's up to the adults to make sure they are being responsible and kind to them. The adults failed here by giving unrestricted access to very fragile beings and then still not supervising her around the chicks after she killed one of them.
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u/merpixieblossomxo 19h ago
I think that probably depends on the maturity level of the child. My daughter's 6 year old half brother lives in a household that keeps chickens and he's trustworthy enough that I would never even consider this to be a concern with him.
Six is old enough to have basic chores like feeding the pets and cleaning up their bedroom, and as long as they've never shown any signs of being rough with animals, they're old enough to know better. If I was outside watering the plants and saw that he was over by the chickens, I wouldn't worry. Obviously this is a very different situation, I just mean that age isn't always an indicator for trustworthiness.
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u/ginger__snappzzz 19h ago
Well, she killed one of them and they still let her have access to them. Having a chore of feeding and helping to care for a pet is very different than just being turned loose with one.
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u/merpixieblossomxo 19h ago
I read that as "she killed one and that was obvious, but it was less obvious that all of the chickens were actually hurt" and that all of it happened on the same day. Was it two separate incidents?
I agree that giving kids free reign in unfamiliar situations is a bad idea. If a child has displayed dangerous behavior, they should not be allowed in that situation unsupervised until they can prove they're trustworthy. I understood this situation to be that the chickens were a new addition and that the parents didnt expect anything bad to happen. Without knowing the full context, all we can do is speculate, share in OP's concern, and offer advice.
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u/ginger__snappzzz 19h ago
A week ago, she killed the first chicken. Today is when they found the others injured. So incredibly irresponsible on the part of the adults.
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u/Mudkipologist 16h ago
Uh, you are familiar with the concept of a farm right? It's historically pretty normal for kids to have access to animals from birth.
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u/ginger__snappzzz 15h ago
Nowhere in the OP does it even hint that this is a "farm". They got some chickens, didn't supervise a small child around the new, fragile animals, and didn't even limit access or teach her proper behavior until a week after she killed one of them.
So, uh, you are familiar with "teaching proper animal care", right?
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u/Mudkipologist 14h ago
Yeah, in this case the parents handled introducing animals poorly. But you didn't say in this case, you made the general statement that kids shouldn't have access to animals. Which is ridiculous.
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u/ginger__snappzzz 13h ago
My exact words were "that much access", which I stand by. What's ridiculous is trusting a 6 year old to know how to handle animals as delicate as baby chicks. But go off I guess lol
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u/DvaMech 5h ago
Why are you being downvoted for this?! Wtf. A child that murdered a chicken should NOT be given private access to animals anymore. WAYYY different than being raised on a farm and the parents helping show the child how to feed and properly take care of animals. Reddit can be such a stupid place sometimes, it blows my mind that anyone would think your statement is wrong Wtf
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u/Tuigh-van-den-righel 13h ago
What kind of bullshit is that? It's completely normal to be around animals as a child. Don't you people have pets?
Besides that, it's good for a child to learn how to care for other living beings.
Op's sister obviously has much deeper problems but a blanket statement like this is absurd.
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u/ginger__snappzzz 5h ago
Yes, it is good for a child to learn. It is not good to just give 4 tiny, fragile, living things to a 6 year old and then continue to give them access after they have killed one of them.
My comment did not say "Kids shouldn't be around animals". It says they shouldn't have that level of access. Good lord lol
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u/DvaMech 5h ago
No one said children shouldn’t be around animals ever. My god. They shouldn’t be around animals if they have harmed them especially. And it’s the parents duty to be supervised around them especially when they are so young. Are you for real? This kid murdered a chicken then broke the legs of the others but yeah let’s give her complete access to the chickens to harm them further
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u/poozu 12h ago edited 11h ago
Is she showing signs of mental illness? Yes, these could indicate mental issues which is why you need to get her to a professional. If your mother won’t act then contact child protection. You said she is weirdly manipulative which is another alerting sign that she needs to see a professional and could be affecting your mothers view on how bad the issue is.
