Introducing New Chooks

[lfcjohn]

I have been offered 4 new chickens ( about 8 months old) was wondering if the hens that i have had ( 6 black rocks) will accept them.
Any advice please
John

[MaureenHall]

I've just introduced 4 ex-battery hens to my existing 6. As I don't know what the temperament of black rocks is like, how I did it might not work for you.
My existing 6 ex-batts have a big section of the garden fenced off for themselves. The new chooks were put into a spearate coop with an enclosed run attached, this was inside the other chooks enclosure so they could all see each other but not touch. The new chooks settled in really well and they weren't it too bad condition compared to other ex-batts, so after they'd been settled in for about 3 days (early I know) I took a chair into the big area at nearly bed-time and opened the run so the chooks could all mingle for a little while. I did this for 3 nights and though there was a bit of "I'm the boss" and pecking from the oldies, it went ok. Then I let them all together for an afternoon and evening with no mishap, so after only a week, they're all out together now. The newbies still stay together, and want to sleep in their own coop, but I put them all together to sleep and only open up the other coop during the day as extra nesting place if they want it.
As I said, my way might not work for you, it really depends on how much space etc you've got, but I would recommend that they can at least all see and hear each other for a while
Good luck

[bargainhunter]

I recently rescued some chooks (from the oven (owner couldnt cope anymore)) and put them in with my originals at dusk in the house. Next morn they were all fine no problems just the occasional peck, maybe worth a try!

[SandM]

I got a new Isa Brown pullet last saturday and have had her living in a second coop and run next to the one where my light sussex and barnevelder live. Today, we let them hang out in the garden free ranging for a couple of hours before putting them together in the main run and the two older chickens got very aggressive and the little one just huddled in a corner looking miserable.

This is the first introduction I've done and we did what we thought was more or less the right thing to do, but I'm not sure how much aggression is too much and whether to leave the new girl inside or separate them again?

Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks

[MaureenHall]

Put them all together in the same coop to sleep, that seems to slow the aggression down a bit. If the bullying starts again, hang up a cabbage to distract them a bit

[SandM]

Thanks very much. We'll see how tomorrow goes.

[sunflower]

Hi SandM, Just a couple of ideas. Firstly, would it be possible for you to get another pullet? Experts say that, introducing two new hens are better than introducing one.
Secondly, new hens are more accepted when they have begun to lay. It could be that your pullet is too young to be put with adult hens. Again, experts suggest keeping young hens away from older hens until they are laying. Good luck with your introductions.

[armadillo]

I've been told that the best way is to put them in a separate enclosure next to the other chooks for a few days, then let let them all mix and watch out in case one in particular gets picked on.
I second the idea of getting a 2nd pullet- the place i bought my chooks from will not sell only a single chook as they bond with the one they move house with, and a singleone is likely to get picked on badly- apparently they can even be pecked to death!

[SandM]

Hi,

thanks a lot for the advice. We would get another pullet but we haven't got the space either in the garden or the coop which only holds 3 hens comfortably. But today there's been a bit less bullying and they've been wandering the garden with not too much disharmony. The little one has been a bit isolated and has found a corner of the garden that the other 2 don't go to.

I think we're going to try having them sleep together every night and then put the new one in the 2nd run beside the main one until she's bigger and started laying before we start keeping them together all the time.

Hopefully that will ease the process and the little one won't get too sad and lonely in the meantime.

We'll keep you updated on how it goes.

Thanks again.

[PJB]

hiya Sandy,

sounda like you've got your advice,and I just went through the same thing just a couple of weeks ago. We don't have a second hen house, so I had to bring in the 2 newbies and keep them over night in the shower cubicle!! not particularly convenient for any of us really. It only took 3 nights though and the next day we had such a torrential rain storm the newbies wriggled through a space between the run divide I'd makeshifted up and scarpered into the hen house with the others! Apart from the odd peck they all seem to be bonding ok. Old mother hen was broody at that moment so I wondered if that made it a bit easier.

PJB

[Twinkle]

last year we brought 6 new Rhode Island Red point of lays in to live with our 2 older hybrids... put them into the henhouse all together on the first night, next day it was like Armageddon - the hybrids ganging up on one newbie at a time, one holding her down while the other pecked her.

Ended up segregating the run for about a week - at the time it seemed like they would never get on, but must've been about 5 days really.

There was still the occasional peck and shove, but no blood drawn.

Patience and a watchful eye is the key - good luck.

(They all get on famously now though)