Integration, run clutter, toys and a safe veggie feeder

[Pukkits]

Hello chicken friends,

Long story. I'm currently integrating our nine week old orpington pullets (3 lavender, 5 chocolate) in with our two five year old hens (barred rock and buff orpington). So far it's going well, though the barred rock is *so* over the babies. They give her a wide birth, and she slaps them off the roosting bar if they try to snuggle at night. Last night they figured out if Becky the barred rock is against the wall with Lucia the buff next to her, Lucia allows the babies to roost next to her.

We are going from two (used to be three, we lost Giavanna to cancer last fall) mild mannered birds to ten, nine orpingtons and a barred rock. Our older hens were both "outcasts", in our original flock bullying became severe no matter what we tried so we ended up rehoming the more normal hens and keeping the docile ones. Lucia is just sort of different, friendly, derpy, feathers stick out funny and a crooked toe, and for some reason average chickens want to kill her. After the second life-saving rescue, we rehomed anyone that couldn't be nice to Lucia, figuring normal birds could acclimate to other flocks better. Becky isn't normal either, she had some kind of chick stroke as we left the feed store. She revived, and we realized they would cull her I we returned her, so we kept her. She has some kind of anxiety, nonstop "braaawwwwwwwwwww" if she feels nervous. Which was basically all the time, so other birds weren't happy with her. Once we rehomed bullies, she only makes sounds to communicate.

So far integration is going well, and I'm trying to not fret as they establish their pecking order. With nearly five years with only a few birds in a large run and house, I hadn't been worried about a lot of clutter or a need for more stimulation aside from outer pen time (a less secure pen that has plant life. Given wild bird contact is more of a concern, I don't know how much longer we can use the outer pen). I'm trying to add clutter and toys to the run to try to help keep relationships healthy.

I just added a wooden sawhorse, and after finding a thread on run clutter I'll be leaning a pallet on it this afternoon. I'd really like to find a veggie feeder to reduce waste, but my derps spill pans or grind veg into the dirt and won't eat it. All the veggie feeders I've looked at have reviews that include horror stories. How do you safely feed veg with less waste?

What toys do your chickens like? Should I make a swing? Is there a hanging ball chickens like?

Becky on the roosting bar.

 

[Mrs. K]

Mine eat vegetable scraps off the ground. If you want, an old cake pan or other flat pan. They sell black rubber bowls at the feed store, and there are big flat ones.

I am a believer in adding a lot of clutter, it allows birds to get out of sight, and it allows feed bowls to be set up so that eating at one, you can't see who is eating at another.

I have never heard of chickens liking the swing, but they will love a roost in the run.

Mrs K

 

[rosemarythyme]

I just throw vegetation on the ground or if it's something very wet/loose like squash innards, I put it in a small ceramic dish (which is what I feed my fermented feed in). It's fine if they knock it over.

If your birds won't eat one type of veggie scrap try something different. I never know what they'll like (or hate) until I try it.

 

[Debbie292d]

We do what @rosemarythyme does above. Mostly just tossed on the ground, but sometimes in their ferment dish.

It's true here, too, that we never know what they'll like or not like until we try. Kale is a big favorite so that is grown for them, and we either chop it up for them, or tie it with twine and hang it so they can rip hunks off of it.

They don't do toys, but chasing bugs is their entertainment. I've seen chicken swings work though, but we don't have one.

 

[rosemarythyme]

It's true here, too, that we never know what they'll like or not like until we try. Kale is a big favorite so that is grown for them, and we either chop it up for them, or tie it with twine and hang it so they can rip hunks off of it.

Yeah I see a lot of people say their birds like apples, lettuce, zucchini, and mine won't touch any of those. So you never know what will appeal to them.

Mine also enjoy kale but some birds particularly like the flowers so I've been tossing in the flowering stalks while I still have them.

I've seen chicken swings work though, but we don't have one.

I had a chicken swing that a single bird used very rarely. It broke (old wood) so I bought a new plastic one and she won't go near it.