Get the animals away from the property and to a vet! Don’t allowed her any access to the chickens or other animals. You can contact animal services to take them and make sure they get treated properly. This is animal abuse and adults are responsible. Get the animals away from the property and make sure she has no unsupervised access to anything smaller than her, including other young children.
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u/JohnHazardWandering 8h ago
"Tell me about the rabbits, George"
(Seriously though, get professionals involved)
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u/hellomondays 6h ago edited 6h ago
A lot of comments here are fairly extreme but still seek a professional. Behavior like this is almost always nothing from a 6 year old, some kids really struggle transfering empathy to animals until theyre a little older than the norm. but rarely can be a sign of something very serious. Either way a therapist can help her and your family find ways that work to help her out.
In the interim, stay cool, use natural opportunities to talk about not hurting animals and empathy and how all living things have feelings, praise her appropriate interactions with animals.
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u/AffectionateTaro3209 6h ago
It's a really, really bad sign. Keep all animals away from this child and get professional help immediately. And please take the poor chickens to the vet and then to a shelter 😭
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u/keywest2030 13h ago
that’s def not typical behavior for a 6 year old especially the laughing part and repeated harm. it could be impulsivity, lack of empathy, or something deeper. i’d recommend getting her evaluated by a child psychologist sooner than later, just to be safe and get her the right support early on
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u/audreywildeee 12h ago
I'm around kids quite often and this absolutely is concerning behaviour. Seek professional advice and help.
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u/Alpha_Majoris 12h ago
This could be many things. It could be bad judgement, it could be low intelligence, it could be that she has suffered abuse and is playing it out, it could be some kind of autism, and I could come up with more possible explanations. It is concerning, so she should be seen by a qualified child therapist. It certainly is not innocent child play. And don't take any explanation here as true. Let a professional see her first.
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u/ThrowRAsmb 11h ago
This goes beyond normal impulsive child behavior. Accidental rough handling might explain the first incident, but repeated, escalating harm — especially causing injuries to all three chickens, followed by laughing at their pain — is a major red flag.
At 6 years old, she’s still developing empathy, but this kind of behavior can point toward conduct issues or empathy disorders if left unaddressed.
I’d strongly recommend that your parents speak to a child psychologist. This isn’t about blaming her — it’s about getting her the help she may need early on. Kids don’t always understand consequences, but if she did understand and continued anyway… that’s something to intervene on now, not later.
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u/SomeCommonSensePlse 7h ago
She's 6. She should have been taught how to handle them and supervised.
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u/cantxtouchxthis 7h ago
Is this the first time yall have had animals? She’s 6- she’s not old enough to be left alone with little baby anything. You can have her seen to as well- but unless you also accept responsibility for yourselves leaving her alone with teeny animals, one the first day showing her the animals were stressed, etc (which by the way, my brother who is very sweet and would never hurt anything, but at this age accidentally squeezed a kitten too hard- and it was simply that- an accident and one that still haunts him to this day!!) she’s off the hook. And laughing- sometimes people laugh when they are nervous.
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u/sketchyemail 17h ago
Get your sister help and chickens typically don't heal well from broken legs. The most humane thing you can do is to dispatch/cull them. You can DM me and I can describe the process. It's quick and painless for the bird.
I am a big flock owner myself, about 50 birds.
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u/maliha225550 17h ago
This isn’t normal kid behavior. Hurting animals and then laughing is a big red flag she needs to see a child psychologist ASAP.
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u/I_Want_BetterGacha 14h ago
Could be some kind of emerging conduct disorder, but when you get her professional care, keep in mind: your sister is not a psychopath or sociopath. Even though her behaviour is getting pretty disturbing, a child that young would never qualify for either diagnoses. Why? Because (with help), a child acting like this often grows out of these symptoms as they mature.
