Australia - Six states..and that funny little island.

[tandykins]

Rod, how have you gone about introducing them? For me, the easiest way has just been to plunk new arrivals in with the old ones, and let them settle things on their own, but some swear by using a wire separator between them for a while so that they can see each other but not get physical about their disagreements. Also, I think it's easier to have some sort of balance when introducing new ones. Putting three older ones in with 6 young pullets work, or if they're the same size and age, combining equally sized groups. Of course, the groups you start with should get along by themselves to begin with.

Since I started putting all new chickens in quarantine (two areas of my yard with a 12m barrier between them) there have been no issues with integrating new chickens. They can see each other through the fences and across the gap and can talk to each other but can't come into contact. By the time I introduce them face to face it's as though they're all old friends.

 

[Sidhe13]

Tandy: don't use sea sponge...it is made up of too many organisms and bacterial growth rate while wet is through the roof....i wouldn't risk it when we like nic,e clean incubators

 

[satay]

Howdy folks I have been lurking and keeping up with the posts but have not had time to reply until now. Sidhe13 I so hope that you have a better hatch this time around! satay your baby quails are adorable! cwrite Dusty cornered a Dove in the run once and proceeded to remove all of it’s tail feathers! Tail feathers: No tail feathers tandykins congrats on the bubbies, soo cute! More emphasised congrats on the save also! Good to see you again vehve the snow pictures are beautiful; I especially love the fifth one in, looks like a frozen waterfall. Congratulations on the bubs. I have a broody and chicks of my own that I can listen to but watching your video and listening to the bubs peep, the mum’s talking to them and the alarm calls is so nice; can’t get enough of it. I saw the bunny home you built on one of the other threads and just wanted to say that you did a great job! Looks fantastic! Looking forward to baby bunny pictures So, we had lots of rain again today and once again, we flooded. Cilla and the Nuggets spent the majority of the morning hiding in the nest box and on the balcony, watching the water flow through their run. It is not that their run is in the wrong spot, it is just that we have had so much rain of late any heavy downpour has nowhere to go and sadly we are lower than next door; at least they all have high, dry ground to sit and wait for the tide to go back out. It rained so hard, knocked a poor little Dove out of the tree and onto the ground; sadly he didn’t make it Hubby is getting the materials for the run extension tomorrow as we figured Good Friday was a good day to make a start, nothing much else going on; weather permitting of course.

I saw the pictures on the news from the north side of Brissy. We got a whole 4mm. We did get rain over night but I haven't checked the gauge yet,.The sun is out this morning so far... NO that will make the darn grass grow

 

[Fancychooklady]

Wow! Yes very nerdy household lol. So complicated! Fantastic that u can do all that tho and although u and the hubby obviously have completely different opinions all the time haha u seem to work really well together

Wow those snow pictures are BEAUTIFUL!

Thx for info tandy id love to do it if i werent already crazy busy studying! Haha. Goodluck to all who do it

Oh no not another flood teila! Wow u do get a lot of rain. Ours are always dribbles lol.

Chickens still not accepting the new girls.. any input there? :-( cheers

Did you introduce them through the wire ? ( a cage inside the coop ) . If all else fails try taking the alpha hen ( the biggest bully ) out of the fray and pop her in isolation for a week then reintroduce her to the flock. The theory is that this temporary change in the pecking order may give the newbies enough time to find their place in the flock. For individual additions I have taken the alpha hen out and penned her with the newbie for a few weeks then reintroduced them together.
Good luck with it a happy flock lays more eggs.

 

[Steampunked]

Well, the chicken coop has to go on hold, which is pretty sad for a couple of the chooks who refuse to roost with the others and so insist on sleeping on top of the shed - even in the rain. I don't dare lock them in, because they're lowest in the flock and they'll be bullied. The new coop is so huge I wouldn't care. We've managed to score the hire of a digger this weekend, and we desperately need to do some landworks. The chicken shed now has one back frame up and the floor, but it's pretty big and needs hands on, so it'll have to wait.

Phew, rennovating never, EVER ends!

At least some of our rooms have internal walls now...though we still have rooms with only external walls, so the house is gonna be cold in winter again.

 

[tandykins]

Tandy: don't use sea sponge...it is made up of too many organisms and bacterial growth rate while wet is through the roof....i wouldn't risk it when we like nic,e clean incubators

Good to know! I'll only use synthetic sponges and I'll be sure to nuke the crap out of them first. Thanks!

Phew, rennovating never, EVER ends!

I'm so with you on this statement. Our house is 100 years old and everything needs fixing or redoing all the **** time. -_-

 

[RodneyRooster]

Thanks for the reply guys.

Yes did the seperation by cage thing for just over 2 weeks. Then introduced them and my 2 RIRs were the bullies so i removed and rehomed them. It has now been almost 2 weeks i think and there isnt really any fighting the 2 groups just stay away from each other. Occassionally when i feed them scraps the newbies wander slightly closer so one of the oldies will chase them off and give one peck but thats all. Theres no fighting since i removed those roosters they just wont merge at all! :-(

Started off with 6, the new lot is 3 hens. Of course then got rid of 2 so its now 4 and 3. The current agesare about 6 months originals and 3-4 months newbies. My chooks are freerangers if that makes any difference. Have wondered about not letting them out til later and forcing them to socialise but i think that would do more harm than good.

The younger ones stay close to the shed and only range about 5-10 metres sq and the older ones roam about 2-3 acres.

 

[Ashburnham]

Chook house 17 nears completion
(A converted goat shed - please don't tell the goats.)

xxxx M

 

[IamSamSam]

Chook house 17 nears completion (A converted goat shed - please don't tell the goats.) xxxx M

Lol. Love it Ash

 

[appps]

Calcium carbonate is more readily absorbed by the hen. It's found in limestone .
It is a ' soluable ' form of calcium where as shell grit is an ' insoluable ' form .
Shell grit does contain shell but it also has sand and other sharps in it.
If your birds are free ranging and have access to green grass and /or veges then it is wise to add grit to the ration to prevent digestive issues such as impacted crop.
Most old timers will recommend the use of grit without really understanding it's true function.

http://www.agannex.com/production/the-relationship-between-grit-and-digestive-disorders-in-poultry

Ahhhhh lightbulb moment. I've had to go dairy free and have been drinking almond milk. Was a little confused to notice one of the ingredients was ground limestone. I thought maybe it was to make it whiter but now I'm thinking it's probably for the calcium duh!