I have 4 new girls that I'm trying to add to my flocks, but I'm running into a little trouble.
Let me give you a little context, so you can get a picture of what my set up looks like:
I had one coop, with 4 girls (3 standard, 1 bantam) and 2 roosters (1 standard, 1 bantam). I decided to build a second coop, and split up the flock so that I have one coop for standards and one for bantams.
I got 4 new girls (2 standard, 2 bantam) last month. They went through quarantine, and I put them out in the little coop (they spent some of their quarantine in the little coop). The other chickens were then allowed to go up to the little coop and meet the new girls.
When they were all comfortable being around each other, I let them all out together into the garden. There was a little bit of chasing, but that quickly became comfortable being out together.
Four days ago, I decided to move them into their permanent coops. The new standards went into the big coop, and the bantams from the big coop went into the little coop with the new bantams.
Now, here is where the trouble started.
I'll start with the big coop. In there I have two 5 y/o girls, a 1y/o hen, a 1 y/o rooster, and the new girls, who are about 5 months old.
The 5 y/o hens have been chasing the new girls, to the point where they can't come down off the roosts in the run without getting chased. They get a couple seconds at a time to eat and drink, before they get chased again.
The 1 y/o hen was nice to the new girls at first (she actually sat with them on the roosts), but today she started to glare and peck at them.
The rooster...well...I don't really know what's going on with him. Sometimes he treats them really well (tid-bitting, dancing, protecting them, and even mounting them). But other times, he pecks and chases them. I have no idea why he's acting like that.
Next is the little coop. In there I have a 1y/o hen, a 1 y/o rooster, and the new bantams, who are about 14 weeks old.
At first, the new bantams were chasing the 1 y/o hen. But, they've actually become friends now. They follow each other around, and clean each other's beaks.
The 1 y/o hen really hates the rooster. She used to love him when they were younger, but now she is constantly chasing and pecking him. The poor guy is constantly running away from her.
At the same time, the rooster is not interested in the new bantams at all. Actually, he chases them quite badly. I think it might be because they are still quite young, and not even close to laying or anything. The rooster is also really obsessed with getting back to the big coop, because he particularly likes one hen in there.
So, this is what I'm dealing with. Do you all have any ideas on how I can help everyone get along better? Or do I just need to give it more time?
Let me give you a little context, so you can get a picture of what my set up looks like:
I had one coop, with 4 girls (3 standard, 1 bantam) and 2 roosters (1 standard, 1 bantam). I decided to build a second coop, and split up the flock so that I have one coop for standards and one for bantams.
I got 4 new girls (2 standard, 2 bantam) last month. They went through quarantine, and I put them out in the little coop (they spent some of their quarantine in the little coop). The other chickens were then allowed to go up to the little coop and meet the new girls.
When they were all comfortable being around each other, I let them all out together into the garden. There was a little bit of chasing, but that quickly became comfortable being out together.
Four days ago, I decided to move them into their permanent coops. The new standards went into the big coop, and the bantams from the big coop went into the little coop with the new bantams.
Now, here is where the trouble started.
I'll start with the big coop. In there I have two 5 y/o girls, a 1y/o hen, a 1 y/o rooster, and the new girls, who are about 5 months old.
The 5 y/o hens have been chasing the new girls, to the point where they can't come down off the roosts in the run without getting chased. They get a couple seconds at a time to eat and drink, before they get chased again.
The 1 y/o hen was nice to the new girls at first (she actually sat with them on the roosts), but today she started to glare and peck at them.
The rooster...well...I don't really know what's going on with him. Sometimes he treats them really well (tid-bitting, dancing, protecting them, and even mounting them). But other times, he pecks and chases them. I have no idea why he's acting like that.
Next is the little coop. In there I have a 1y/o hen, a 1 y/o rooster, and the new bantams, who are about 14 weeks old.
At first, the new bantams were chasing the 1 y/o hen. But, they've actually become friends now. They follow each other around, and clean each other's beaks.
The 1 y/o hen really hates the rooster. She used to love him when they were younger, but now she is constantly chasing and pecking him. The poor guy is constantly running away from her.
At the same time, the rooster is not interested in the new bantams at all. Actually, he chases them quite badly. I think it might be because they are still quite young, and not even close to laying or anything. The rooster is also really obsessed with getting back to the big coop, because he particularly likes one hen in there.
So, this is what I'm dealing with. Do you all have any ideas on how I can help everyone get along better? Or do I just need to give it more time?