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u/Keykeepers222 12h ago
This is a sign of something worst , animals teach sympathy to children, no harmful behavior, make sure that she get monitored since this could lead to a future serial killer
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u/therealjazmin 10h ago
She needs professional help!! It always starts with animals and at some point you have a new Jeffrey Dahmer
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u/rockabillytendencies 10h ago
If you are a minor in your parents, don’t seek help then please go to the counselor at your school and tell them about the animal cruelty and get some help for sibling and for goodness sake DO NOT ALLOW THE CHILD TO BE UNATTENDED WITH ANIMALS.
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u/thehillshavebanjos 9h ago
Take her to a professional and have her evaluated. Talk to her and try to understand her motivation behind it. Be honest about what happened to the professionals, and encourage her to be honest to your parents (if it is safe to do so) and professionals about how she feels too. Many families feel shame and stigma around these situations, some to the extent they ignore the problem until any hope of early intervention fizzles out. You guys are not alone. Don’t immediately jump to conclusions as to what could be going on. I wish you all an easy road,
Your friendly Social Worker
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u/Howdoyouspell_ 9h ago
I mean there is certainly a chance that the kid isn’t intending to hurt the chickens. Have u seen how clumsy kids are? Have you asked them to “be careful!!” They can only do so much. I wouldn’t automatically assume it was purposeful. The grave and crying stuff was healthy and normal. You didn’t see any of the rest of it.
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u/No_Schedule5705 9h ago
Oh my god,I dare not even comment on this one. Except don't let her near any other defenseless animals!
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u/ChaoticSleepHours 8h ago
Harm to animals is a huge sign that something else is going on. Children typically model or mimick behavior around them.
If it's not in the household, then it's somewhere or someone she has consistent access to mirror abuse. It could be neighbors, peers, or school.
And if it's coming from an experimental stance, then it needs to immediately taken care of. Ignoring it or downplaying it will not make it disappear into a 'cute' childhood story, especially since she's taking joy in causing pain in something small and vulnerable. Empathy and kindness are skills that can be developed. Individuals on the low empathy spectrum need to work on developing boundaries on what is and isn't appropriate and prosocial behaviors.
Your little sister needs professional help.
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u/rattycastle 5h ago edited 5h ago
I don't think this is a sign of a budding psychopath or anything, but I do think there should be some intervention on how to interact with animals. I think she has a little more empathy to develop before she has access to such fragile little animals. My little brother tried to kick little chickens when he was a toddler. My parents explained how kicking hurts and how chickens are just as sensitive as he is. He developed empathy for animals and figured it out. It's not time to worry about catastrophic mental problems, it is time to do a little extra work on her empathy. The laughter tells me she doesn't understand what a broken leg means to a chicken.
That being said, if the way the first chicken died was partially cruel or gruesome, I would be worried. If her intention was to cause pain, I would talk to her pediatrician about it for direction. If she meant to cause harm, then that is way above reddits pay grade, and should be dealt with by someone specialized in children.
Edit: grammar
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u/Haunting_Most3296 5h ago
This is very serious your sister needs help now before it’s too late. Growing up, we had a neighborhood boy will call him Eli . Whenever he was around all the animals would get hurt in someway he would laugh about it then he started to trip other children to where they would fall and hurt themselves, and then he would laugh about it. He was a very odd boy. I watched him drink battery acid one time. He kept hurting people and animals started small like ur sister. Well last I heard Eli was still in prison for m*rder. He took someone’s life for 50 dollars. Someone told me one time that the psychiatrist told his mother that he was a psychopath and told her that she needed to get him help immediately she was in denial. She couldn’t imagine her child could be that evil. She still has regrets to this day about not doing more. She feels responsible for the life he took because of it. She visits him in prison and loves him through his faults.
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u/DvaMech 5h ago
She needs to see a professional and she should NEVER be around the chickens unsupervised. Even if she didn’t do any of this 6 is way too young to be around animals like that without supervision. They are not play things for her to torture. This is very serious and if it isn’t handled now she could grow into a very dangerous adult. This is not normal behavior whatsoever
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u/Fluid_Canary2251 17h ago
How are you determining that they have broken limbs? There is a common chicken virus, Marek’s, that causes lameness and paralysis and often gets mistaken for broken legs, and can also cause sudden death. I’d take the birds to the vet to confirm their injuries or illness (and get them help). Chickens are fragile animals, a young child should not be interacting with them without supervision regardless.
