Any conflict with adoptions???

[MTtroutwithwings]

This morning I ran into one of the local ranchers who tried his hand at raising chickens (he's an angus rancher by trade). He bought 70 birds last spring and due to carelessness (my opinion) he's lost all but 4.
He ask me this morning if I wanted to take the last 4 he had, all layers, like I already have. Question is would there be conflict with my exist flock if I bring in 4 new strangers? If I don't take them they will eventually die too and I know I can provide a better home for them than they've had already, I just don't want to create havoc in the flock. Are chickens territorial?

 

[nccountrygirl]

Read up on quarantining them. You should always keep them separated for at least a month so you don't bring any illness or diseases to you existing flock.

 

[CovenantCreek]

Please read this: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=30851

MissPrissy just posted it yesterday. It'll help you figure out the best way to bring the girls home safely.

 

[MTtroutwithwings]

WOW! I had no idea! Problem is I have no other place to put them for quarantine. I do know he purchased them from our local feed store whom gets all their birds from McMurray's . My birds came from McMurray's as well. He lives only a mile from me so we're the same as far as the environment goes. Does this help at all?
FYI- When I meant "carelessness" in my initial posting, I'm referring to predator attacks, ie, dogs, skunks, etc. and I know he lost his first forty or so from piling as babies because he didn't provide adequate heat for them (idiot!)
Such a waste of money & precious little lives!

 

[tvtaber]

We added two EEs to our flock of 8 and there were some initial issues. We put the new girls in a dog kennel in the run for several days, covering it at night (we are in sunny CA!) until they got used to each other. Then we started opening the door to the kennel but not forcing the new hens to get out.

When they did start getting out and around, after another week or so, the others chased them into the coop and they hung out in there all day. Since our water is all outside I had to add a waterer to the coop for them and let the others out in the yard at least once a day so the new ones could get some air. This continued for a couple weeks, after which they started going outside and hiding under a small peice of plywood we have in the run for a shade spot and hiding place. Now they come out of there but do not really mingle with the others (it's been maybe 6 weeks) but when we take food up we have to make two piles, one for the enw hens and one for the old.

I suspect it will be several months before they are one flock, if they ever truly are, but they are all OK and no one got hurt.

I did not quarantine the new birds for more then 24 hours because I don't have space, and it worked out. I left them in the kennel away from the run, but it was not secure enough for night and was too heavy to move in and out of the run as I had plannned. However, if there is any possible way to do that it would be a very very good idea.
Vicki

 

[rooster-red]

Quote:
Can't stress this enough.

 

[speckledhen]

You really don't know for certain that he did not lose some of those birds to disease. Where they originally came from, the environment they are living in now, mean nothing. If they have a disease, and many chicken diseases mean that they can be carriers for life, they will infect your flock. Quarantine is really the least you need to do. It's always a gamble adding grown birds to your flock.

 

[Churkenduse]

I heard that you have to put them in another cage but close enough so your birds can see them so they get used to them. I adopted three and had to give back one because of fighting, I thought mine would have killed her. The is one possibility.

Also I read that if you introduce equal amount it would be fine, if you have 4 and you add four, if you had 10 and you add ten. I don't know about that one though. Mine are doing fine now, we are one big happy family.

Good luck, I would give it a try.

.

 

[MTtroutwithwings]

UPDATE>>> Just wanted to share my adoption experience!
I took the birds in on Feb. 1st and took the chance of not quarantining them as we are all from the same area (we're neighbors). I'd received 2 RIR's, 1 blk Australorp and 1 Araucana. After looking them over, they had frostbit combs & waddles, were skinny and the previous owner felt a need to clip they're wing feathers so they couldn't even fly well enough to get up on a roost much less a nesting box.

They didn't have a proper coop or any heat source, were fed strictly layer feed and with they're wings altered, it made them vulnerable to attacks from the ranch dogs he had.

Anyway, the first day, we did deal with the "pecking order" but after a couple of days everyone seemed to settle in. It was interesting to watch they're reaction to the heated coop, the assortment of feed/treats received along with layer feed and I made them a lower temporary shelf/ roost with deep litter in it to rest/sleep on until I could construct more nesting boxes (weather permitting). They're starting to get back some of they're wing feathers already, have put on weight (they were gorging themselves the first couple of days

) and can now get up onto the original roost & nesting boxes I had in the coop.
Yesterday, I completed the construction of 8 more nesting boxes. I originally had 11 boxes for 15 girls so now with 19, they all have they're own box.
Now with the add'l RIR's & Australorp, I wasn't able tell if the new flock had started laying again after they're move in with us because all the eggs are a variation of browns. But this morning, I went out to see how everyone did with the new additions in the coop and what did I find? A beautiful blue egg!

I believe my new lone Araucana was showing me her appreciation for her new nesting box!

I truly believe now that chickens DO know when they're loved!
The girls are all doing super, they seem to be very relaxed and happy, healthy and everyone is getting along together fine!

Lori

 

[hensdeliverthegoods]

You get all kinds of chicken karma points for doing this - way to go!