Hello,
Thank you for the add. We got 12 hens 2 years ago, everything fine until last winter when the Starlings showed up and gave 4 of our hens salmonella I am assuming as they were laying those weird meat looking eggs.... apparently once they lay these eggs they have been infected for approx 6 months and I lost these 4. Fast forward, everyone is healthy, got 6 more baby hens in April, introduced them for 2 weeks in attached enclosure and they are now in with my flock for a month; however, they still go to roost in their mini-coop that they started in.
A friend of mine gave me 2 Black Sex Links last week, 2 months old so they are a month behind the 6 I got in April. So they are in a cage next to the mini-coop where the other 6 sleep. During the day there is a fence separating the original 2 yr old hens (8 of them) and 6 new 3 month old hens. The breeds are: 2 yr olds - 2 Easter Eggers, 2 Buffs, 2 Ancona, 1 White Leghorn and 1 Red Sex Link (lost 1 white leghorn, 1 Red Sex Link and my 2 rhode islands). The six 3 month olds are: 2 Silver Laced Wyndottes, 2 Black Jersey and 2 Rhode Island Reds.
I joined this community so I can learn as much as I can about backyard chickens. We have a fenced 1/2 acre and have always let our hens free range for 3 hours before sundown. This year I started letting them free range all day and their egg production is not what it was last summer - used to get 99% daily laying and now 50%... I thought it was too many treats as my family saves their table scraps; they get 1/4 cup of meal worms every morning, I cut out the scratch grain at night during winter when spring finally got here. Other than the above, I love having hens. Ours are all friendly, been handled since babies. Britta, our German Shepherd finally learned the hens were not her chasing game toys. However, she accidentally got in with the 2 new babies yesterday caught one but she is gentle... she brought me a stunned humming bird a few years ago unhurt and also caught a stunned finch and brought it to me unhurt.... but she is NOT allowed to chase the chickens.
Yesterday I couldn't find one of the new babies, she had squeezed thru an opening in the blocked off part.... found her underneath the 2 yr old hens in the shade! They weren't hurting her, but she was laying down and the others had her surrounded like they were hiding her, but not doing anything to her. I put her back in the separate pen but wondered if that was normal and what were they doing, establishing dominance? I've trained dogs for most of my life, but never chickens ;-)
Tina Lynn
Thank you for the add. We got 12 hens 2 years ago, everything fine until last winter when the Starlings showed up and gave 4 of our hens salmonella I am assuming as they were laying those weird meat looking eggs.... apparently once they lay these eggs they have been infected for approx 6 months and I lost these 4. Fast forward, everyone is healthy, got 6 more baby hens in April, introduced them for 2 weeks in attached enclosure and they are now in with my flock for a month; however, they still go to roost in their mini-coop that they started in.
A friend of mine gave me 2 Black Sex Links last week, 2 months old so they are a month behind the 6 I got in April. So they are in a cage next to the mini-coop where the other 6 sleep. During the day there is a fence separating the original 2 yr old hens (8 of them) and 6 new 3 month old hens. The breeds are: 2 yr olds - 2 Easter Eggers, 2 Buffs, 2 Ancona, 1 White Leghorn and 1 Red Sex Link (lost 1 white leghorn, 1 Red Sex Link and my 2 rhode islands). The six 3 month olds are: 2 Silver Laced Wyndottes, 2 Black Jersey and 2 Rhode Island Reds.
I joined this community so I can learn as much as I can about backyard chickens. We have a fenced 1/2 acre and have always let our hens free range for 3 hours before sundown. This year I started letting them free range all day and their egg production is not what it was last summer - used to get 99% daily laying and now 50%... I thought it was too many treats as my family saves their table scraps; they get 1/4 cup of meal worms every morning, I cut out the scratch grain at night during winter when spring finally got here. Other than the above, I love having hens. Ours are all friendly, been handled since babies. Britta, our German Shepherd finally learned the hens were not her chasing game toys. However, she accidentally got in with the 2 new babies yesterday caught one but she is gentle... she brought me a stunned humming bird a few years ago unhurt and also caught a stunned finch and brought it to me unhurt.... but she is NOT allowed to chase the chickens.
Yesterday I couldn't find one of the new babies, she had squeezed thru an opening in the blocked off part.... found her underneath the 2 yr old hens in the shade! They weren't hurting her, but she was laying down and the others had her surrounded like they were hiding her, but not doing anything to her. I put her back in the separate pen but wondered if that was normal and what were they doing, establishing dominance? I've trained dogs for most of my life, but never chickens ;-)
Tina Lynn
