Combining two groups of chickens - I can't take the stress!!!

[PaisyQ]

Okay, I have two hens, Middie and Lonely. They are just over a year old, and have been together since hatching. They currently live in a smaller A frame coop/run, and have a few hours a day to free range.

Then, I have my rooster, Cooper, and the two hens he hatched with, Pip and Red. They are 5 months old now. They were given the new coop, with the larger run, that I intended to move all the birds into.

So, for the past couple weeks instead of letting Middie and Lonely free range, I've been putting them in a partition in the large run, so everyone could get used to seeing eachother. Things have been going well that way, so this morning I took the partition down. Coop went after my two older girls, and wouldn't leave them along. I mean, he's trying to mate them, constantly, non-stop. When he does this, Pip starts attacking whoever he's mating. Red pretty much ignores everyone, but periodically comes over to pull at Middie or Lonely's feathers. Eventually Middie and Lonely found a corner they could hide in, and the others left them alone. But if they tried to come out, they got harrassed back into the corner. I couldn't take it anymore, so I took the older girls out, and now they are happily free ranging the yard, the way I like them to be. Oh, I did try letting all the birds out into the yard, figuring more space would help, but Cooper just chased the older girls all over creation. Seriously, he won't let them alone!

I want to know, is this 'normal' behavior when combining different groups of birds? Do I need to just grit my teeth and let my older girls suffer through this? Or is there something I'm doing wrong, somthing else I can try? To complicate matters, I still have two 11 week old chicks, and two 4 week old chicks that will need to be integrated in eventually as well.

 

[bobbi-j]

Get used to it. They are establishing their pecking order. The rooster has a couple of things going on - hormones, and trying to be dominant. Eventually thing settle down. Letting them see each other for awhile may help integration some, but I don't think pecking order can be established until they are actually interacting with one another, and that's not a pretty thing.

 

[PaisyQ]

Get used to it. They are establishing their pecking order. The rooster has a couple of things going on - hormones, and trying to be dominant. Eventually thing settle down. Letting them see each other for awhile may help integration some, but I don't think pecking order can be established until they are actually interacting with one another, and that's not a pretty thing. 

Thanks. I sort of thought this was the case, but I needed someone else to say it. It's hard to watch. My two older girls are my favorites, and I had thought they would be the ones at the top of the pecking order, but they are taking all the abuse right now. I guess I'll go let everyone together again.

 

[bobbi-j]

Thanks. I sort of thought this was the case, but I needed someone else to say it. It's hard to watch. My two older girls are my favorites, and I had thought they would be the ones at the top of the pecking order, but they are taking all the abuse right now. I guess I'll go let everyone together again.

My guess is - and it's only a guess, because I have no way of knowing what really goes on in a chicken's brain - that the older ones are getting picked on because they were put into the other ones' territory. If you had put the younger ones into the older ones' pen, the tables could well have been turned.

 

[donrae]

I"m thinking, let the older ones out to range, and one of the younger hens. Then add the other younger hen after a few days, then the rooster. That's probably the "nicest" way to do it.

Then again, if it were me, I'd just combine everyone and let them all range and sort it out. Yes, the rooster's going to go after them, but he'll ease up after a while. May take a few hours, and he'll probably do it each day. He's young and incredibly horny and you've just given him two new females to mate with.....he thinks it's a buffet

. As long as birds have a place to hide from another bird, and plenty of room to run away, and no blood, I call it good.

 

[PaisyQ]

I actually have just had them all together in the run, and Cooper was letting the older girls some space. I just put the partition up again though, because Lonely wanted to lay her egg, and they wouldn't let her near her nest box. The younger birds were fascinated with it for some reason. .

Donrae, I think I'll give your idea a try if things don't continue to calm down. I've got 5 acres, but most of it is wooded. I don't want any of the birds getting chased into the woods where I can't see them. I get nervous when I can't find one of them. ;P I did try locking Cooper in the coop, while having all the girls in the run. They behaved a little better towards eachother that way, but Cooper went absolutely ballistic by himself in there. Too much stress for the poor boy to be unable to watch over his girls, I guess.