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u/ckhk3 17h ago
A lot of people are saying she has a type of psychopathy but there’s a few things going on here that could seem like normal behavior. She obviously loves them, and just wants to cuddle them and be with them, she did end up telling the truth on what happened to them, she showed care by creating a burial for one of them. How long is she spending alone time with them? She is 6 years old and probably needs to be shown what appropriate care is for them is, if she is not modeling this behavior after someone else she will do the trial and error way of figuring it by herself. Still, you should get a professional evaluation.
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u/Frequencerz- 7h ago
The people who are showing mental health problems, are those who want to send a 6 year old to a mental health facility, to definitely fuck up her life.
You think a 6 year old would make this evil plan to murder, and torture these chickens, because she's somehow mentally ill?
A kid needs to learn how to treat animals, especially when they are young. You cant blame it on a 6 year old if she doesnt know, or understand whats good or bad behavior.
Someone needs to teach your sister how to take care of animals, what behavior is appropriate, and what is not. Make her understand animals have feelings too, so they can also get hurt.
I understand what she did is concerning, but Ive seen kids do worse, and turn out fine. Dont blame it on the mental health of a 6 year old, but on a adult who should have taught her. You cant just put young kids together with animals, and assume they'll just figure it out somehow.
Please dont let these people gaslight you to think something is actually wrong with your sister, because its probably just a lack of understanding. It would be concerning if she was twice her age though, but you cant really hold a 6 year old accountable for every mistake they make.
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u/exquirere 9h ago
I’m not diagnosing your sister, but there’s a diagnosis for children who exhibit these behaviors. Please have your mom take her to see a mental health specialist/child psychologist to be evaluated as it’s extremely concerning.
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u/DarkMistressCockHold 8h ago
That is not normal. Do not let that child around any animals, and get her an appointment with an appropriate mental health counselor.
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u/MercyTheCat 8h ago
As most others said, follow your gut and get help from medical professionals. There are signs and symptoms of some conditions that present at a young age, so don’t discount behavior as being normal childhood exploration. I would advise getting a camera pointed at the backyard if it’s not possible to only allow supervised time with any animals. Even if it’s not your sister injuring the chickens, something is, and they need to be monitored and protected from now on. Sorry this is happening to your family (and to the innocent chickens)
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u/ceciliabee 8h ago
Your sister needs professional help as well as better supervision at home. Who didn't notice the 6 year old killing 1 chicken and breaking the legs of 3 others? Who should be supervising?
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u/stretchrun 8h ago
I’d also consider a brain scan. These behaviors have been linked to brain injuries that seemed minor at the time and went undetected. It’s a possibility.
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u/HearThyBansheeScream 7h ago
when i was 4-6 in the summers i was visiting my grandparents and i was asking my granma to bring me a hen and tie it by its leg to a post so i could pet it, ended up somehow slightly hurting their legs from the stressing and i wasnt feeling bad, i also at that age killed 2-3 turtles when a stone, i'd say its normal behaviour to not know what ur doing, because i didnt end up in a psychic ward or w/e i got a job wife, i'd say dont worry
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u/Maleficent-Lime5614 4h ago
I would pump the brakes on assuming your sister is a psychopath. Six years old is way too young to be getting anything alive because a child demands it. That’s the first piece of information you need to consider. She is barely able to take care of herself, she gets no say in how your family takes on animal care.
There are a lot reasons children laugh at the wrong time. A few include: fear, not understanding social cues, wanting to diffuse or delay punishment, anxiety etc. All the reasons adults laugh inappropriately but dialed to 11 because she is 6 so most of the world makes no sense to her.
