Moving the Flock

[PRchick]

I will be moving to a place with some land and will be taking my chickens. My question is, since I will be rearranging all the runs and coops, is it ok to just put them where I want them and let them sort it out? I was thinking that since they will all be is a new place with different chickens, they will need to reestablish the pecking order, so I can just put them where I nee to and they will sort themselves out. Am I being naive? Will I have a major commotion and lose chickens in the process? How should I proceed.

 

[LizzzyJo]

If I have this right, you're saying that you currently have different flocks that you will be combining? I would do this slowly. They will eventually work it out, but there will be blood before that happens. Moving places will not auto change the pecking order within each flock. Do a look don't touch for a week or so. That's what I would do, at least. Just my 2 cents take it or leave it. I have moved flocks before.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Are they all your chickens or are you combining flocks from somewhere/someone else?

If they are all coming to a new place, keep them confined till they know where to sleep, and then to the run before free ranging so they can orient themselves to their surroundings.

 

[azygous]

Reading between the lines of your narrative, I think you already know this project is likely to be a bit complex, and the risk of stress and conflict is high. We certainly can offer advice on how to proceed, but we need more information than what you've provided.

Knowing where you're moving would help. (town and state).

How many chickens are involved? Age range?

A description of the grounds and structures or photos would help.

How do you plan on transporting the chickens? How many will be going for a ride?

 

[PRchick]

Thank all of you for trying to help. A little more about the situation.

I currently live in Houston and will be moving about 35 miles Southwest of where I am now to Simonton.

First of all. I was supposed to move in September, and with that in mind, I hatched and bought lots of chicks. So, at this point I have a mess. I would say that I have about 40 females over 6 months old and about 20 males. They have been kept in groups of about 10 and only one of the roosters is with hens. I am in the city and some of them are inside and some outside. I have 5 separate groups of females and 2 of males.

I will have 5 different runs and coops. There will be 4 20x50 runs one of them divided into two so 20x25, each separate run with a coop. I'm thinking 20 chickens per large run with coops to fit 20 chickens and 10 chickens per small run with coops to fit 10 chickens. The runs will be all next to each other. There will also be two smaller outside pens.

It should look something like this from the top (not to scale, but you get the picture).

The smaller pens are for breeding, so I will definitely have a rooster in each. I would also like to have roosters in the other pens which would be mainly for layers. Once I decide which males I'm putting in with the females, I will have a bachelor pen for extras and I will sadly have to figure out what will happen to the rest. Clear as mud?

From what I'm hearing, I should put the groups the way they are in the different pens and then introduce new ones in some kind of a crate and move them like that. And it will take some time.

 

[3KillerBs]

Thank all of you for trying to help. A little more about the situation.

I currently live in Houston and will be moving about 35 miles Southwest of where I am now to Simonton.

First of all. I was supposed to move in September, and with that in mind, I hatched and bought lots of chicks. So, at this point I have a mess. I would say that I have about 40 females over 6 months old and about 20 males. They have been kept in groups of about 10 and only one of the roosters is with hens. I am in the city and some of them are inside and some outside. I have 5 separate groups of females and 2 of males.

I will have 5 different runs and coops. There will be 4 20x50 runs one of them divided into two so 20x25, each separate run with a coop. I'm thinking 20 chickens per large run with coops to fit 20 chickens and 10 chickens per small run with coops to fit 10 chickens. The runs will be all next to each other. There will also be two smaller outside pens.

It should look something like this from the top (not to scale, but you get the picture).

View attachment 2989633

The smaller pens are for breeding, so I will definitely have a rooster in each. I would also like to have roosters in the other pens which would be mainly for layers. Once I decide which males I'm putting in with the females, I will have a bachelor pen for extras and I will sadly have to figure out what will happen to the rest. Clear as mud?

From what I'm hearing, I should put the groups the way they are in the different pens and then introduce new ones in some kind of a crate and move them like that. And it will take some time.

This is a hard question, but do you really need to move ALL of the chickens? Or just your best breeders so that you can raise up more chickens in the new place?

The sheer logistics of moving 60+ chickens is pretty intimidating in and of itself.

 

[azygous]

Huge undertakings require good planning unless you enjoy chaos. I'm not going to get into minute details as the fine tuning will be up to you. Here is how I would approach this.

1. Prepare the coops and runs on the other end thoroughly, no details left for "later". Those never get finished. The better the facilities are organized, the less stress your chickens and you will suffer.

2. Gather your cages and crates ahead of the move. Don't wait to see what you'll need after you've started to load the chickens and move them. Cage only those chickens together who recognize one another as flock members.

3. This is most important. Keep sub-flocks intact. Move them together in transit, and move the group together into their new home. No new or unfamiliar individuals. They must all recognize one another as the same flock.

4. While transporting chickens, place no skid padding such as old towels or mats in the cages and crates so they will not be skidding around on a slippery, poopy floor while the vehicle is in motion. It helps to throw something over the crates and cages so the chickens will not see the world speeding by. This is most stressful. A light sheet or tarp (it needs to let air in) places over the crates will simulate dusk and will soothe and calm the chickens. For such a short trip, no food and water is necessary while in transit. Don't even think about transporting the chickens in an open truck bed. The wind and noise and fumes will be disastrous. You will need an enclosed camper shell or a van or box truck.

5. Once installed in their new coops and runs, prepare electrolyte solution with sugar for all of the chickens. This will calm and fortify their systems against stress and possible shock.

 

[PRchick]

3KillerBs, I need to move them all because I am moving myself. The house will be empty and up for sale after I move.

azygous, thank you for the detailed explanation. I plan to use a dog crate and move one group at a time using the back of my car with the second seat down. It is big enough for a crate. The idea of putting a covering over the crate is a good one. I also plan to have the runs and coops ready to go before transporting them. For some reason I thought that since they were going someplace new, they could redo the pecking order while getting used to the new place. I'm glad I asked. Once everyone is settled I can start using the dog crates to put them in a different run when I move them. And now I understand that that will be a slow process and will take patience. Again, thank you.

 

[azygous]

Good luck. This is a huge undertaking, but with proper planning, it should go smoothly.

 

[PRchick]

Thank you. It seems like I always end up doing things the hard way. If I had been able to move in September, like I was supposed to, it would only have been 10 hens and a couple of groups of chicks that would have not been ready to go outside yet. The house people blame COVID, so I will too.