Hello
I had two pekin bantam chickens, one was just over 2 years old & the other 4.5 years old. Sadly two weeks ago totally out of the blue I found the 2 year old dead in the nest box.
That has left my 4.5 year old on her own. She seems to have been coping very well for 2 weeks foraging, dust bathing & eating as usual. I have also been spending a lot of time with her in the garden. However today she is very lethargic, ate a little bit of Sweetcorn when I gave it to her but is just sat sadly in the undergrowth sleeping & uninterested in everything.
My question is if I get 2 new younger pekin bantams, around 5 months, does the age difference make it harder for them all to bond? Could the 4.5 year old get bullied by the younger chooks? Is it better to introduce one chicken rather than two as the 4.5year old has only ever had one chicken companion at a time?
Any advice please would be great!
I had two pekin bantam chickens, one was just over 2 years old & the other 4.5 years old. Sadly two weeks ago totally out of the blue I found the 2 year old dead in the nest box.
That has left my 4.5 year old on her own. She seems to have been coping very well for 2 weeks foraging, dust bathing & eating as usual. I have also been spending a lot of time with her in the garden. However today she is very lethargic, ate a little bit of Sweetcorn when I gave it to her but is just sat sadly in the undergrowth sleeping & uninterested in everything.
My question is if I get 2 new younger pekin bantams, around 5 months, does the age difference make it harder for them all to bond? Could the 4.5 year old get bullied by the younger chooks? Is it better to introduce one chicken rather than two as the 4.5year old has only ever had one chicken companion at a time?
Any advice please would be great!