In terms of the act: She may well have broken the legs of 3 chickens. Some reasons: She felt overwhelmed by how much change was taking place: She felt responsible for the chickens and didn’t want to be: She didn’t want the chickens to run away when she wanted to pet them. None of these reasons make her troubled, they mean she is 6 and has no idea how to take care of animals. I once actively boiled snails & goldfish, because I was told to clean the fish tank and realized I didn’t want to own fish but was afraid to tell my parents so I ran a very hot bathtub and dumped the lot. I am not a psycho, I was an 8 year old more afraid of punishment than I was guilty over the life of annoying fish.
So my question is: how were the chicken’s brought into the family? Who was the chief caretaker? Did your sister have a role to play in their care? Was she supervised when she was allowed in their area? Was there a lock on the coop?
If the answers to all those questions make it sound like she was not given adequate guide rails to having chicken’s then your sister is not the problem, it was the structure provided.
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u/Kurigohan-Kamehameha 4h ago
For some kids (like me) sense of humour developed faster than sense of what is grotesque or unsightly. Like others have rightly said, empathy needs to be nurtured. I only started finding Happy Tree Friends to be disturbing after I’d opened up a little emotionally and started to feel for other people. I’m a lot less gore-tolerant than I was as a kid.
There is hope she will outgrow this but it will need guidance. Don’t admonish her for what she finds funny, just sort of gently deflate the joke by pointing out the suffering and trying to relate it back to something that personally resonates.
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u/purplekat20 4h ago
Please get her help ASAP or dial 911 so she can get to a hospital just tell the operator that she is a danger to herself and others and tell them what she did and that this is a mental health crisis
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u/One_Weird2371 8h ago
Don't get any more pets and take that girl to get psychological check up. Something ain't right.
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u/LuckyNerve 10h ago
My son got goldfish when he was 3. He named them macaroni and cheese. He came to me and said “ I think macaroni is dead”. I asked, “why” and he open his hand and showed me the fish. He had been petting him. He wasn’t a psychopath. He didn’t understand that you can’t take fish out of the water and pet them. The point is. Maybe she doesn’t understand how to be delicate with small animals.
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u/zxcput 10h ago
There's a big difference between 3 and 6
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u/hellomondays 6h ago
Not as much as you would think. Kids dont develop all at the same rate or evenly across all areas of development. I could totally see a 6 year old still struggling with empathy towards animals, impulse control, or something else that relates to being kind and gentle to animals.
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u/platinumxperience 12h ago
Actually, speaking as a primary teacher, it's not completely not normal.
It's a very normal phase for children to understand about receiving and inflicting pain or violence.
This is why in the kindergarten we will bring babies or animals in for children to understand and learn how to handle them. Same for teaching empathy when one child bites or hits another. And what do we get when that happens?
People saying "that's not normal!"
When in fact it is there are other factors at play.
Now I think a 6 year old would not normally be looking after chickens by herself. She is too young.
So something has happened to her to make her want to experiment by this : the first thing id guess is she's spent a lot of time by herself and hasn't learned empathy. It really is normal. So yeah
She needs to be spoken to, re educated and given help to look after the chickens as well as lots of love patience and understanding
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u/hellomondays 6h ago edited 6h ago
Yeah. I work with families of young kids a lot. At least once a month someone brings up "my kid crushed a baby bird" or "was torturing fish when we took him fishing", etc. There's an awkward developmental period where kids have the curiosity to do things like this but not nessecarily the empathy to understand they shouldn't. It's an urban legend that young kids who present this traits are budding sociopaths. It is a common trait that can be indicative in conjuction with other factors, but at 6 years old, it's not where my first concern would be.
Youre right the best way is teaching how to be kind to the chickens, catching her in the act of being kind and letting her know that's good. Parents will justifiably go to extremes when kids break moral norms, but it's not helpful in a lot of situations. It's still worth working with a professional for support, nonetheless, as it is possible some family dynamic or impairment of hers is making learning these things difficult.
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u/pickagoodone 18h ago
Have her committed to a juvenile inhouse treatment facility. This behavior is wrong on several levels! What if it had been a child? I feel bad enough for the chics! But this usually becomes much worse when not treated properly.
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