Americauna, Arcauna, or Easter Eggers?

[barefootfarmer]

I just bought a pair of year old hens today and the lady who sold them to me swears they are Easter Eggers. One is buff and one is grey buff. I have always had a very hard time telling the three breeds/types apart. So what have I got? Sorry if it's hard to tell in these pics. I didn't get any good ones of the grey buff.

This is a rear view...They are on the far left below the roost in the first run you see.


This is the buff.


The buff (angry) again.

 

[CCCCCCCCHICKENS]

Easter Eggers

 

[K Spot]

Easter Eggers

 

[barefootfarmer]

I posted this under managing your flock earlier today and never got a reply....Could anyone help me with the new EE dilemma?

I have never had standard sized chickens until yesterday. I have always loved my bantams, but decided I would give standards a try. I brought home 5 BO hens yesterday who are 22 weeks old. None had laid for their previous owner, but I got an egg this morning from one. I am keeping them in an 8x12 run with elevated nesting boxes. They share this with a pair of Peking ducks at night. Once they know where home is they will be free ranging during the day.

The woman I bought them from sold them because they were beating up on the younger hens they added to the flock. I figured this was because she had 10 standard chickens in a roughly 6x3 run with two tiny coops on either end.

Today I brought home a pair of year old EE hens (which DH has dubbed the last chickens I will be bringing home our new chicks start laying.) I put them in the run with the BOs and there was a practical knock down drag out fight. The BOs ganged up on the EEs and feathers went to flying.

Needless to say, I removed the EEs and put them with the bantams. The bantams chase the EEs but they don't try to kill them. The EEs don't put up a fight they just run away.

My only concern is that the EEs will get tired of being chased and fight back. They are larger than the bantams and I don't want any of my babies hurt.

I need suggestions. Should I put them back with the BOs and let them fight it out under my watchful eye, or leave them with the chasing bantams? Neither option seems ideal, but I have to figure something out.

 

[K Spot]

When you put the EE's in with the BO's, did you just place them in the coop? If so, there's one of your problems.

It's highly advised to quarantine new chickens away from your existing flock for around a month to prevent any disease/parasites/infection the newcomers may be carrying from spreading through your whole flock.
After the quarantine period is over, you can them put the newcomers in separate cage/crate in with the existing birds so they can get used to one another.
I know when I was introducing my Welsummers, my Araucana was fluffing up her breast feathers and striking at them through the cage wire, the cheeky beggar.

After a couple of days with each other, letting the new chickens out of the cage with the existing birds at night is a popular way to do it. The existing birds kind of wake up the next day, look at the new ones with a "oh, where have you been all this time?" look on their faces.
Pecking and going after each other is all part of normal behaviour as they try to re-establish a pecking order.

It's important to have enough space in the coop/run where the attackees can run away from the attackers. I don't have much issues with squabbles as I have only 9 chickens in a huge coop/run set up that could probably house 20-25+ birds.

At this stage, your EE's are at the bottom of the pecking order with the bantams. I don't know whether they will try to challenge them in their pecking order or not as I don't keep bantams.

This is all just from my experience - others may have more information on what you should do, but this is what has worked for me.

 

[CCCCCCCCHICKENS]

My EEs were always outsiders but they wont just let the other hens beat up on them either. I have never owned BOs, because I never thought they were very friendly ironically.

 

[barefootfarmer]

I tried with the BOs one more time and things looked like they were going well, so I left them alone for about thirty minutes. When I came back to check, both EEs had flown up onto the roosts and managed to work their way around the tarp over the run onto the rabbit hutch on the other side. I guess they were tired of running from the BOs. I wound up removing them and placing them in the empty rabbit hutch between the two separate runs so that both groups of chickens could see them all day. After dark I went into the BO coop and placed them on an empty roost without disturbing the others. I plan to get up super early tomorrow and observe behavior when they wake. If that doesn't work, I guess I will leave them in the rabbit hutch for a few more days so they can see one another like you said above. The lady I bought them from had already quarantined them for 3 weeks before she sold them to me.

 

[barefootfarmer]

My EEs were always outsiders but they wont just let the other hens beat up on them either. I have never owned BOs, because I never thought they were very friendly ironically.

The BOs are super super super sweet to humans...and ironically ducks...but even the ducks hate the EEs!

 

[CCCCCCCCHICKENS]

The BOs are super super super sweet to humans...and ironically ducks...but even the ducks hate the EEs!

My pekins got along great with my EEs. my mallards were mean to them, but they ere mean to all the chickens. But I no longer keep ducks and I have my EEs are seperated and my ameraucanas are seperated, but that is because I breed them, then i have a flock of variousbreeds thrown together.For the most part e eryone gets along.

 

[barefootfarmer]

When you put the EE's in with the BO's, did you just place them in the coop? If so, there's one of your problems.

It's highly advised to quarantine new chickens away from your existing flock for around a month to prevent any disease/parasites/infection the newcomers may be carrying from spreading through your whole flock.
After the quarantine period is over, you can them put the newcomers in separate cage/crate in with the existing birds so they can get used to one another.
I know when I was introducing my Welsummers, my Araucana was fluffing up her breast feathers and striking at them through the cage wire, the cheeky beggar.

After a couple of days with each other, letting the new chickens out of the cage with the existing birds at night is a popular way to do it. The existing birds kind of wake up the next day, look at the new ones with a "oh, where have you been all this time?" look on their faces.
Pecking and going after each other is all part of normal behaviour as they try to re-establish a pecking order.

It's important to have enough space in the coop/run where the attackees can run away from the attackers. I don't have much issues with squabbles as I have only 9 chickens in a huge coop/run set up that could probably house 20-25+ birds.

At this stage, your EE's are at the bottom of the pecking order with the bantams. I don't know whether they will try to challenge them in their pecking order or not as I don't keep bantams.

This is all just from my experience - others may have more information on what you should do, but this is what has worked for me.

I tried with the BOs one more time and things looked like they were going well, so I left them alone for about thirty minutes. When I came back to check, both EEs had flown up onto the roosts and managed to work their way around the tarp over the run onto the rabbit hutch on the other side. I guess they were tired of running from the BOs. I wound up removing them and placing them in the empty rabbit hutch between the two separate runs so that both groups of chickens could see them all day. After dark I went into the BO coop and placed them on an empty roost without disturbing the others. I plan to get up super early tomorrow and observe behavior when they wake. If that doesn't work, I guess I will leave them in the rabbit hutch for a few more days so they can see one another like you said above. The lady I bought them from had already quarantined them for 3 weeks before she sold them to me.