Ok... just wondering if anyone has heard of a chicken laying an egg because of stress?
Yesterday I bought a 1 1/2 year old steel gray silkie hen.
She is very skittish especially compared to the pullets weve been hand raising. But we got her to help teach our other chickens how to be chickens.
For the last week they are continuing to try to come in the house whenever the back door is opened. and our BR are old enough to be laying but havn't started yet so we thought it would be a good start for them to see another hen laying as weel.
I couldn't quaranteen as I am outa room at the moment and didn't want to keep her in the house since I have chicks supposed to be on the way. I know bad on my part but I thoroughly checked her over and she appeared healthy and happy. I watched for her to pass a stool before agreeing to buy her and checked it for normalness (no worms or anything) and she was from a small breeder who only had 2 roosters and 10 hens n a few chicks.
Anyway, she went right into the coop yesterday when we got home and then I put the rest to bed last night. I checked on them at 2am and they were all sleeping with her under the nest boxes still where she had been since bringing her home. This morning I didn't let em out cause the weather was very windy and cold (bout 60deg).But I did go out and check on them and they were all up and the new girl was right in the middle of my br girls standing next to my nasty girl. And at 2pm it was wormer so I let em all out to free range and she hung out with the BR all day. It was either the easiest introduction or the fastest in history I think?
Next problem.....
My dog is protective of the chickens and has been herding our pullets around since they where in the house! She apparently took the new girl (who is scared of dogs already) as an intruder and tried to attack. Luckily I was there and all she got was a small tuft of fluff before being wacked with a broom as I am pregnant and couldn't waddle after her very fast. Freaked the poor silkie out to no end however and she went into a shocky trans for a few minutes. I picked her up and cuddled her for a while and she calmed down so I let her go with the BR girls again. She bolted to my flower bed and layed down under a bush where we left her for a while. Then my kids tried to pick her up to make sure she was ok and there was an egg under her! Small but I think normal for silkies. She was very noisy when the kids picked her up so going broody maybe?
I moved her and her egg into the coop in a nest box and she hasn't tried to leave it for a couple of hours now.
I'm hoping she is going broody and will hatch the egg(s)(hoping she lays more). She is on the smaller size but the rooster she was in with was very large for a silkie and a beautiful splash color! I would love for her to hatch me some babies as thats part of why I chose silkies to begin with. Has anyone else had this happen? I figured a week and was just talking to my husband and his dad about how I think it will be a week or so for her to settle and be comfertable and start laying regularly, for a silkie anyway. Low and behold a few minutes later my kids find her on an egg......
I think she just heard me and had to prove me wrong in front of everyone!
Yesterday I bought a 1 1/2 year old steel gray silkie hen.
She is very skittish especially compared to the pullets weve been hand raising. But we got her to help teach our other chickens how to be chickens.
For the last week they are continuing to try to come in the house whenever the back door is opened. and our BR are old enough to be laying but havn't started yet so we thought it would be a good start for them to see another hen laying as weel.
I couldn't quaranteen as I am outa room at the moment and didn't want to keep her in the house since I have chicks supposed to be on the way. I know bad on my part but I thoroughly checked her over and she appeared healthy and happy. I watched for her to pass a stool before agreeing to buy her and checked it for normalness (no worms or anything) and she was from a small breeder who only had 2 roosters and 10 hens n a few chicks.
Anyway, she went right into the coop yesterday when we got home and then I put the rest to bed last night. I checked on them at 2am and they were all sleeping with her under the nest boxes still where she had been since bringing her home. This morning I didn't let em out cause the weather was very windy and cold (bout 60deg).But I did go out and check on them and they were all up and the new girl was right in the middle of my br girls standing next to my nasty girl. And at 2pm it was wormer so I let em all out to free range and she hung out with the BR all day. It was either the easiest introduction or the fastest in history I think?
Next problem.....
My dog is protective of the chickens and has been herding our pullets around since they where in the house! She apparently took the new girl (who is scared of dogs already) as an intruder and tried to attack. Luckily I was there and all she got was a small tuft of fluff before being wacked with a broom as I am pregnant and couldn't waddle after her very fast. Freaked the poor silkie out to no end however and she went into a shocky trans for a few minutes. I picked her up and cuddled her for a while and she calmed down so I let her go with the BR girls again. She bolted to my flower bed and layed down under a bush where we left her for a while. Then my kids tried to pick her up to make sure she was ok and there was an egg under her! Small but I think normal for silkies. She was very noisy when the kids picked her up so going broody maybe?
I moved her and her egg into the coop in a nest box and she hasn't tried to leave it for a couple of hours now.
I'm hoping she is going broody and will hatch the egg(s)(hoping she lays more). She is on the smaller size but the rooster she was in with was very large for a silkie and a beautiful splash color! I would love for her to hatch me some babies as thats part of why I chose silkies to begin with. Has anyone else had this happen? I figured a week and was just talking to my husband and his dad about how I think it will be a week or so for her to settle and be comfertable and start laying regularly, for a silkie anyway. Low and behold a few minutes later my kids find her on an egg......
I think she just heard me and had to prove me wrong in front of everyone!
