Help! Chickens at war

[Ryytikki]

We have three hens who we've had for between 3 years and 18 months. We recently enlarged their pen and decided to get 3 more. We knew that it would take a few days for the pecking order to be re-established but we were not expecting our existing 3 to go psycho.

They currently are taking turns on attacking all 3 new birds every 5 minutes or so, causing them to hide in our indoor shelter. This prevents the new chickens from being able to access the food or water.

We regularly find them huddled in a corner in the indoor shelter, or hiding under the ramp into the shelter to afraid to move in case they get attacked again.

I'm already providing separate food and water inside the indoor shelter so that the new chickens don't fall sick but the old chickens still try and block the new ones from accessing these too.

This has gone one for the last 6 days with no signs of improvement, any ideas on what we can do?

With thanks!

One very stressed chicken owner

[Hilary B]

Is that what I keep hearing over the fence behind our house????? (I know you are not very far away, but not sure just how close).
The last several days, we have heard a lot of chook noises, which certainly could be conflict/bullying of the sort you describe!

[lettucegrow!]

I'm afraid you need to be prepared for a few weeks of stress! Sorry to be the bringer of gloom and doom but choocks really do not take kindley to newcomers. I know from experience, it will take a while and the new comers will always be just that . I tried to introduce two new girls and sadly lost one to a prolapse and still have one girlie who really is the bottom of the pecking order.
Take some time to be at home to intervene and be 'top chook' if you can. At other times when it's not so bad let them get on with it ( valuable advice from other hen keepers) But the newbies will always be just that I think. Hens are not 'nice' animals and don't think like we do. Put lots of feeding points around so they won't squabble , and lots of water.
Good luck., it really isn't easy.

[sheena]

When i added 6 to my existing 5, it was a nightmare... In the end I put some pea netting in the run to split it in 2 and kept the girl's seperated. Only put them together in bed each night - this lasted about a week. They still squabbled but the netting help to reduce the massacre.

[Silent Reader]

We have three hens who we've had for between 3 years and 18 months. We recently enlarged their pen and decided to get 3 more. We knew that it would take a few days for the pecking order to be re-established but we were not expecting our existing 3 to go psycho.

.........................

One very stressed chicken owner

I know how you feel, I'm in a VERY similar position, I've got 3 "well established" hens in a coup, I also extended the run/pen and introduced 5 new hens into it alone with a new expanded chicken house. And then the war started.

I first thought a new house (new surroundings) would have assisted with things, but this realy doesn't seem to be the case the 1 of older hens (Blue) has kicked another of the older hens (Red) out of the coup, yet they'll get on in the run together ?? Can't work that out.

So far I'm down to 2 new hens from the 5 I tried to introduce, and after seeing 3 die I decided not to mix them as there is obviously something seriously wrong. my suspicions are that the 5 new hens must have been carrying an illness so the remaining two are now in a smaller separate run for safety) and I really couldn't bare seeing another one die.

I'm not sure what the next step is............. currently I've decided to keep them apart for another 2 weeks minimum (They've been in the garden since late June) and I'm currently running a dose of flubenvet through them as well.

I'm seriously considering getting a cockerel. I too am at a lost as to what to do next.

Not sure if it helps you, but your not alone I can tell you that.

All the best

SR

[sheena]

Now i'm a little more alert than I was in my previous post, I will try and explain what I was trying to say better...

If you can keep the chooks in sight of one another... ie in 2 runs side by side, or just seperated by a fence, the established flock will still try and tell the new one's their place but without the carnage. They should learn that the new chooks are part of the flock soon enough, also try and entertain the established flock - by that I mean try to distract their attention away from the new hen's.

I know it's not ideal with the weather being unpredictable at present, but throw some corn around on the floor of your run for the girls to hunt out, this I found is an ideal way of keeping their attention - but only a handful of corn, you don't want your girl's getting fat now.