Introducing pullets to mature hens/integration

[Michael Fitzgerald]

Hello, I've found some great insight here in the past but have never posted anything. I have 3 mature hens; 2 buff orpingtons and 1 auracana. I got 3 ameraucana chicks this spring and they would rather roost outside than join their elders in the henhouse. It's getting colder here in North Idaho and the fall rain is here. I need to get these young birds roosting inside. Any suggestions? Thank you!

 

[azygous]

How much room is in the coop? Do you have enough space for a roosting perch for the youngsters apart from the adults?

Young chickens are intimidated by adult chickens. It's in their DNA and the adults reinforce it by letting young chickens know they are not welcome in their space.

The pullets may be getting close to point of lay (just a guess as you haven't included their ages) so it's important to get them comfortable with the coop.

Usually, pullets move into the coop by six weeks old and know it's home by the time they reach point of lay. You may need to coop them up for a couple days and let them get familiar with the coop.

If the older hens are laying, you have an access issue while the pullets are inside. You may need to partition them off from the nest boxes during laying time.

 

[Michael Fitzgerald]

Hi azygous. My henhouse is large enough for 6 to 8 mature hens. I'm not sure what a roosting perch is. I had 6 hens originally. The youngsters are at about five months. I'm familiar with the pecking order #orpingtonsarebullies
I have a partition for the nest boxes and none of my mature hens are laying atm.
For the past few weeks I've been placing the youngsters in the henhouse by hand every evening.

 

[azygous]

Most chickens sleep on a perch. It can be a 2" x 4" or a tree branch attached to the wall with brackets. Where to your chickens sleep?

Your avatar shows a chicken on a perch. A roosting perch is a perch chickens sleep on at night. It's called roosting when they sleep on a perch.

You were pulling my leg. Right?

 

[Michael Fitzgerald]

Ha. That's my leg. I thought "roosting perch" was specific to pullets. My hens sleep on 2x4 roosts. My henhouse is deluxe. I just need to convince the youngsters top go in at night.

I spoiled them by building a very simple adjacent henhouse. I was told to keep them separated for 16 weeks. I may regret that decision. I know that I need to make their outdoor roost less comfortable, but how can I lure them inside?

 

[azygous]

That's funny. Your leg is a perch. My chickens think my legs are perches, too. They also take liberties with using my legs and arms as napkins on which to clean their messy beaks.

Back to the problem. When trying to convince a chicken to change their behavior, no small task, you can only start to make progress if you make the old option as unappealing as possible.

I had a similar problem with a young pullet insisting on sleeping out in the run on top a partition. I solved it by stretching plastic deer netting over the partition so as to make it impossible to perch there.

Later on I discovered why this pullet was sleeping in the run. Her fellow pullet was hammering her with her beak when she tried to roost. It was so stressful and unpleasant, she decided to move out.

You're already putting them inside at night. Continue to do that. But figure out a way to block off the perch they find so attractive outside.

In the future, there's a better way to integrate chicks than waiting until they're full grown, which only makes them more of a threat to the adult chickens. I wrote an article about all the advantages of brooding outdoors in the run. It's listed below. You need to copy it onto your browser to access it.

 

[Michael Fitzgerald]

Thank you so much! I shall do my best and I'll read your articles.

I will attach some vertical fencing to their outdoor perch to discourage roosting. When the weather improves, I'll remove it completely.

 

[aart]

My henhouse is large enough for 6 to 8 mature hens.

According to whom?
If it's the manufacturer...it's probably inaccurate.
Actual dimensions and pics would rule out crowding an issue.
Adequate space is essential to smooth integration and overall health.

Oh, and, Welcome to BYC!

 

[Michael Fitzgerald]

According to Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens. It's 16 square feet plus nest boxes. I'm the manufacturer. I had 6 hens before and they were just fine. They also have a large fenced run and I let them roam the backyard for a few hours everyday.

Thank you!

 

[Michael Fitzgerald]

According to whom?
If it's the manufacturer...it's probably inaccurate.
Actual dimensions and pics would rule out crowding an issue.
Adequate space is essential to smooth integration and overall health.

Here are some pics. I realize you can't get a sense of scale. I will take pics with hens inside at some point. The floorplan is 4'x4' outside. The walls are 1 1/2 inches thick and insulated with expanded polystyrene (the white stuff). I covered the inside walls with melamine because it was available. It's fairly toxic if airborne or ingested but my girls aren't pecking at it. The floor is removable. It's basically a large drawer framed by 1x4s with fiberglass-reinforced-plastic on the bottom. When it's time to change the litter, I dump it in the compost, set the drawer in the sun, if there is any, and clean out the henhouse with a leaf-blower. I roofed it with random asphalt shingles that I got from a roofer; they don't match but my neighbors don't mind. The henhouse is on the small side but it's efficient and has worked well for my needs, so far.

Thank you for all of the insight!