Phew, here I was busy posting about an inside-out egg shell and didn't even notice the storm until it was upon us! I am absolutely terrified of storms--luckily my parents were home or I would have had every cat, dog, and bird down in the basement, hunkered down! 
My dad looked out the window and said it wasn't that big of a deal, so we all kind of just did what we would be doing normally. (Well, wth some panicked pacing thrown into my routine.) The leaves are off the trees here (we're in a woods), so I could see a couple downed trees this morning--luckily nowhere near my coops or fences! I'm betting the side of the woods that the wind was coming from has a lot more damage than here at the center.
I'm glad at least everyone seems okay! My girls were free-ranging when the storm hit--I thought I was going to be looking for hens in the next county over by the way the wind was blowing! (Of course, they were fine.
)
Aaaanyway, some hurried research came up with little ideas as to how or why an egg would be brown inside the shell, other than for the chocolate-brown egg layers that sometimes have brown show up through the shell as a result of how much pigment is layered onto them. I found just one report outside of BYC of an egg with brown inside the shell, and from the answer they got, I assume they did not mean the inside of the shell was brown, but that there was brown in the albumen.
I couldn't seem to find any answers about it here at BYC, either! It's a mystery! Whichever hen was laying those eggs, though, appears to have quit laying for the season. Maybe that's why she had something strange going on.
Please do! I've only read of one other person finding these kinds of eggs (she's a BYC member, but I don't remember her username), and no one seems to know why it happens.
If you have the space, I would let them get used to one another through the fence for a couple weeks, and then introduce them by letting them free-range together. The idea is that they have contact with one another on neutral territory, so no bird has claim to the territory. I have absolutely no experience with introducing roosters to one another, but I would be very careful introducing a bantam rooster to a large fowl rooster, as the bantam could sustain some serious injuries. As a side note, if you have bantam hens and a large fowl rooster, be aware that the LF rooster will attempt to mate the bantam hens and they can also be injured by his advances as a result of the considerable size difference.
CRSelvey - I have heard conflicting information about hay. Some use it with their hens without issue, but others say it can cause crop binding. Straw, on the other hand, might make a good hiding place for mites if you end up with an infestation (although I think that's more of a concern if you use it in the coop, not so much if it's outside). I think you should go with whichever is more economic for you. Which is cheaper for you? Will you have a use for hay if you get it instead of straw? Whichever works best is what I would go with if I were you.
My dad looked out the window and said it wasn't that big of a deal, so we all kind of just did what we would be doing normally. (Well, wth some panicked pacing thrown into my routine.) The leaves are off the trees here (we're in a woods), so I could see a couple downed trees this morning--luckily nowhere near my coops or fences! I'm betting the side of the woods that the wind was coming from has a lot more damage than here at the center.I'm glad at least everyone seems okay! My girls were free-ranging when the storm hit--I thought I was going to be looking for hens in the next county over by the way the wind was blowing! (Of course, they were fine.
)Aaaanyway, some hurried research came up with little ideas as to how or why an egg would be brown inside the shell, other than for the chocolate-brown egg layers that sometimes have brown show up through the shell as a result of how much pigment is layered onto them. I found just one report outside of BYC of an egg with brown inside the shell, and from the answer they got, I assume they did not mean the inside of the shell was brown, but that there was brown in the albumen.
I couldn't seem to find any answers about it here at BYC, either! It's a mystery! Whichever hen was laying those eggs, though, appears to have quit laying for the season. Maybe that's why she had something strange going on.Please do! I've only read of one other person finding these kinds of eggs (she's a BYC member, but I don't remember her username), and no one seems to know why it happens.
Flock introduction help!
Our quarantine is over, but the new group is still sleeping in the garage. For the last couple days the new group has been free ranging while the old group stays in the run. Yesterday they've discovered each other on their own. Nothing exciting really. Also, right before the storm the new birds were trying to shelter under the coop overhangs.
ANYWAYS...
Group A-2 Roos and a hen, only a few months old.
Group B-Bantams, a Roo and 3 hens, about 5 months old.
B came from a group that had 2 Roos and a few other hens. There were no squabbles, but they were all raised together.
I'm hoping the Banty Roo is dominant enough, that he should stay at the top of the order. He is really good with his girls, not even doing a real crow yet!
So...after reading through the forums, I'm getting nervous about introduction and the pecking order. I was going to let them socialize through the run for the next week and switch them into the main coop Friday night.
Thoughts, suggestions, etc?
Other than that, would anyone be interested in a Roo? One is a Birchen Maran, the other is a Swedish Flower Hen, came from bradselig!
They will inevitably, be rehomed or culled...
If you have the space, I would let them get used to one another through the fence for a couple weeks, and then introduce them by letting them free-range together. The idea is that they have contact with one another on neutral territory, so no bird has claim to the territory. I have absolutely no experience with introducing roosters to one another, but I would be very careful introducing a bantam rooster to a large fowl rooster, as the bantam could sustain some serious injuries. As a side note, if you have bantam hens and a large fowl rooster, be aware that the LF rooster will attempt to mate the bantam hens and they can also be injured by his advances as a result of the considerable size difference.
CRSelvey - I have heard conflicting information about hay. Some use it with their hens without issue, but others say it can cause crop binding. Straw, on the other hand, might make a good hiding place for mites if you end up with an infestation (although I think that's more of a concern if you use it in the coop, not so much if it's outside). I think you should go with whichever is more economic for you. Which is cheaper for you? Will you have a use for hay if you get it instead of straw? Whichever works best is what I would go with if I were you.
