My favorite hen died about 2 weeks ago from what we suspect was heat. They were a flock of 3, now down to 2.
I went to a local, reputable, chicken farm and purchased a 4-5 month old hen to add to the flock (my girls are about 1 yr. 7 ms. old). Unfortunately, it seems I have done everything wrong and I am looking for advice on what to do now.
The bird I purchased appears very healthy, we checked her over for mites/lice and found none.
In the week I have had her, she's acting pretty much like the other hens in her behavior, eating well and drinking water.
She was introduced to the flock on day one at the advice of my chicken farm lady. (I put her to bed the first night so she woke up with them). I realized that this is a big no-no for a lot of reasons from what I have been reading about in articles by numerous people with chickens.
The girls I have a New Hampshire Reds and the new hen is a Black Orpington. The new girl is very sweet.
The NH chase her but the BO gets away every time, there are places for her to hide, places to get up on and away from them.
She's the first to go to bed and up on the roost (I have a crappy hen coop unfortunately but she can get on the roost and they NH can't) and she's the last to leave in the morning. She's also black so they can't see her in the dark, probably a good thing.
If they get near her she gets away from them. Very smart, clever little girl. Sometimes she hangs out close to me or the dogs and the other girls watch her from a distance of a few feet.
The other day I locked the 2 NH up in their coop and let the BO free range. That night they were happy to get out and didn't seem to mind the new hen.
Today I split the 2 NH (the big one is a bigger bully and the smaller one is the top gal) from each other both locked up and out of sight from each other, and the BO had free range. They kind of chased her a bit tonight.
Everywhere I read, there is too much advice and overload on what to do and not do.
So at this point in the game, one week into this venture... I really need and appreciate advice.
Should I separate the new hen now and put her in a rabbit coop with a run by herself for a few weeks?
Or do I continue with what I am doing now?
Should I rehome the older 2 and start over?
Should I coop them all but keep them in separate coops (2 NH vs 1 BO)? Or separate the older ones from each other a few days?
We watch them, there isn't any major fighting or blood shed, mostly chasing.
Like I said, too much overload. I want to keep all the girls healthy and do the right thing.
I don't want a 4th hen, I have a small backyard, and I don't want the new girl to get lonely or get beat up on.
I realize it takes a few days to weeks for them to start getting along. It's been very frustrating for me.
I went to a local, reputable, chicken farm and purchased a 4-5 month old hen to add to the flock (my girls are about 1 yr. 7 ms. old). Unfortunately, it seems I have done everything wrong and I am looking for advice on what to do now.
The bird I purchased appears very healthy, we checked her over for mites/lice and found none.
In the week I have had her, she's acting pretty much like the other hens in her behavior, eating well and drinking water.
She was introduced to the flock on day one at the advice of my chicken farm lady. (I put her to bed the first night so she woke up with them). I realized that this is a big no-no for a lot of reasons from what I have been reading about in articles by numerous people with chickens.
The girls I have a New Hampshire Reds and the new hen is a Black Orpington. The new girl is very sweet.
The NH chase her but the BO gets away every time, there are places for her to hide, places to get up on and away from them.
She's the first to go to bed and up on the roost (I have a crappy hen coop unfortunately but she can get on the roost and they NH can't) and she's the last to leave in the morning. She's also black so they can't see her in the dark, probably a good thing.
If they get near her she gets away from them. Very smart, clever little girl. Sometimes she hangs out close to me or the dogs and the other girls watch her from a distance of a few feet.
The other day I locked the 2 NH up in their coop and let the BO free range. That night they were happy to get out and didn't seem to mind the new hen.
Today I split the 2 NH (the big one is a bigger bully and the smaller one is the top gal) from each other both locked up and out of sight from each other, and the BO had free range. They kind of chased her a bit tonight.
Everywhere I read, there is too much advice and overload on what to do and not do.
So at this point in the game, one week into this venture... I really need and appreciate advice.
Should I separate the new hen now and put her in a rabbit coop with a run by herself for a few weeks?
Or do I continue with what I am doing now?
Should I rehome the older 2 and start over?
Should I coop them all but keep them in separate coops (2 NH vs 1 BO)? Or separate the older ones from each other a few days?
We watch them, there isn't any major fighting or blood shed, mostly chasing.
Like I said, too much overload. I want to keep all the girls healthy and do the right thing.
I don't want a 4th hen, I have a small backyard, and I don't want the new girl to get lonely or get beat up on.
I realize it takes a few days to weeks for them to start getting along. It's been very frustrating for me.
