Afternoon all, hope I can get some guidance here.
We had a hen go broody back in April so we bought 9-fertilized eggs that she sat on, and hatched 5-back at the beginning of June.
She was in an old dog crate to the side of the main coop, and once the chicks were active I put them outside with 'mum' in a separate area of the garden with their own shiny new hen house.
The old hens (only two of them - one of which 'mum' hatched last year from some fertilized eggs) have been able to see 'mum' and the new chicks from the day they were born, but now the chicks are getting over the 4' fence to forage amongst the old hens, they are beginning to 'self integrate'.
What's concerning me, is that the hen which 'mum' hatched last year is a big chicken, and she's very aggressive towards the new chicks. She's actively chasing them to peck at them.
So I thought I'd open the gate and supervise letting 'mum' in to arbitrate/protect the chicks, but the same hen is chasing and attacking her as soon as she sets foot in the original run. Chickens seem to show no respect for their elders...
I've segregated 'mum' again, but the chicks continue to venture over the fence which is causing 'mum' to get stressed when big hen goes after them.
I've got a very unhappy bunch of chickens - no eggs from the other two for over 6-weeks - and really need some advice.
Not sure if it helps, but I -think- I have 3-roosters and 2-hens in the new batch of chicks. I know I'll need to thin that out at some point, but for now my focus is restoring harmony amongst the flock.
Thanks in advance!
Martin
We had a hen go broody back in April so we bought 9-fertilized eggs that she sat on, and hatched 5-back at the beginning of June.
She was in an old dog crate to the side of the main coop, and once the chicks were active I put them outside with 'mum' in a separate area of the garden with their own shiny new hen house.
The old hens (only two of them - one of which 'mum' hatched last year from some fertilized eggs) have been able to see 'mum' and the new chicks from the day they were born, but now the chicks are getting over the 4' fence to forage amongst the old hens, they are beginning to 'self integrate'.
What's concerning me, is that the hen which 'mum' hatched last year is a big chicken, and she's very aggressive towards the new chicks. She's actively chasing them to peck at them.
So I thought I'd open the gate and supervise letting 'mum' in to arbitrate/protect the chicks, but the same hen is chasing and attacking her as soon as she sets foot in the original run. Chickens seem to show no respect for their elders...
I've segregated 'mum' again, but the chicks continue to venture over the fence which is causing 'mum' to get stressed when big hen goes after them.
I've got a very unhappy bunch of chickens - no eggs from the other two for over 6-weeks - and really need some advice.
Not sure if it helps, but I -think- I have 3-roosters and 2-hens in the new batch of chicks. I know I'll need to thin that out at some point, but for now my focus is restoring harmony amongst the flock.
Thanks in advance!
Martin
