8 month killed 4 month

[jpb2334]

So i have 7 8 month old RIR hen's, just about 3 week's ago i picked up 5 EE and 2 Light Brah.4 month
old.I had put a pen inside the coop,after a week i opened the door and just watched,the reds would peck at them so i freaked out and put them back in the pen,week 2 i left door open again,in the morning all 7 on top of pen,i put back in pen and last night left door open feeling pretty good about it but today i have one dead EE in the pen,alot of feathers gone none in tail and neck.Sad day,but the question i have is do i now have to wait till full grown or keep apart for good?

 

[teach1rusl]

At 4 months of age, the newbies should be large enough to take up for themselves unless several of the reds are cornering a bird and going after her. Can you give more information...how is your coop set-up (shelter and run sizes)? Is there ample room for everyone to stay out of one another's way? Do you have roosts/barriers in the run - places for the youngsters to go to avoid the bigger birds?
If you have the weekend off, I would spend Saturday morning sitting out with them to fully observe what's going on. Make sure you have more than one feeder/waterer available so the newbies have full access without being run off. EEs are generally good flyers, so multiple roosts would be very helpful, in the run and housing. If you can free range, then do it. It's one of the easier way to allow new birds to get used to each other.
Lastly, it's too late now, but you really should keep new birds separated for a few weeks in case of disease issues.

 

[CMV]

I had serious picking issues with my RIRs. They picked on any bird that did not look the same as/similar to them. I don't know if that is what is going on in your flock, but be aware that the possibility does exist. My RIRs picked every EE and BR in my flock bald. The only birds they didn't mess with were the BOs, GSLs and the GLW (They actually tried to pick on her and she beat them into the ground. You don't mess with her- she's old and grouchy.) I ended up culling all the RIRs from my flock because I have plenty of brown egg layers, but I really wanted some green egg layers. I never could break the RIRs of their picking.

Give us some more info about your set-up, and maybe we can make some recommendations on how to help stop your problem.

 

[Donna5]

sorry about your dead chicken...we had a similar problem and to be honest it has taken 4 months to get to where I almost trust my five 10 month olds to not kill another silkie. Once I started letting them together I used a baby monitor so we could run outside like crazy people when we heard screeching from her. I think we have finally crossed that hurdle now as I have turned off the monitor. We actually built an additon for the silkie and her 2 little friends so they have their own safe haven.

 

[jpb2334]

My coop is 15ft long and 12ft deep,plenty of room for all to rome around,i dont have a run yet but will soon as i aquire materials.
I have decided to split my coop for now, will do this weekend,i think i can scavage what i need at a min.cost,i will also split the run when the time comes.I really want to get into hatching my own so i no longer have to pay for them (maybe a bird or 2 now and then).So i am thinking about expanding my coop anther 5 foot longer to have a chick brooder area and another area for juvenile birds,sounds good to me but the wife is getting jealous of my time and effort with them hahaha. I do thank you all for your help. I would like to get a few black copper marans and at $9.00 a piece from meyer would love to hatch on my own.

 

[Horsea]

Gee, I am sorry about your dead chicken! I have found that if chicks are hatched under a hen, in the chicken coop, then they are in no danger at all from the mature chickens when the mother hen cuts them loose from her care. Tiny chicks sitting on the roosts next to giant roosters & hens. No pecking, no deaths. Amazing. I guess they slowly become accustomed to seeing them around.

However, introducing bought chicks of any immature age is another matter. The existing mature chickens can get mean. Maybe it's the element of surprise, unlike born-in-the-coop chicks.

I hope you can solve your problem.

 

[JerseyGiantfolk]

Sorry about your chicken, sometimes chickens never seem to get along even if they've stayed in the pen for months with each other. Do you suppose someone was trying to establish pecking order?

 

[jpb2334]

I do not think it is a pecking order as much as a get out of my home kinda thing. I started building the newbies an area inside the coop,they should be happy and safe.

 

[CMV]

I do not think it is a pecking order as much as a get out of my home kinda thing. I started building the newbies an area inside the coop,they should be happy and safe.

Sounds great! That's really the best way to go about it if you have the space available.
Good luck.

 

[galanie]

Separate spaces is really the best idea for sure. I had an experience that surprised me with brooder raised chicks. I have two coops, a main one and a smaller one just for the little ones. I had some chicks that I raised in a brooder then they went into the smaller coop. Once they got all their feathers (the weather was warm - so they were fine up to then) I opened the small coop and let them all mingle. Naturally they got chased but they have a quarter acre or more with plenty of hiding places so they didn't get beat up. At night they'd each go back to their respective coops and I'd lock them up for the night.

Well, one day last week, the littles (now 3+ months old) just up and decided that they were going to sleep in the big coop from here on out! There are different roosting spots and they went to the side opposite where the big girls are. So I guess, given a choice, they'll decide when to move in with the adults all on their own. Last spring I had some that were broody raised in that small coop, and the broody decided that she and her babies were going into the big coop one day. So I guess even without a "mom" they'll do the same thing, given a good setup for it.