Chick problem

[roitelet]

I have 2 batches of chicks, one of 7 and the other of 2 and they are about a week apart and now the first ones are 2 weeks old. I have put the 2 in with the hen and the other 7 and the hen has accepted one but is attacking the other. I moved it out for the day and put it back last night. This morning it was OK but hiding in the straw of the house so I have taken it out again and plan to put it back again tonight.

Any suggestions please.

[Nicos]

oh dear...it's clearly going to be the bottom of the pecking order isn't it???

I'm presuming the 2 were from an incubator???

Vinegar spray??? and just keep reintroducing each night??


Congrats on 9 little babies!
( must tell my gals they have more cousins!!)

[RichmondHens]

You may have to prepare for a bit of hand rearing. At a week old it is quite late to be introducing a chick to a hen. Keep persevering for a bit but if no joy then you will have to take it away and rear it under heat, and put the other chick back in with it to keep it company.

It is fairly easy to introduce incubator hatched chicks to hens, but she must have chicks of the same age, and preferably not older than a couple of days. Hens cannot count (fortunately) but they soon learn to recognise their own chicks and drive out any others that look or behave differently.

The other drawback is the incubator hatched chicks need to recognise that mum is the heat source. If they do not (ie if they have been under a lamp and therefore used to heat "on tap") they sometimes struggle to work out that they have to go to mum when they are cold, and end up sitting on their own and dying of cold.

It may be less stressful for you (and the chicks) to raise them under a lamp. You can then introduce them to the others when they are 6 weeks old and off heat, if necessary removing mum, if she has not abandoned her others by then anyway.

[roitelet]

Thanks for the advice.

The two chicks were not from an incubator but another hen and I dont have room for two pens of chicks.

I will keep trying and see what happens