 

[5 Acre Rooster]

Its probably hormones not stress. In that little brain he KNOWS there is mature females there if he can hear them. And the girls are out there too. If he is as aggressively mating the older hens as much as you say his little brain is probably thinking that some OTHER bird is having his fun.

Are the younger pullets mature yet? At 5 months I would think they are but some aren't. If they haven't layed eggs yet that may be why they are confused by the nest box. And actually trying to figure out if its safe and meaning to protect the hens from that new thing. Or they could just be pushy. just some thoughts, I am not a chicken so I don't know what they think.

 

[PaisyQ]

Its probably hormones not stress. In that little brain he KNOWS there is mature females there if he can hear them. And the girls are out there too. If he is as aggressively mating the older hens as much as you say his little brain is probably thinking that some OTHER bird is having his fun.

Are the younger pullets mature yet? At 5 months I would think they are but some aren't. If they haven't layed eggs yet that may be why they are confused by the nest box. And actually trying to figure out if its safe and meaning to protect the hens from that new thing. Or they could just be pushy. just some thoughts, I am not a chicken so I don't know what they think.

All four girls are laying eggs. Cooper has calmed down now. They have been together most of the day. He's still mating them a lot, but he gives them a break between times. And Lonely has started asserting dominance over Pip, when Cooper isn't too close by. I put the older girls in the big coop last night, and everything went fine. There was some scuffling first thing when everyone went out into the run, but it's been a pretty decent day. They pretty much stay in their own groups; Lonely and Middie together, and the younger three together. Most of the time when they come together there is a little scuffle, sometimes however they do get along. I think things are coming along.

I cleaned out the smaller A-frame coop, and but the two 11 week olds in it now. I also dropped the two 4 week olds in it with them for about half an hour. I think everyone was too distracted by the new surroundings to care about anything else, but after a bit the larger hen started going after the babies, so I had to remove them. Was hoping I might be able to start introducing them now, and avoid some of the drama later. I think I may leave the babies in there an hour each day, but inside the dog crate, so they can't be pecked on.

 

[PaisyQ]

We are slowly learning to accept eachother. Yesterday was somewhat stressful, with the older birds wanting to hide out in the coop a lot. It's been very hot, so not the best idea for them. At bed time last night Cooper and his two went into the coop, and the older two stayed out. Eventually Lonely ventured in. I heard a scuffle, and she came back out again. Then both she and Middie went in together. No noise, but they both came out again. Finally they both went in. I watched from the doorway; Lonely forced her way onto the roost. There were complaints, but no one made her get off. Middie wasn't brave enough; she was trying desperately to roost on the sloped top of the nesting box. I went in and grabbed her, and set her on the nesting box perch instead. An hour later I went to check again, and all five birds were on the roost.

I had to work today, and was nervous all day, but everyone seemed fine when I got home. It's been too hot again today, so I brought them out a cool treat. Cooper called his tidbitting song when he found it; the older two girls answered, came running, and he let them have it. That was nice to watch.

Well, I thought since things were going so well, I'd let everyone free range today for a few hours. For whatever reason, they all seem content to stay in the run. I even lured them out with some scratch, but once it was gone, everyone headed back inside. I sure hope they don't decide to give up free ranging.

 

[bobbi-j]

They'll go back out to free ranging once they get themselves straightened out. Chickens don't do change well, and their routine is all out of whack. Give it time and they'll be fine. Personally, I feel the less human intervention, the better - I think they adjust faster if left to themselves. Of course you would need to step in if there were injuries severe enough to cause bleeding, but that doesn't seem to be your case. Just let them do their thing and they'll be fine. Then you get to start all over again when you introduce the next ones.

Every single time you add or subtract chickens from your flock, it upsets the pecking order and they have to start all over again, figuring out who's who in the order.