Day 1 Questions

Date sort Score sort
M

MrsWak

In the Brooder
Joined
Feb 29, 2020
Messages
7
Reaction score
56
Points
35
Hi. Im Day 1 into having chickens.
I picked up my 3 16 week old girls yesterday afternoon and put them straight to bed in their coop
Today is their 1st day inside their run and I immediately have some questions!
1) I think one of the hens spent the night on the floor rather than the roosting bars.
Do I check later tonight and put her on it or will this happen?
2) They dont seem to have eaten much of their pellets. Can I put them out again tomorrow or do I use fresh ea day?
3) When will they let me cuddle them???
 
:welcome

Hello, thanks for joining us! Congratulations on your new flock.

Give your new girls time to get used to their new surroundings, chickens aren't the quickest to adjust to change.

As long as their pellets from yesterday didn't get wet, it should be fine to put it out again today.

As for cuddling, some may eventually reach the point of enjoying that and some never do. Be patient with them, sit quietly and offer a bit of food in the palm of your hand, don't make sudden moves...sooner or later someone will come to check it out. They just need time to get used to you.

Best wishes!
 
Hello there and welcome to BYC! :frow

Congrats on your new flock! @N F C has given you great advice! Chickens get very stressed after a move. So move slowly around them for a while, talk softly, keep loud noises down. It's ok to put them all on the roost bar until they learn. And definitely sit down on the floor with them, bring some goodies and lure them onto your lap. Don't rush them, in time some of them will want to sit on your lap.

Good luck with your flock and welcome to ours! :-)
 
Hello and welcome to BYC! :frow Glad you joined.
I agree with @N F C and @TwoCrows. Also, your pullets are young. It is not uncommon for young pullets or low ranking hens to not try to jockey for a roost position.
How high are your roosts? How much roost length do you have in your coop?
Socialization comes with time. Chickens are prey animals and they know it. They are and should be cautious. They live longer that way.
 
Hi. Thank you for your replies
Ive got a plastic Solway coop with 2 nesting boxes and 2 roosting bars. Apparently ea bar is long enough for 2 hens. Bit worried one of them slept on the floor because she couldnt squeeze in with the other 2. My husband said to buy 4!!!
 
MrsWak said:
Hi. Thank you for your replies
Ive got a plastic Solway coop with 2 nesting boxes and 2 roosting bars. Apparently ea bar is long enough for 2 hens. Bit worried one of them slept on the floor because she couldnt squeeze in with the other 2. My husband said to buy 4!!!
Click to expand...
Pre-fab coops NEVER hold nearly as many birds as they claim. You should seriously consider increasing the size of your coop (by building a new one). You can rather easily convert an old shed into a coop.
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom