Mean birds

[bmartin85]

We added 3 new girls to our to our flock of just over a week ago and our other 3 girls have not been happy since, I understand the pecking order thing but my new girls stay in the coop the whole day while my older girls stay in the run all day, they do roost all together but don't get along at all during the day, also the 1 older girl that started laying stopped as soon as the new 1's arrived, how long will this last or will this possible not ever stop until they are no longer together, any help would be appreciated. Thankz.

 

[Teila]

Howdy bmartin85

When you introduced the new girls was there some separated integration time or were they just all popped in together?

I have some thoughts but they are just my thoughts and others may think differently. Also, each flock has it’s own chickenalities and what works for some may not work for others.

Anyways, I have found the best method of integration is to allow the new and old flock to see each other through a wire divider or similar for a couple of weeks; this way they can get used to having the others around without actually feeling threatened or getting into a fight.

Your new girls are probably staying in the coop because they feel safe in there and away from the possibility of being picked on by the older girls. Also, if the coop and run are totally new to the new girls, they are probably not sure of where the ‘safe’ places are and where to run if being picked on.

Do you free range them?
If you do, I think it might be a good idea to let the original three outside for a free range while leaving the newbies locked in the run and coop. This will give the newbies a chance to explore their new surroundings without the fear of being picked on.

Once they have settled into their new surroundings, you could try free ranging them all together; in my experience lots of room and distractions works wonders with integration.

I believe if you leave them all in together, as they are now, they will eventually work it out without any intervention but if you want to help out, the above may be of assistance.

Are your nest boxes in the coop that the newbies are staying in?
If they are, it could be the reason your older girl who was laying is not laying now; she may be unsure and unwilling to run the gauntlet to the nest boxes. Is it possible she is laying somewhere in the run that you may not have noticed? Also, I believe stress can interrupt the laying process and the introduction of newbies could definitely cause her some stress.

 

[bmartin85]

Thank you for the response, I only had them beside the other girls for a few days (obviously not long enough), they are not free range but have a large coop and the run spans the length of the coop underneath, yes I have nest boxes inside the coop, the girl that was laying seems to not be afraid of them and I have seen her in a nest box a couple of times since they have arrived. My wife was worried we had egg eaters but we have kept a close enough watch to know that isn't the case,also we have looked closely in the coop and run to assure she isn't laying anywhere else, my older birds are just now getting of age to lay and the others are about 5 weeks behind them.