Happy Friday! Coo Coo Cachoo!

[AZchknmama]

Hello and good evening to all you lovely chicken lovers! I'm so happy to be a part of the BYC forum finally. I come here quite often for advice and knowledge... i have 6 hens and one roo... not sure yet how to post pics... workin on it! I just started collecting the rare birds though. So much fun! looking forward to sharing stories and pics with all of you lovely peeps!

 

[BantamLover21]

Glad you joined us!

Feel free to ask lots of questions! We're all here to help.

 

[Kelsie2290]

Hello and Welcome To BYC! Sorry about the loss of your Australorp. Ya, Wyandottes tend to slow down laying when it gets hot, and older hens don't lay as well as younger ones (a hen will lay the most eggs her first year, and about half that at age five). With the pecking order, It is best to wait until the birds are about the same size and have a long period of the two flocks being able to see each other but no touching, through wire seem to work best, ie dividing the coop into two sections or keeping the new/younger ones in a cage inside the coup for a couple of weeks to a month at least. The chickens will get to know each other and sort of work out a pecking order before actually coming in contact with each other. Letting them free range together is a good idea and should help... It will take a couple of weeks to get the pecking order sorted out. There is a nice article in the Learning Center on integrating flocks you might like to check out, the part about actually combining them is after the quarantine section https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/adding-to-your-flock

 

[Wyandottes7]

The Wyandottes are still very healthy and beautiful, however their laying has decreased quite a bit. Is that mainly b/c it's summer time or their age?
It may be because of both things. Hot weather can cause chickens not to lay many eggs, and I expect it gets quite hot in Arizona! My Wyandottes (I have two large fowl- a Columbian and a Silver-laced) have actually laid quite well this summer, even when temperatures reached nearly 90 degrees F. Age is a factor. By the time a bird reaches 2-3 years old, it will have slowed down in laying slightly. With that said, my two birds are still consistently laying 4-6 eggs a week in the summertime, each. It all depends on the individual bird.

They are not so happy about our new arrivals. I assume it's b/c they are all much smaller? Any addtion to a flock will cause some strife and problems. Because the new birds are much smaller, they are easier to pick on. Old birds in an established flock are often wary of newcomers and feel the need to assert their place high in the pecking order.

My older girls do fine with them when distracted with treats, but if left alone they go straight to pecking at them. This will go away as the chicks grow larger I hope!??
It should go away, as they work out the pecking order. The younger birds will also learn to avoid the older ones.

One of my polish girls also pecks at the little Silkie too! I'm still trying to figure out this pecking order. Is it based mainly on size?
Not always. The temperament of the bird has a lot to do with it as well. A small bird may be fiery and think that it is a big bird, and a large one may be terrified of small ones even though it could overpower them. I have a rooster that used to be dominant and confident. One day he and another rooster got in a fight because the other rooster(Stalker) had seen this bird (Tuck) breeding hens. Tuck was defeated by Stalker in the fight, and ever since, has been afraid of Stalker and other roosters. Stalker, for months, even though he was a larger bird, had lived with Tuck and was submissive to him. Tuck can no longer live with other males.
Some of my birds "come to power" through size, and others by temperament. I have some hens that have fiesty temperaments and rule over birds that weigh twice as much as them.

Do you think bringing a Buff Cochin to the flock is a bad idea b/c of their size or do you think it will be ok?
If you get the Cochin when it is young, and it grows up being submissive to the other birds, it may be ok. Many people say that Cochins have gentle temperaments and can live fine with other smaller birds. I've had two Cochins before (they were actually Cochin bantams). One of them (a Brown Red) was sweet, but still dominant over some other birds and over the other Cochin (a black). She had no need or ambition to be higher in the pecking order. The other bird, the Black Cochin Bantam, was third in the pecking order out of about 15. She submitted to two other birds higher than her, and to the Brown Red. This is just my experience with Cochins- yours may be different.

 

[Michael OShay]

Welcome to BYC. Glad you decided to join our flock. A lot of us were lurkers before joining. ) Please feel free to ask any questions you may have. We are here to help in any way we can. What kind of chickens do you have?

 

[AZchknmama]

I have 1 silver laced Wyandotte, 1 golden laced Wyandotte, 1 blue silkie, 1 white frizzle, 2 blue splash polish and 1 blue splash polish frizzle roo.
I would really like one more- to even it out - i guess that's my excuse to get one more. lol.. I want a buff Cochin. I adore them!

 

[Michael OShay]

I have 1 silver laced Wyandotte, 1 golden laced Wyandotte, 1 blue silkie, 1 white frizzle, 2 blue splash polish and 1 blue splash polish frizzle roo.
I would really like one more- to even it out - i guess that's my excuse to get one more. lol.. I want a buff Cochin. I adore them!

You have a nice mixed flock. I hope you can get a Buff Cochin. I used to have some and they were beautiful, friendly and gentle giants, and good brooders and mothers. Just be careful not to fall victim to chicken math. Very few BYC members are immune to it. )

 

[AZchknmama]

You have a nice mixed flock.  I hope you can get a Buff Cochin.  I used to have some and they were beautiful, friendly and gentle giants, and good brooders and mothers.  Just be careful not to fall victim to chicken math.  Very few BYC members are immune to it.  )

 

[AZchknmama]

Thank you! What breeds do you have?
I will admit I'm not immune to chicken math. Will you please explain?

 

[TwoCrows]

Hello there and welcome to BYC!

Sounds like you have a lovely flock! Chicken math is something like this...you start with 4 chickens. But pretty soon you have 10 in your flock. Then a few weeks later, now you have 25! 2+7=15! (in other words, you are addicted to chickens!!) Here is a fun thread on chicken math....https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/678858/explaining-chicken-math

Enjoy this new adventure you are on and welcome to our flock!