introducing new chickens

[red]

Any tips?

yeh - unless you actuallyu think a chicken is likely to be seriously hurt.. leave them to it.. separate water and food stations will help a bit.. but so long as they have enough space to get away from each other.. really it will shake down

[Annpan]

Well...
Sunday one of our original girls didn't lay (which is pretty unusual for these girls but I didn't worry)
Monday both our originals eventually laid but not till late, and one of the newbies laid.
Tuesday one of our newbies laid (don't know if it was the same one as Monday) and a newbie laid (assuming it was the same as did on Monday)
Wednesday none of them laid..... now I am worried... I was expecting them to miss a few but they have only previously missed 4 or 5 eggs between them since they started laying. (4 month ago??) I assume that the new girls weren't already laying as the ones that we did get were those tiny ones you get in the early days.


So ... I am worried and want them to be happy.... and they are not.... I also don't want this turning into any of them getting egg bound and suffering also dont fancy putting my finger up 'em but if needs must




Crashed with red... thanks

[Big Al]

If you need to resort to two perches then they should be at different hieghts in order to acentuate the "pecking order" so to speak.

I'll look at my research bits and speak to some of the chicken keepers i know tomorrow and see if I can find anything out about the feeding. Mind you a lot of the keepers i know are allotment holdersand it takes a hardy chicken to avoid the dinner table round here,lol.

[Millymollymandy]

Well...
Sunday one of our original girls didn't lay (which is pretty unusual for these girls but I didn't worry)
Monday both our originals eventually laid but not till late, and one of the newbies laid.
Tuesday one of our newbies laid (don't know if it was the same one as Monday) and a newbie laid (assuming it was the same as did on Monday)
Wednesday none of them laid..... now I am worried... I was expecting them to miss a few but they have only previously missed 4 or 5 eggs between them since they started laying. (4 month ago??) I assume that the new girls weren't already laying as the ones that we did get were those tiny ones you get in the early days.


So ... I am worried and want them to be happy.... and they are not.... I also don't want this turning into any of them getting egg bound and suffering also dont fancy putting my finger up 'em but if needs must




Crashed with red... thanks

I don't really have experience of this (i.e. oldies not laying as regularly) but it doesn't surprise me - my oldie was broody when I introduced the newbies but she snapped out of it suddenly a week later (which was 2 weeks early) - then got back to laying again so it does stand to reason it is an upset for the oldies as well. They do soon settle down - I think I've had mine for about 6 weeks now and I still feed them in at least two places. The newbies have learnt to dash in fast and get a mouthful before the oldies get in - this is with treats mostly - but they will eventually get food when the others have got bored/had their fill.

And one of my newbies is laying little double yolkers - so cute!

[Annpan]

Thanks MMM, so, is this quite a common reaction, I mean to try to peck food out of the newbies mouths?

The hens have all been free-ranging... I may well find a cluster of eggs under a bush somewhere... but they always returned to the nest box before

[Thurston Garden]

Ann I think there is not much you can do apart from leave them to it. They will sort it out very soon. Painful to watch - best to stay away!

[Millymollymandy]

I agree with TG, honestly the first time I introduced newbies I was paranoid about protecting them especially as they insisted on perching at night right from the start and it was dreadful to watch them being pecked (2 newbies, 3 oldies).

This time I am much more relaxed and I don't really mind seeing Snowy pecking the newbies cos she was one that got it when she was new.

I know it is pretty awful at first but I bet you the next time you have some newbies you'll be much more relaxed and blase about the whole thing.

[red]

betcha in the long run it will be one of the new girls that is top hen picking on the old ones.... and you will wonder why you ever felt sorry for her! - they ahve to sort it out - it takes a while.

[Annpan]

Thanks guys... what would I do without ish?

[JulieSherris]

Thanks guys... what would I do without ish?

You'd be out stting in the coop on a stool, trying to reason with the chooks & poking them up the bum at random moments, that's what!!

[Annpan]

Well we all have to have a hobby

[Big Al]

I asked around a few of the ckicken keepers I know and the basic reply was between disbelief and sheer derision. Aparently if they are hungry they will find the food or fight the dominant bird for it ( new pecking order). If they don't they will be cooked for the table or ifd noty big enough for the dog food........

Sorry not much help I'm afraid.

Take care,

(Not so ) Big Al.

[Annpan]

They are not so bad today...

and... just as I suspected I found a collection of 3 eggs in a bush... so some of them are laying at least. I am going to keep a closer eye in the morning to see if any of them disappear into another part of the hedge to lay. I've put a rubber egg in the nest box in the house to get them to lay in there.

[Witchy]

Good grief!! I'm worn out reading all that lol!

I jointed this site as I also am introducing 4 new exbat gals to my original ebat group of 6. Reading this I think I'm just gonna chucke 'em all in together and stand well back!

The 4 newbies are in the run and coop (modified 10ft dog kennel) and the original 6 are in the 'extention' (old rabbit hutch cut about a bit with a nice shiney roof). I tried to let the originals in to get into the coop when it was getting dark but they just screamed at me in anger so I backed away and let them get their heads down - I know my place

[Annpan]

Gach... they are still laying in the bushes but they were all laying (bar 1 newbie, who isn't laying yet) but at least I know their hidey holes. I can't seem to get them back to laying in the house... I need to build a new nest box I reckon (t'was a cardboard box before.)