Added 2 chickens and the others are not accepting them.

[Wheat]

All of my chickens were raised together from day old. They get along fine. 15 of them.

I always wanted a couple barred rocks so I got 2 last weekend at Lucasville poultry swap. They are 5 week old pullets.

I put them in the coop and the flock completely rejected them, they won't let them out of the corner of the coop. I thought it was just going to last a couple days but it has been 8 days. I have a beautiful rooster. When the barred go to eat food he attacks them and pecks their backs hard. They return to the corner. Anything I can do to speed up this process? Don't want them to starve to death.

The coop size is no issue. They have 100 sq ft inside, 125 sq ft outside in the run. Total 225 sq ft. I open the run in the evening for them to free run but I can't now because the barred rocks would run off no doubt.


Thanks.

 

[elmo]

You could temporarily fence off a smaller portion of your run so the new birds could be seen but not attacked by the existing flock. Give the new birds their own feed and water in there.

After a week or two, open up the pens so the two groups can mingle. If there are still problems, you could go back to the separation or see if you can figure out which is the ringleader of the bullies and separate that bird from the flock for a while.

In either event, set up an additional food/water station so that aggression over those resources becomes less of an issue.

Good luck!

 

[math ace]

I introduced 2 older hens to my 5 month old group and had the opposite effect - - the TWO older ones dominated the coop for two weeks. It did get a little better everyday - - - but it was a full two weeks and one of the old flock got pecked bad enough that I had to remove her so she could heal.

First, Add extra water and feeding stations.
Next, Add some hiding places for the new ones to get away from the bigger ones. Lean a piece of plywood against the fence, put a very large planter pot (that has had the bottom cut out ) it will make a tunnel. ad outdoor perches - - lower for the new guys.

If there is a large difference in size - - you may not be able to mix them until they get bigger.

I have sectioned of a part of my coop for a couple of new pullets and roos that I recently acquired. I blocked the view with pieces of card board because of the roos. Once I then my existing flock - - - I have a roo and two hens I want to get rid of - - - I will take the cardboard down for a week or two so that they can see each other - - - but not get to each other. Then I will try to introduce them

 

[ShysCreations]

The key is allowing all to be within sight of one another and not terribly far apart in age. I house the newbies close to other hens for a week and let everyone out together in the big yard when I'm at home. This way the new ones can still find a safe spot away from others. The new ones need safe access to food/water. I find that older birds are not receptive to the fully feathered but still chirping juveniles. The methods above have helped the transition. GOod luck!