Introducing a new chicken

[Firstimer]

Hi! I'm new at chicken keeping, and I need a little advice. I started off with 3 chicks which grew up into 2 hens and 1 rooster. Since I'm in the city and cannot keep a rooster, I went back to the lady from whom I purchased the chicks and she traded me my rooster for a hen of approximately the same age.

This hen however had been picked on by the other ones and therefore has a "bald" patch on her breast and is missing some tail feathers. Anyway I took her home and my 2 other girls just wanted to peck at the bare spot on her breast or her neck (which is odd, I had never seen them peck at each other before)

Anyway, I separated my new girl (placed her into a smaller coop inside the bigger coop so that they would all get to know each other but not be able to peck or anything).

So now what is best? Should I keep her isolated until her fathers are back (and hopefully she gets a little more confidence and pecks back)? Or should I just let them sort it out now? And if I do the latter, will they stop picking at her eventually (hopefully sooner rather than later)?

I just don't want them to get bad habits, my coop is more than big enough for 3 hens to co-exist peacefully...

Thank you!

 

[tonibadgerschicks]

Hi

I am very new also but had a similar experience and the breeder told me never to introduce one hen on her own to a new group. Its better if you have 2 new ones.

Can you go back to the breeder and get another of the same age?

It is horrible when they peck at the lowest in the pecking order and I find it quite distressing but at least this way with 2 new ones they can buddy up.

 

[Junkmanme]

My SOLUTION is this:

I take my loaded Smith & Wesson revolver into the chicken area with me. I SHOW the pistol to all the chickens! I tell them that IF I see any of them pecking another, I WILL SHOOT the aggressor!

THIS does not work.

I decided to just let them "sort-it-out" themselves.

It was a good try, however.

not much help,

-Junkmanme-

 

[Firstimer]

Quote:
I thought about that, but I can't have more than 3...

 

[Firstimer]

Quote:
Ha, you laugh and yet I spent over 1 hour in my pen, grabbing the hens as they pecked on my new one to make them understand that *I* am the alpha chicken and the rest of them are all betas. Well I just can't do it for days on end... My SO said to let them sort it out, but I get sad for my new little girl, I want her to have a good time at my place....

 

[tonibadgerschicks]

Quote:
I thought about that, but I can't have more than 3...

oh dear! I did think that you would of thought of having more than 3.

 

[Junkmanme]

Get all the chickens that you want/can afford etc.

Don't limit yourself to only 3!

If the local ordinances say only 3...don't worry about it.

If you're old (like me), you can claim "Alzheimer's".

If you're young, you can blame the lousy school system for not teaching you how to count correctly.

If you're "middle-aged", you can blame a poor count on your NEW bi-focals!

No Problem!

-Junkmanme-

 

[Firstimer]

Actually the by-law says no chickens, but my neighbors said "sure three is no problem to us". I don't want to push it (especially after the very loud rooster incident).

 

[LupineLass]

Quote:
I'd push it, they might of said 3 because that's just how many you had, like if you had of had 6, then 6 is fine

I'd take them inside in seperate boxes for the day or a few hours. Move the inside of your coop around as much as you can to give a "new coop" distraction then release all three back together.

 

[2txmedics]

I had something along the same...got my flock all at 3 days of age, turned out I ended up with 7 roos!!! then they matured and all wanted to mount the hens...my hens were being treated rough, beyond rough. One mounted, and before done, 3 more on a hen. So I seperated the roos, kept 3 in the tamer ones, and put the others in large wired dog kennels until I could put them in there own run/coop.

it took me 2wks to do that, and I had them all next to each other with only 3" apart from each other...I built one coop/run...got them all in, and THEY TRIED TO KILL EACH OTHER!!! They could no longer be together. I didnt understand this, born together, raised together, and then side by side. It became a male thing I guess. So I put two in that run that could be together and the other two had to say in the dog kennels. And they couldnt see the hens either.

I ended up having to give 6roos away. and now, they live together in one coop/run!!!! at there new house. I also had 2 porc. d'uccles and I kept them in the main coop/run in a dog kennel for 3 wks...and I could never put them in with the others as they wanted to kill them.

now I have babies going on 1mo. old that Im gonna want to put into the main coop in 3mos ...and I dont know how it will work...might have to make another coop