HI all. Yesterday I went and bought 4 new hens, all between 6-8 months old. I added them to the 7 chickens I had. When I first introduced them, there were some small fights, but nothing major. They all went in to roost at the same time and seemed to do fine. Today, the new hens have stayed mostly in the coop and run only wandering out to free range periodically, but they won't let the other chickens in. It's like they are trying to guard it. As soon as my original chickens come in, they are chased away. I'm a bit concerned. I'm wondering if the new ones are going to let the others come in to roost. Am I going to have to build a separate coop for the new ones? Is it possible they will eventually get along? Any input would be appreciated. Also, one of the new hens laid an egg in the yard. How can I get her to lay in the hen box? Thanks for reading.
Could you add a second door, making it much tougher to guard. Use decoy eggs, wood, ceramic. plastic or golf balls, to lure them into laying in the boxes.