Getting adult birds

[SugarLandChickenMan]

Hello - just found someone selling some adult hens. What would be some warning signs for first time byc'ner. I would check their teeth (if they had some) and also kick the tires (but i'm sure they'd peck back).

 

[Snowbunny]

If it were me, I'd check that their combs were not limp, that their "bottoms" were not soiled and that the scales on their legs and feet are not lifted ~ a sign of mites. I have had great success with older hens!! I did leave them in an enclosed pen for about a week before I allowed them to free-range so they would not be so confused about their new home and where to return to roost at night!!

I'm sure I have left something out, but I'm equally sure someone else will chime in soon!!

 

[silkiechicken]

Look at over all flock health and housing conditions. Is the coop reasonably clean? Are the birds clean? Excessively poopy bottoms? Plucked out feathers? scaly legs? Mites? Pick a few up and lift patches of feathers to check for lice that may be hiding. Bright eyes, no sour breath, full comb, and general wellness. Then quarentine for a month to make sure they don't come down with a disease you didn't see at first.

 

[mdbucks]

Do above and ASK why are they getting rid of them, are they just getting rid of really old ones that no longer lay? anything that has gone into first molt? If you think there is anything fishy about thier operation, I would pass on the Adults, adults are fine, but dont take on someone elses castoffs that are no longer producing.

 

[eggzettera]

I would pass on the Adults, adults are fine, but dont take on someone elses castoffs that are no longer producing.

Too true, thats the reason I no longer date.....​

 

[Itsme]

 

[Barnyard Dawg]

We prefer raising ours from chicks and getting the full benefits of them.

 

[speckledhen]

One benefit of raising them from chicks is that they are less likely to have something to pass on to your flock. Yes, sometimes there are things that can be passed through the egg, however, most things that are contagious are contracted later on. I know I sound like a broken record about this stuff, but I've seen so much heartbreak and stress from adding birds that later turned out to have some awful disease, although they appeared healthy at the beginning.
I do prefer raising them from chicks. That way, I know what foods they've had, any health issues they've faced, etc and have had a hand in forming their personalities, to a degree. There are many people who purchase adult birds and it works out fine, but you never know how well they've been cared for previously.