Adding a single bantam to my flock

[greggooo]

Hi there! If anyone has any wisdom about this, I would love it. A sanctuary called us last week, a Mille Fleur D'Uccle was found living in the woods, abandoned. They know us and asked if we could take her. She had been treated for lice and mites successfully and quarantined by herself for 3 weeks. We said that we would try.

She's SO cute and very sweet. She just wants to cuddle. Just be held and close her eyes. She needs to feel safe. Our flock has 7 hens and a rooster, regular size, easter eggers mostly. We just started her in a dog playpen in their run after a week. Immediately, our top hen stuck her head through the bars as far as she could and went for an eye. She's fine, and we put deer fencing around the cage so no more heads could go through. Cut to a week later...I have extended her playpen and there has been no fighting, they scratch and dustbath near her/with her. Our top hen hangs out near her, but there doesn't seem to be any aggression.

What do we do now? A couple of the hens have chatted with her, a couple have tried to jump her through the fence. And will she be okay with the rooster? He's a full sized easter egger.

Or do we now have a house chicken......? We don't want to give her a home only to let her get hurt.

 

[TwoChicksChix]

So the issue with introducing a single hen to a flock is that they’re all alone. Then you have to account for the fact that she’s a bantam, and a true bantam breed at that. So she’s much smaller than the others.

I however have been able to have my flocks co-exist for years now, with Ameraucanas, D’uccles, Silkies, RIR and a lot of other breeds.

My recommendation is that you make sure to give her plenty of time to get used to them and they to her. Maybe make a small little outdoor area with a foot only big enough for her so that if need be she can get away from everyone.

I’d just be careful if your roo decides to try and mate her.

 

[Shadrach]

What do we do now?

Build another coop and run and get her some bantam friends.

 

[greggooo]

So the issue with introducing a single hen to a flock is that they’re all alone. Then you have to account for the fact that she’s a bantam, and a true bantam breed at that. So she’s much smaller than the others.

I however have been able to have my flocks co-exist for years now, with Ameraucanas, D’uccles, Silkies, RIR and a lot of other breeds.

My recommendation is that you make sure to give her plenty of time to get used to them and they to her. Maybe make a small little outdoor area with a foot only big enough for her so that if need be she can get away from everyone.

I’d just be careful if your roo decides to try and mate her.

Do you have Roos in your flock? She's so tiny compared to him, and he's not even a HUGE breed.

 

[TwoChicksChix]

I do, but I also have other Batam breeds in mine, so she has her own group to go with.

If you just have one roo with a decent amount of hens, he might not be that interested in her.

Though I do agree that you should get another bantam or two if you can, let her have friends her own size so she isn’t alone. Plus, batams take up hardly any space, especially d’uccle