Added a new silky yesterday. need advice

[preciouschick]

I currently have 3 silky roosters and 2 silky hens. ( i know names are not age appropriate) They are 18 weeks. I need to get homes for 2 roosters. Anyways, I brought home this cute buff hen. She is about a year old. just starting laying for the previous owner. I brought her in the run yesterday around 3:00. I sat in there to keep an eye on the interaction. She is alot smaller than my silkys. One female was pecking at her neck. One rooster took a shine to her and decided to mount her twice. I thought he would be slightly too young to want to mate. I kept an eye on them the harrassment continued. I put her in the coop and they all roosted and settled down for the night. This morning she was hiding behind the waterer. So I sectioned her off so they could have the no see, no peck window. (chicken wire fence) She has her own water n food. Any idea how long or if they will accept her? should I do anything else?

 

[Lizzy733]

Integration typically takes around a week, but will depend on the temperament of your flock.

Keep with see, no touch, for several days and monitor everyone's behavior while your down there.

Give treats along the border, free range the main group and let her explore the run solo so she can learn where everything is...

Add new things to the run or rearrange things to keep the main flock occupied. Ensure you have x2 waterers and feeders so she cant be bullied away from necessities.

Organise the run so as to avoid opportunities for her to be cornered. Adding structures/obstacles that break line of sight are good as well.

Work wont be done once the flock accepts her in the run, keep a careful watch over roosting time - the bullying tends to ramp up when it comes to perch space at night with new birds often forced off the roosts or out of the coop entirely.

 

[preciouschick]

Integration typically takes around a week, but will depend on the temperament of your flock.

Keep with see, no touch, for several days and monitor everyone's behavior while your down there.

Give treats along the border, free range the main group and let her explore the run solo so she can learn where everything is...

Add new things to the run or rearrange things to keep the main flock occupied. Ensure you have x2 waterers and feeders so she cant be bullied away from necessities.

Organise the run so as to avoid opportunities for her to be cornered. Adding structures/obstacles that break line of sight are good as well.

Work wont be done once the flock accepts her in the run, keep a careful watch over roosting time - the bullying tends to ramp up when it comes to perch space at night with new birds often forced off the roosts or out of the coop entirely.

she has her own food n water. fenced away from others. Now its just wait and see. I think i will put her in with them a little at a time after a few days and stay in the run to monitor the flocks behavior. Hopefully they will accept her.

 

[Lizzy733]

she has her own food n water. fenced away from others. Now its just wait and see. I think i will put her in with them a little at a time after a few days and stay in the run to monitor the flocks behavior. Hopefully they will accept her.

Always best if you can observe. Just be patient and let them take things a step at a time. It's in their nature to drive off newcomers and make them work to be a part of the flock.

 

[preciouschick]

Always best if you can observe. Just be patient and let them take things a step at a time. It's in their nature to drive off newcomers and make them work to be a part of the flock.

One good thing is that when they go in to roost, they are not bothering her at all. She was hesitant to go in at first. I nudged her in, closed the omlet door and went around, opened the big door and set her on the perch. I think she may be too small to jump up there. might have to add another. thanks for your help.

 

[preciouschick]

Integration typically takes around a week, but will depend on the temperament of your flock.

Keep with see, no touch, for several days and monitor everyone's behavior while your down there.

Give treats along the border, free range the main group and let her explore the run solo so she can learn where everything is...

Add new things to the run or rearrange things to keep the main flock occupied. Ensure you have x2 waterers and feeders so she cant be bullied away from necessities.

Organise the run so as to avoid opportunities for her to be cornered. Adding structures/obstacles that break line of sight are good as well.

Work wont be done once the flock accepts her in the run, keep a careful watch over roosting time - the bullying tends to ramp up when it comes to perch space at night with new birds often forced off the roosts or out of the coop entirely.

things went very well. only took a few days for all to settle down. thanks for the advice

 

[Silkie fluff butts]

In addition to all of the great advice listed, we put up a piece of plywood as a partition to separate the roosting area. It works very well to cut down on roosting space squabbles.